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Account Executive Interview Kit

A complete interview kit to evaluate account executives on sales strategy, pipeline management, closing ability, and collaboration.

Questions

42

Duration

2-3 hours

Difficulty

Mid

Used By

500+ teams

PDF Format
1,394 downloads

Sales Knowledge & Strategy

Evaluate candidate's understanding of the sales cycle, pipeline management, and closing strategies.

12 questions

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Question 1: Walk me through your end-to-end sales process from prospecting to closing.

What to Look For

  • • Structured sales methodology
  • • Prospecting strategies
  • • Discovery process
  • • Closing techniques
  • • Follow-up for expansion

Red Flags

  • • No structured process
  • • Focuses only on closing
  • • No discovery phase
  • • Vague responses

Follow-up Questions

  • • What tools do you use for prospecting?
  • • How do you qualify leads?
  • • How do you follow up post-sale?

Scoring Guide

Excellent (9-10):Clear structured process (prospect, qualify, discovery, demo, close, follow-up).
Good (7-8):Mentions process but lacks detail.
Average (5-6):Generic process.
Poor (1-4):No structure.

Question 2: What sales methodologies have you used (e.g., Challenger, MEDDIC, SPIN)? Which do you prefer and why?

What to Look For

  • • Knowledge of modern sales methodologies
  • • Ability to compare them
  • • Adaptability
  • • Real-world examples

Red Flags

  • • No methodology knowledge
  • • Buzzwords only
  • • No preference or reasoning

Follow-up Questions

  • • How do you apply MEDDIC in practice?
  • • What works best for SaaS?
  • • How do you adapt methodologies per client?

Scoring Guide

Excellent (9-10):Explains at least two methodologies, preferences, real applications.
Good (7-8):Knows one methodology well.
Average (5-6):Generic awareness.
Poor (1-4):No clue.

Question 3: How do you handle long enterprise sales cycles? What tactics keep momentum alive?

What to Look For

  • • Pipeline management
  • • Multi-threading accounts
  • • Value reinforcement
  • • Executive alignment
  • • Patience & persistence

Red Flags

  • • No enterprise experience
  • • Focuses only on pressure closing
  • • Vague answers

Follow-up Questions

  • • What's the longest cycle you've managed?
  • • How do you build consensus?
  • • What tools do you use to track?

Scoring Guide

Excellent (9-10):Explains multi-threading, value reinforcement, exec sponsors, examples.
Good (7-8):Basic cycle experience.
Average (5-6):Generic.
Poor (1-4):No experience.

Question 4: How do you approach territory and account planning?

What to Look For

  • • Territory mapping
  • • ICP awareness
  • • Segmentation
  • • Activity planning
  • • Tools usage

Red Flags

  • • No planning
  • • Random outreach
  • • No ICP understanding

Follow-up Questions

  • • What's your ICP definition?
  • • How do you tier accounts?
  • • What metrics do you track?

Scoring Guide

Excellent (9-10):Clear ICP, structured planning, tiering, activity mapping.
Good (7-8):Mentions territory but vague.
Average (5-6):Generic.
Poor (1-4):No clue.

Question 5: How do you use CRM tools to manage pipeline effectively?

What to Look For

  • • Daily CRM hygiene
  • • Pipeline forecasting
  • • Notes and activity logging
  • • Examples from Salesforce/HubSpot

Red Flags

  • • Doesn't use CRM
  • • Superficial
  • • Says "just email"

Follow-up Questions

  • • How do you forecast deals?
  • • What reports do you run?
  • • How do you keep data clean?

Scoring Guide

Excellent (9-10):Describes disciplined CRM use, reporting, forecasting.
Good (7-8):Mentions CRM but vague.
Average (5-6):Basic use.
Poor (1-4):Doesn't use CRM.

Question 6: How do you consistently achieve or exceed your quota?

What to Look For

  • • Activity metrics
  • • Pipeline coverage
  • • Time management
  • • Forecasting accuracy
  • • Examples

Red Flags

  • • No track record
  • • Luck-based
  • • No process

Follow-up Questions

  • • What's your average quota attainment?
  • • How do you forecast?
  • • What daily activities drive success?

Scoring Guide

Excellent (9-10):Shows structured approach, metrics, consistent overachievement.
Good (7-8):Hit quota most quarters.
Average (5-6):Sometimes hits quota.
Poor (1-4):Rarely hits quota.

Question 7: How do you handle objections during the sales process?

What to Look For

  • • Objection categorization
  • • Prepared responses
  • • Active listening
  • • Examples
  • • Confidence

Red Flags

  • • Gets defensive
  • • No framework
  • • Gives up easily

Follow-up Questions

  • • What's the most common objection?
  • • Give me an example of overcoming "no budget"
  • • How do you know when to walk away?

