Definition: Account Executive
An account executive differs in terms of role and function, depending on the nature and size of an organization but it is fundamentally a sales representative, one who holds a superior level over other members of a sales staff. Going through the ranks though, when there are both account managers and account executives in one particular organization, the account executive holds the higher rank. Some companies on the other hand, award this title to all members of the sales staff so as to provide customers the feeling that doing business with the company is a move they will not regret.
In bigger, more organized companies, account executives are usually provided immediate responsibilities in dealing and meeting with big-time or high-volume clients. Each client is referred to as an account of their own, and are thus necessary for the organization’s success. As such, the account executive should be able to successfully manage one or more people, while making it a priority to serve the needs of the company’s relationships with their customers.
When it comes to the more colorful, stressful advertising industry, account executives are actually on the lower end of the client service department, being higher-ranking over the account coordinators only. In this case, the term executive takes on its most basic meaning– to execute, or to perform. They are more or less those responsible for the more hands-on part of advertising jobs, such as making leaflets, distributions and adaptations of materials from different scripts. Account executives thus answer to their respective account supervisors or client service director, though again, titles are subjective to countries and the size of said agencies.