Job description

How to Apply

To apply for this position, please include a copy of your resume and cover letter (make this the first page of your resume).
(Your salary will be determined by your qualifications, experience, and education.)

You will be eligible for telework in this role.

Summary

Come join a team of passionate individuals at a non-profit serving Michigan’s public Universities and Colleges, K-12 EDU, Libraries, Governmental, Healthcare and other Michigan Non-profit organizations for over 56 years! You will be an integral part of the Merit team, a dynamic, innovative team member, ready to contribute to and execute the mission of Merit.

Reporting to the Director of Member Engagement, you will identify, organize and execute efforts to support the needs and strategies required of our members. You will also be part of Merit’s Moonshot initiative, an effort to assess and address the digital divide for Michigan communities. This role includes coordinating regional Member needs, broadband expansion, business development, and strategic engagement. You will develop and implement strategic plans to include analysis of member needs and service requirements, including on-going outreach and support. You will be the primary account manager for key accounts also supporting strategy and business development, service sales, and recruitment to support the following:

• Member Engagement – Sales & Account Management Outreach Activities
• Merit Services Sales
• Member Recruitment
• Community engagement and business development activities related to broadband expansion

You will work both independently and within a team environment as well as across the organization with other Merit departments. You should be able to manage multiple projects and opportunities, and be able to prioritize and manage your work schedule in a fast-past environment.

You will become a subject matter expert related to local and regional strategic ecosystem building as it relates to network and security technology services, community building and broadband infrastructure. In addition to care and maintenance of existing Member organizations in the assigned region, this position will focus on the development of community ecosystems and strategic relationship throughout the state.

As an effective team member, you will be a highly organized self-starter, able to work under deadline, juggle multiple assignments simultaneously, be proactive and be willing to continually learn.

Please Note: This position can be a teleworking position or can be based out of the Ann Arbor, Michigan location and will require regular travel within the Northern Region within Michigan.

To learn more about Merit Network, please visit our website: https://www.merit.edu/

What You'll Do

Essential functions for this position are followed be an (E).

As the Community Engagement Manager, your key responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

Engagement & Procurement Activities (70%):

• Be the primary contact for existing and potential regional accounts and related strategic stakeholders (E)
• Deliver highly focused customer service with key stakeholders within member and prospective member organizations (E)

• Responsible for revenue generation and Membership growth through account management, outreach and business development activities (E)

• Develop and implement a business plan to grow Membership, expand adoption of Merit services (E)

• Engage with decision makers and technical staff to provide consultation on current and future needs of Merit services and network connections (E)

• Manage with self-sufficiency through the sales process of inquiry, discovery, quoting, presentation and closing by providing pre and post-sales outreach. (This includes RFP responses and quotes) (E)

• Develop, qualify and close service sales leads, achieving sale and account management objectives set forth by management (E)

• Accurately document all sales and engagement related activities, support documents and progress in CRM, with accurate judgment or projected close dates and contract amounts (E)

• Work with internal support team to coordinate quoting, installation and support activities (E)

• Be a resource to Merit's Members in other regions as requested by management

• Attend and conduct lead generation activities at conferences and events in Michigan and nationally, as required

• Prepare and/or present relevant content at meetings, training sessions, and events

• Work to connect un-coordinated intra-state entities in a strategic and cohesive manner within your peer Engagement Manager Team, escalating opportunities to Merit leadership where appropriate

Sales Engineering (20%):

• Conduct and/or determine scope definition, analysis of Member requirements, WAN designs, performance projections, Member satisfaction measures, and project management (E)

• Facilitate technical sales support discussions with Merit engineers, as required

• Conduct capacity planning exercise(s) with assigned Governing Member institutions in coordination with Merit's strategic engineering staff

• Acquire and maintain understanding of network and security technologies and services (E)

Other Responsibilities (10%):

• Develop subject matter expertise in the focus area of Merit’s services portfolio

• Maintain knowledge about growing technology trends

• Identify diversification and growth opportunities for Merit's service portfolio and collaboration ecosystem

• Serve as Merit's physical presence in an assigned geographical region. When necessary, assist Merit Network Operations, Merit Support Center, and Network Engineering within geographical region

