New Account Acquisition Lead (West)

The work we do has an impact on millions of lives, and you can be a part of it.
We help protect our customers against life’s uncertainties. Regardless of where you work within the company, you’ll be helping provide protection and peace of mind when our customers need it most.

The New Account Acquisition Lead is accountable for identifying, developing, and securing new dealership relationships that expand Protective’s direct channel presence within an assigned region. Reporting to the Regional Sales Director, this role leads complex and strategically significant sales opportunities from initial prospecting and qualification through solution design, negotiation, contracting, and transition to the Sales Lead for ongoing account development. The role develops tailored acquisition strategies, builds trusted relationships with senior dealership decision-makers, and coordinates with Product, Underwriting, Marketing, Operations, Finance, Sales Operations, Sales Enablement, Legal, and Compliance to deliver profitable growth and a strong prospective-dealer experience.  This position covers our West territory and the person must live in California.

Responsibilities
·    Develops and executes a regional new-account acquisition plan aligned with Direct Channel growth priorities, target-market strategy, and assigned revenue objectives
·    Identifies and cultivates high-potential dealership prospects through market research, referrals, strategic networking, industry events, targeted outreach, and other lead-generation activities
·    Qualifies prospects and opportunities by assessing strategic fit, business potential, buyer priorities, decision processes, competitive position, implementation requirements, and likelihood of success
·    Owns a disciplined acquisition pipeline, maintains accurate CRM records, prioritizes opportunities, and provides reliable forecasts, risk assessments, and updates to the Regional Sales Director
·    Conducts consultative discovery with dealership owners and senior decision-makers to understand business objectives, customer needs, economics, F&I practices, operational requirements, and pain points
·    Develops customized opportunity strategies and value propositions that align Protective’s vehicle protection products, dealer participation programs, training, technology, marketing, and service capabilities with prospect priorities
·    Prepares and delivers persuasive presentations, business cases, and solution proposals that clearly communicate differentiation, financial value, implementation considerations, and expected outcomes
·    Builds trusted relationships with senior dealership stakeholders, mobilizes internal sponsors, and navigates complex buying groups to advance opportunities and secure commitment
·    Designs negotiation plans and negotiates pricing, incentives, program structures, service expectations, and contractual terms within delegated authority, escalating exceptions with clear commercial rationale
·    Coordinates cross-functional due diligence, solution development, approvals, contracting, onboarding readiness, and issue resolution for complex or high-value opportunities
·    Maintains deep knowledge of Protective’s product portfolio, dealer solutions, competitive positioning, market conditions, and relevant regulatory requirements to support credible consultative selling
·    Partners with the Sales Lead to transition newly acquired accounts through a structured handoff that preserves relationship continuity, documents commitments, and establishes clear onboarding and early-growth priorities
·    Monitors early account performance and resolves acquisition-related issues during the transition period to support successful activation, adoption, and long-term growth
·    Shares market intelligence, prospect feedback, win/loss insights, and emerging competitive trends with regional leadership and internal partners to improve acquisition strategy and sales effectiveness
·    May provide subject-matter guidance to colleagues on prospecting, discovery, opportunity qualification, proposal development, and complex deal execution without direct people-management responsibility
Knowledge, Skills, Attributes
·    New Business Development: Building a sustainable pipeline of qualified dealership prospects and converting priority opportunities into new Protective relationships
·    Lead Generation and Qualification: Identifying prospects and assessing interest, fit, urgency, stakeholders, business potential, and likelihood of success
·    Sales Discovery: Conducting structured conversations to uncover dealership priorities, pain points, economics, operating requirements, and decision criteria
·    Strategic Opportunity Management: Developing and executing tailored pursuit strategies for complex, high-value, or strategically significant opportunities
·    Sales Pipeline Management: Maintaining accurate opportunity stages, documenting activity, prioritizing pursuits, and enabling reliable revenue forecasting
·    Consultative Selling: Connecting prospect needs with Protective’s products, dealer programs, training, technology, marketing, and service capabilities
·    Value Proposition and Sales Pitch Delivery: Presenting persuasive business cases and proposals that address buyer priorities, differentiate Protective, and demonstrate commercial value
