Josh Ford
Durham, NC,USA
Summary
Results-oriented sales strategy and revenue operations leader with over 14 years of specialized experience driving revenue growth and go-to-market execution in the education sector at Education Week, a premier K-12 education news organization. Progressed to director-level leadership as Assistant Director of Sales, overseeing the largest territory, mentoring sales representatives, and spearheading AI sales-tech strategies while contributing to company-wide AI policy development. Achieved significant revenue growth from $600K to approximately $3M annually through data-driven territory management, advanced sales strategies, and the introduction of innovative advertising solutions. A hands-on AI leader with extensive experience collaborating with EdTech companies that sell AI solutions, dedicated to harnessing AI's transformative potential in education.
Overview
15
15
years of professional experience
Work History
Assistant Director of Sales, Advertising & Marketing Solutions
Education Week
Bethesda, MD, USA
01.2025 - Current
- Serve in player/coach capacity owning the company's largest territory while directly managing and developing the company's newest sales representative.
- Act as de facto AI team lead for the entire AMS sales team (4 other reps, including the AMS director), regularly guiding and training the team on generative AI best practices, tool adoption, and strategic integration to enhance sales performance and efficiency.
- Lead development and implementation of the team's AI sales-tech strategy, identifying and deploying generative AI platforms alongside tools like Yesware (email tracking/templates), ZoomInfo (prospecting/intelligence), and Smartsheet (workflow/project tracking) to transform sales functions and drive measurable efficiencies across the group.
- Proposal and content creation: Employing generative AI platforms and Yesware templates to draft, customize, personalize, and refine proposals, presentations, client materials, and follow-up communications.
- Contributed as key member of company-wide AI task force, collaborating cross-functionally to develop and implement comprehensive AI policy/guidelines.
- Provide strategic oversight and data-driven guidance to optimize territory performance, pipeline health, and revenue forecasting.
- Collaborate cross-functionally to execute GTM strategies for education-sector clients, matching innovative solutions to institutional challenges.
Regional Manager, Advertising & Marketing Solutions
Education Week
Bethesda, MD, USA
11.2014 - 12.2024
- Led strategy and operations for the West Coast territory (company's largest AMS region), growing annual advertising revenues from $600K (2012 baseline) to $3M through targeted GTM planning, account management, and consultative solution selling to major education clients—including prominent EdTech companies selling AI solutions (e.g., Microsoft, Google, Securly, Ignite Reading, IXL, GoGuardian).
- Acted as trusted strategic advisor to C-level executives and marketing leaders in the K-12 and higher education sectors, identifying challenges and delivering tailored branding, thought leadership, lead generation, ABM, custom research, event sponsorships, social campaigns, and other high-impact solutions.
- Use of Salesforce CRM daily for pipeline review, forecasting, opportunity analysis, and strategic planning—leveraging custom built intelligence reports to guide decisions and identify trends.
- Spearheaded introduction and go-to-market of new revenue products/services, collaborating cross-functionally to enhance efficiency and effectiveness across the advertising organization.
- Mentored and trained multiple new sales representatives on best practices, company processes, Salesforce utilization, and Challenger Sale methodology—fostering a high-performance, consultative culture.
Business Development Associate
Education Week
Bethesda, MD, USA
01.2012 - 11.2014
- Built foundational revenue relationships in education advertising, contributing to rapid territory expansion and promotion to Regional Manager based on performance.
Senior IT Recruiter
Fortitude Systems
McLean, VA, USA
01.2011 - 12.2011
- Managed full-cycle recruitment and negotiations for technical roles, generating significant revenue through successful placements and process improvements.
Education
Bachelor of Science - Corporate Finance
University of South Carolina
Columbia, SC01.2010
Timeline
Assistant Director of Sales, Advertising & Marketing Solutions
Education Week
01.2025 - Current
Regional Manager, Advertising & Marketing Solutions
Education Week
11.2014 - 12.2024
Business Development Associate
Education Week
01.2012 - 11.2014
Senior IT Recruiter
Fortitude Systems
01.2011 - 12.2011
Bachelor of Science - Corporate Finance
University of South Carolina