• Provide useful product enhancement insight to Merit staff as identified through engagement activities

Skills You Have

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in a related field or equivalent combination of education, certification, and experience

• Minimum of five (5) years of experience in consultative sales of technology products

• Minimum of four (4) years of experience in account management, customer service, out-bound sales or equivalent hands-on, in-person consulting experience

• Demonstrated experience strengthening ties with existing clients as well as cultivating customers in multiple sectors of the market

• Demonstrated experience in a technical outreach role including writing, preparing, and responding to proposals, and coordinating meetings with various IT and technical departments to manage and finalize projects

• Ability to interact professionally and proficiently with individuals at all levels of an organization on technical and strategic discussion topics, involving Merit's Executive Leadership Team as needed

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills (particularly related to technical subjects)

• Demonstrated excellence in presentation skills

• Must be self-motivated, work well independently and as part of a team

• Ability to work in a collaborative process to respond, track, and manage Member requests and communications, in a fast-paced environment

• Demonstrated performance in revenue generation, retention and membership recruiting

• Fluency with MS Office applications, email, shared calendaring, CRM, and other collaborative applications

• Strong willingness to understand and to continuously strive to improve knowledge of Merit's services portfolio and technologies in order to be able to communicate confidently about them to the Merit Community

• Business development and consulting experience related to community building, business initiatives, product launches and expansions, public and private partnership relations and technology related projects

Desired Qualifications

• Understanding of network and security technologies and services

• Experience with state and national agencies and associations

• Experience being a trusted representative to external individuals and groups

• Experience working with higher education, K-12 educational institutions, libraries, government, healthcare, research institutions and other public sector non-profit organizations and experience developing public private partnerships within these market verticals

• Experience in marketing and/or sales of technology products and/or services to public sector, non-profit or educational markets

• Experience in the USAC Federal Programs that fund K-12, libraries, and healthcare telecommunications services

• In depth knowledge on federal funding programs for broadband infrastructure investment such as those outlined in the Federal Infrastructure Bill and the American Rescue Plan Act.

Additional Information

We are committed to offering a high-quality benefits package to support staff and their families. Learn more about our 2:1 retirement matching, healthcare plans with nationwide coverage including prescription drug coverage, multiple dental plans, a vision plan, flexible spending account, well-being programs, long-term disability, automatic life insurance, general legal services, multiple early childhood centers, time away from work and work-life programs to promote balance. Learn more at http://careers.umich.edu/benefits/

Relocation assistance is not available for this position.

Physical Demands:

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by you (with or without accommodations) to perform the essential functions of the job.

You must frequently work at a computer station, answer telephone calls, emails, and other forms of customer/client communication. You may on occasion move items of varying sizes and weights throughout the office or building.

Travel:
Regular travel within the Northern Region is required.

Background Screening:
The University of Michigan/Merit Network conducts background checks on all job candidates upon acceptance of a contingent offer and may use a third-party administrator to conduct background checks in compliance with the Fair Credit Reporting Act.

Application Deadline:
Job openings are posted for at least seven (7) calendar days. This job may be removed from posting boards and filled any time after the minimum posting period has ended.

Contact Information

• If you have any questions regarding this job, please visit our website: https://www.merit.edu/about/careers/

U-M EEO/AA Statement

The University of Michigan is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer.

U-M COVID-19 Vaccination Policy

COVID-19 vaccinations, including boosters when eligible, are required for all
University of Michigan students, faculty and staff across all campuses, including
Michigan Medicine. This includes those working remotely. More information on this new policy is available on the Campus Blueprint website or the UM-Dearborn and UM-Flint websites.

Job Type: Full-time

Pay: $68,000.00 - $75,000.00 per year

Benefits:

• 401(k)
• 401(k) matching
• Dental insurance
• Employee discount
• Flexible spending account
• Health insurance
• Life insurance
• Paid time off
• Parental leave
• Retirement plan
• Vision insurance

Schedule:

• Monday to Friday

COVID-19 considerations:
Social distancing is encouraged and mask wear is optional. We have masks at every entrance and hand sanitizers placed around the office.

Work Location: Hybrid remote in Ann Arbor, MI

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