Gretchen Hughes
Pittsburgh,PA
Summary
Experienced Adaptive Senior Strategic Account Manager with a proven track record of delivering client-focused enterprise solutions and driving customer retention in the education technology sector. Skilled in managing complex contracts, fostering cross-functional collaboration, and effectively managing customer relationships. Consistently surpasses sales quotas, successfully grows multi-year enterprise agreements, and drives increased adoption of digital products.
Overview
13
13
years of professional experience
Work History
Sr. Strategic Account Manager
Turnitin
01.2022 - Current
- Turnitin is the industry leader in academic integrity, AI detection, and digital assessment solutions.
- Own a $5 million enterprise portfolio, leading new business sales, strategic contract negotiations, and multi-year agreements with higher education institutions | 60% Renewal Booking | 20% Expansion | 20% New Logo
- Identify and engage key decision-makers at universities and college systems to drive new logo acquisition and exceed sales quotas | 2023 100% | 2024 102%
- Facilitate high-impact sales presentations, demos, and technical integration discussions to increase digital product adoption.
- Drive strategic engagement by attending industry conferences, networking events, and on-campus meetings | Current travel up to 25%
- Collaborate cross-functionally with product, marketing, and customer success teams to ensure seamless onboarding and retention.
- Increaseprofitability and lifetime customer value by coordinating go-to-market strategy, implementation and post-sales service experience.
Gradescope Account Manager
Turnitin
01.2020 - 09.2021
- Consistently exceeded sales quotas | 2020 143% | 2021 135% | 2022 165%
- Managed a portfolio of 100+ accounts, focusing on new business acquisition, renewals, and transitioning small-scale licenses into multi-year enterprise agreements
- 100% customer retention rate, achieved through strategic engagement and proactive account management.
- Spearheaded training and onboarding initiatives to ensure high adoption rates and minimize churn.
- Supported talent acquisition by participating in interview panels for Key Account Managers and Business Development Representatives.
Key Account Manager
Cengage Learning
01.2018 - 01.2020
- Cengage is a leading educational publisher of digital learning solutions and educational content.
- Managed a multi-state higher education territory, driving new business sales and digital product expansion.
- Led a team of Account Managers, focused on transitioning print sales to digital platforms.
- Developed a cost-comparison sales tool, later adopted company-wide, to enhance customer engagement and close rates.
- Consistently surpassed quotas, achieving 150% Q4 growth in 2018 | Contributed to the District's quota achievement in 2019 and exceeded my personal quota (118%)
- Presented innovative sales strategies during national meetings, leading to the adoption of new approaches across teams.
Higher Education Sales Representative
Pearson Higher Education
01.2012 - 01.2018
- Pearson is the global leader in educational publishing and digital learning solutions.
- Managed and expanded a named territory of eight higher education institutions, focusing on new business development and digital conversion.
- Secured long-term adoption of Pearson’s digital learning solutions by engaging faculty, administrators, and institutional leadership.
- Led regional Evidence-Based Selling initiatives, generating $500,000+ in new business revenue.
- Exceeded digital sales targets for five consecutive years, including 111% of goal in 2014 and 105% in 2017.
- Mentored and trained new hires in enterprise sales tactics, objection handling, and consultative selling.
Education
Bachelor of Arts - English
Rutgers University
New Brunswick, NJ05.2010
Skills
- New Business Development
- Enterprise Sales & Negotiations
- Strategic Partnerships
- Higher Education Solutions
- Contract Management
- Sales Forecasting & Pipeline Management
- Digital Product Adoption
- Stakeholder Engagement
- Data-Driven Selling
- CRM & Sales Tools (Salesforce, HubSpot, Tableau)
Websites
Technical Skills
- Salesforce
- HubSpot
- Tableau
- Zoom
- DocuSign
- Jira
- Highspot
- G-Suite
- Microsoft Office Suite
Accomplishments
2023 Leader of Customer Growth Award | Turnitin
Awards
Leader of Customer Growth Award, 2023, Turnitin
Recommendation
Gretchen is a true leader in terms of her impact on the larger team and org. She consistently achieves her sales targets individually, and she has contributed in many ways that are not reflected in her numbers. She works with a team-first mentality and thinks about how we can scale everything. She is directly responsible for much of our success., Adam C., Manager, Turnitin
Timeline
Sr. Strategic Account Manager
Turnitin
01.2022 - Current
Gradescope Account Manager
Turnitin
01.2020 - 09.2021
Key Account Manager
Cengage Learning
01.2018 - 01.2020
Higher Education Sales Representative
Pearson Higher Education
01.2012 - 01.2018
Bachelor of Arts - English
Rutgers University
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