·    Negotiation and Deal Closing: Preparing negotiation positions, addressing objections, exchanging proposals, and securing mutually beneficial commitments within approved parameters
·    Executive Relationship Management: Building credibility and trusted relationships with dealership owners, principals, and other senior decision-makers
·    Dealership Operations Acumen: Understanding dealership sales workflows, F&I processes, partner economics, and how Protective’s products are positioned, sold, and serviced
·    Commercial and Financial Acumen: Evaluating opportunity economics and balancing revenue growth with pricing, incentives, persistency, loss experience, and expense considerations
·    Customer Relationship Management Systems: Using CRM platforms to manage prospect interactions, track activities, maintain accurate records, and support forecasting
·    Cross-Functional Collaboration: Aligning internal functions and securing the expertise, approvals, and resources required to develop, contract, and launch new relationships
·    Insurance Sales Compliance: Operating within applicable contracting, licensing, appointment, disclosure, privacy, and regulatory requirements
·    Market and Competitive Intelligence: Applying knowledge of industry trends, competitors, and customer needs to sharpen targeting and opportunity strategy
·    Influence and Communication: Communicating complex concepts clearly and influencing decisions across prospective customers and internal stakeholders without formal authority
Requirements 
·    Bachelor’s degree in Business, Marketing, or a related field, or equivalent practical experience
·    7+ years of progressive B2B sales or business-development experience, including ownership of complex, high-value opportunities and individual revenue or quota accountability
·    Demonstrated success generating, qualifying, and closing new business through consultative selling, solution development, executive engagement, and disciplined pipeline management
·    Experience selling directly to dealership stakeholders; knowledge of dealership economics, F&I sales processes, and dealer participation programs preferred
·    Demonstrated ability to develop compelling proposals, present to senior decision-makers, manage objections, and negotiate pricing and commercial terms
·    Strong understanding of CRM practices, sales forecasting, opportunity analytics, and data-driven prioritization
·    Ability to coordinate complex pursuits across multiple internal functions and guide colleagues through opportunity-development activities without direct supervisory responsibility
·    Strong business and financial acumen, sound judgment, and the ability to operate within applicable sales-governance and compliance requirements
·    Ability to travel regularly to prospective dealerships, industry events, field offices, and company meetings as required
About Us – Asset Protection 
Protective Asset Protection has been providing finance and insurance (F&I) solutions for the automotive industry for more than 60 years. We proudly serve thousands of dealerships and financial institutions in the automotive, marine, powersports and recreation vehicle industries throughout the U.S. providing innovative vehicle protection products, wealth-building programs, training and technology. Our portfolio of vehicle protection plans, GAP coverage, limited warranties and ancillary products provide opportunities to generate revenue with products that help drive customer retention and satisfaction. Protective Asset Protection is part of the financial services holding company, Protective Life Corporation. For more information about Protective Asset Protection visit www.ProtectiveAssetProtection.com.
 
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Employee Benefits:  
We aim to protect the wellbeing of our employees and their families with a broad benefits offering. In addition to offering comprehensive health, dental and vision insurance, we support emotional wellbeing through mental health benefits and an employee assistance program. Work/life balance is important and Protective offers a variety of paid time away benefits (e.g., paid time off, paid parental leave, short-term disability, and a cultural observance day). The financial health of our employees is just as important as physical and emotional health.  Some of the financial wellbeing benefits include contributions to healthcare accounts, a pension plan, and a 401(k) plan with Company matching. All employees are encouraged to protect their overall wellbeing by engaging in ProHealth Rewards, Protective’s platform to improve wellbeing while earning cash rewards.

Eligibility for certain benefits may vary by position in accordance with the terms of the Company’s benefit plans.

Accommodations for Applicants with a Disability:
If you require an accommodation to complete the application and recruitment process due to a disability, please email eric.hess@protective.com. This information will be held in confidence and used only to determine an appropriate accommodation for the application and recruitment process.

Please note that the above email is solely for individuals with disabilities requesting an accommodation.  General employment questions should not be sent through this process.

We are proud to be an equal opportunity employer committed to being inclusive and attracting, retaining, and growing an inclusive workforce.