Scoring Guide

Excellent (9-10):Has framework, examples, turns objections into value discussions.
Good (7-8):Handles objections with some examples.
Average (5-6):Basic handling.
Poor (1-4):No strategy.

Question 8: Describe your approach to upselling and cross-selling existing accounts.

What to Look For

  • • Account mapping
  • • Value identification
  • • Timing awareness
  • • Success metrics
  • • Examples

Red Flags

  • • No expansion experience
  • • Pushy approach
  • • No customer success alignment

Follow-up Questions

  • • What's your biggest upsell?
  • • How do you identify expansion opportunities?
  • • When is the right time?

Scoring Guide

Excellent (9-10):Strategic account planning, value-based expansion, examples.
Good (7-8):Some expansion success.
Average (5-6):Basic awareness.
Poor (1-4):No experience.

Question 9: How do you gather and use competitive intelligence in deals?

What to Look For

  • • Information sources
  • • Battlecard usage
  • • Differentiation
  • • Ethics
  • • Examples

Red Flags

  • • Unethical tactics
  • • Bad-mouths competitors
  • • No competitive awareness

Follow-up Questions

  • • How do you position against your top competitor?
  • • What sources do you use?
  • • Give an example of winning against competition.

Scoring Guide

Excellent (9-10):Ethical intelligence gathering, clear differentiation, win examples.
Good (7-8):Basic competitive awareness.
Average (5-6):Some knowledge.
Poor (1-4):No strategy.

Question 10: Walk me through your negotiation strategy for closing deals.

What to Look For

  • • Preparation
  • • Value focus
  • • Win-win mindset
  • • Tactics
  • • Examples

Red Flags

  • • Discounts immediately
  • • No preparation
  • • Adversarial approach

Follow-up Questions

  • • How do you prepare for negotiation?
  • • When do you involve leadership?
  • • What's your biggest negotiation win?

Scoring Guide

Excellent (9-10):Structured approach, value focus, win-win examples.
Good (7-8):Some negotiation skills.
Average (5-6):Basic tactics.
Poor (1-4):No strategy.

Question 11: How do you structure and deliver compelling product demonstrations?

What to Look For

  • • Customization
  • • Discovery tie-in
  • • Value focus
  • • Technical competence
  • • Engagement

Red Flags

  • • Generic demos
  • • Feature dumping
  • • No customization

Follow-up Questions

  • • How do you prepare demos?
  • • How do you handle technical questions?
  • • What makes a demo successful?

Scoring Guide

Excellent (9-10):Customized, value-focused demos tied to discovery.
Good (7-8):Decent demo skills.
Average (5-6):Basic demos.
Poor (1-4):Poor demo skills.

Question 12: Describe a creative closing technique you've used successfully.

What to Look For

  • • Creativity
  • • Appropriateness
  • • Results
  • • Adaptability

Red Flags

  • • Manipulative tactics
  • • No examples
  • • Pushy approaches

Follow-up Questions

  • • When do you use this technique?
  • • What was the result?
  • • Would you use it again?

Scoring Guide

Excellent (9-10):Creative, ethical technique with clear success.
Good (7-8):Some creativity.
Average (5-6):Basic closing.
Poor (1-4):No techniques.

Behavioral

Understand how candidate works under pressure, handles rejection, and manages relationships.

10 questions

+

Situational

Assess candidate's ability to handle real-world sales scenarios.

9 questions

+

Culture & Collaboration

Evaluate alignment with company values, teamwork, and communication.

11 questions

+

Complete Account Executive Interview Kit

Get all interview questions with scoring guides, red flags, and follow-up questions in a professionally formatted PDF.

PDF • 14 pages2.4 MBUpdated Dec 19, 2025
PDF Format
1,164 downloads

🎯 How to Use This Interview Kit

  1. 1.Review all questions before the interview to understand the evaluation criteria
  2. 2.Select 8-12 questions based on the role's specific requirements and interview time
  3. 3.Use the scoring guide to objectively evaluate each answer
  4. 4.Take detailed notes on specific examples and behaviors mentioned
  5. 5.Use follow-up questions to probe deeper when needed
  6. 6.Compare candidates using the standardized scoring system

Account Executive Interview Kit - Complete Interview Kit

Download all questions, evaluation criteria, and scoring guides in a beautifully formatted PDF. Perfect for interview preparation and team alignment.

PDF • 9 pages2.4 MBUpdated Dec 19, 2025
PDF Format
1,214 downloads

Interview Best Practices

✅ Do's

  • • Take detailed notes during the interview
  • • Ask follow-up questions to dig deeper
  • • Give candidates time to think
  • • Use the scoring guide consistently
  • • Document specific examples from answers

❌ Don'ts

  • • Don't rush through questions
  • • Don't ask illegal or discriminatory questions
  • • Don't make snap judgments
  • • Don't forget to sell your company
  • • Don't skip the candidate's questions

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