Businesses expect technology to be the main enabler of innovation - to deliver on their business priorities and goals. The Account Technology Strategist inspires and ideates with customers the possibilities technology provides to them, drives thought leadership in digital transformation and builds strategic partnerships with C- level technology and innovation executives.
The Account Technology Strategist is driving digitalization and innovation agenda of our enterprise customers and acts as the Innovation and Thought Leader. With deep Retail industry knowledge, broad technology skills and unparalleled business acumen; the Account Technology Strategist starts with Innovation, connects industry/business priorities to technology strategy and develops value propositions which align with our customer’s business strategies, leveraging the rich portfolio of Microsoft and its ecosystem.
Microsoft’s mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. As employees we come together with a growth mindset, innovate to empower others and collaborate to realize our shared goals. Each day we build on our values of respect, integrity, and accountability to create a culture of inclusion where everyone can thrive at work and beyond.
**Responsibilities**:
**Customer and Retail Industry Insights**
- Generates business insights based on knowledge of the customer's technology landscape, engagement experience, and proactive collaboration with the customer, internal teams, and industry, to conduct forecasting and develop recommendations for managing accounts. Challenges customers to consider alternative business models to meet business and market needs, and adapts plans to insights. Orchestrates teams to gather information, collaborate on performance markers, and identify potential risks in customer accounts. Leads technical teams for driving opportunities with other teams, as necessary. Brings in business and industry insights to address the broader business challenges for the customer and deliver solutions.
- Applies expertise (deep expertise across few accounts or broad expertise across many accounts) in customer businesses, technology platforms, and maturity to build digital technology strategy with the customer that is aligned to business outcomes. Challenges customers’ assumptions with constructive dialogue about their business and technology. Leverages industry trends to gather insights and develop an informed perspective on similar issues that may occur within their industry.
**Trusted Advisor**
- Leverages account information technology (IT), industry, and business strategy to provide coaching to internal Microsoft teams on customer technology profiles and strategies. Provides technical guidance to internal teams to position technology while using customer landscape knowledge.
- Advises customer technical decision maker (TDM) and business decision maker (BDM) stakeholders on the benefits of embedding security throughout their technology landscape through the Microsoft Security and Zero Trust narratives. Establishes a sense of creating business value through implementing security and positions Microsoft's security credentials. Creates follow-up opportunities and orchestrates appropriate technical teams from the Specialist Team Unit (STU) to pursue and close.
- Proactively builds and maintains a broad knowledge of Microsoft's product landscape, solutions, and strategy in the industry of assigned accounts, as well as of the business priorities and potential threats the customers face. Leverages leaders from the partner ecosystem to bridge process gaps. Coordinates with internal industry experts (e.g., Regional Experts) to gather industry data of assigned accounts and leverages knowledge of competitors to improve planning. Demonstrates an understanding of the customer's business strategy and the direction of the industry.
- Acts as the voice of the customer, industry, and internal advocate by providing insights, feedback, and challenges from the customer to internal teams (e.g., product groups, engineers).
**Technology Strategy Formulation**
- Provides analysis of overall customer needs, outcomes, and potential blockers. Leverages understanding of business strategies and outcomes that technology can support to advise on gaps that would benefit from Microsoft solutions, and guides internal teams in overall strategy development (e.g., block identification, partner strategy) to identify and address gaps and drive end solutions.
- Ensures execution of technology strategy and/or digital transformation by identifying and resolving technical blockers that arise during strategy planning and implementation and driving technology adoption.
- Creates mid
- to long-term (e.g., 12 or more months) technology and business roadmaps for one or more accounts, to outline the digital transformation journey and core wins. Updates and articulates business changes in the roadmaps around foundational, t