Director, Deal Desk, AMER

Summary of Role

We are seeking an experienced Cloud Deal Desk leader to run our AMER Deal Desk. This is a player-coach role: the Director personally handles a significant share of the region's most strategic deals, working with the field to design value-based offers for many of Anaplan's largest customers, while also leading and developing the AMER team, serving as the trusted Deal Desk partner to GTM AMER leadership and Finance, and owning cross-functional projects that improve how we quote, contract, and close.

The Director carries out the core responsibilities of the Strategic Deal Manager role day to day, and sets the standard for the Strategic Deal Managers and Senior Analysts on the team. They exercise independent judgment, navigate ambiguity, and give Sales leaders clear, well-reasoned recommendations. When a deal hits an obstacle, they partner with the field and business partners to find a workable resolution that serves the customer and protects Anaplan. They actively participate in sales forecasting and deal reviews, and work closely with Sales, Product COEs, Finance, Legal, Revenue Recognition, and the global Deal Desk team.

 

Responsibilities

1. Strategic Deal Execution

Aligned to the Strategic Deal Manager role.

• Provide expert guidance to the Sales field and Sales Leadership on deal structuring, pricing, and contract management for the largest and most complex AMER opportunities
• Design value-based offers with the field; work with Product COEs to structure offers that include Anaplan's latest and most innovative offerings, unlocking value for the customer and driving adoption
• Participate in deal reviews with Sales and Sales Leadership to help drive account-level strategy on pricing and deal structure
• Review, interpret, and confirm contract terms and conditions; work closely with Finance and Legal to ensure contracts are accurate and compliant with internal policies and external regulations
• Draft, redline, and finalize contracts, including new business, add-ons, and renewals for Cloud Subscription Services
• Lead the Deal Desk approach to cloud marketplace deals in AMER, including private offers sold through the major cloud provider marketplaces
• Guide Sales and Alliances on structuring marketplace deals, including pricing, term alignment, and contracting through marketplace paper
• Hold deal approval authority in line with Anaplan's official approval guidelines, reviewing and approving deals for customers and prospects, and acting as the final regional escalation point for structure, pricing, and non-standard terms
• Process deals in Salesforce and CPQ, ensuring they are structured and processed efficiently and align to company policy
• Identify commercial, legal, financial, and revenue recognition risks early; anticipate issues and act to resolve them using professional judgment, company policy, and procedure
• Partner with Finance and Revenue Recognition to confirm pricing accuracy and rev rec treatment
• Participate actively in sales forecasting activities and end-of-quarter execution with deal status, risk analysis, and clear communication

2. Team Leadership

• Lead, coach, and develop the AMER Deal Desk team of 6, covering all of AMER and part of a global Deal Desk team of 19, including Strategic Deal Managers and Senior Analysts
• Set priorities, manage workload and coverage, especially through quarter-end peaks
• Run performance management, goal setting, feedback, and career development, including promotion cases and succession planning
• Hire, onboard, and train new team members
• Raise the team's skills in deal structuring, contract judgment, and stakeholder communication, and close any skills gaps between deal management levels
• Build a culture of ownership, quality, customer-first thinking, and continuous improvement

3. Programs, Process Improvement, and Enablement

• Own and/or participate in cross-functional projects and process improvements across Commercial Operations and Finance processes, extending beyond AMER where needed, from scoping through rollout and adoption
• Lead functional projects and process improvements for quoting and contracting, including CPQ and contract lifecycle management (CLM) workflows, configuration, and automation, working with the relevant business and systems teams
• Act as a delegate for select global projects, including CPQ implementation, taking ownership of workstreams or whole projects when assigned by Deal Desk and Commercial Operations leadership
• Independently drive efficiency and process improvements; support commercial projects as requested by the VP, Commercial Ops and/or the Global Head of Deal Desk, including UAT and new process documentation
• Drive documentation, playbooks, and standard work so the team and field operate consistently
• Support field enablement on policy changes, pricing and packaging updates, and new SKUs, working with the Pricing and Product teams
• Use deal and cycle-time data to identify bottlenecks and measure improvement
• Collaborate with the global Deal Desk team to align AMER practices with global standards and contribute regional input into global programs

4. Sales Leadership and Finance Partnership

• Serve as the primary Deal Desk contact and trusted business partner for GTM AMER leadership and Finance, attending regional leadership forums, forecast calls, and pipeline reviews as the Deal Desk voice
• Anticipate demand and flag trends in deal patterns, discounting, and non-standard requests; advise on how to structure the business for faster, cleaner closes, and maintain clear escalation paths so the field knows when and how to engage Deal Desk
• Partner with Sales to find solutions that close deals while protecting margin, compliance, and revenue quality, building Anaplan's corporate goals into the design of commercial offers

5. Governance and Compliance

• Own AMER adherence to deal approval, pricing, contracting, and revenue recognition policies
• Ensure deal documentation is accurate, auditable, and complete
• Partner with Legal and Finance on policy exceptions, contract templates, and regulatory or customer-driven requirements
• Maintain up-to-date knowledge of Anaplan's products, pricing models, and go-to-market strategy

 

Profile of the Ideal Candidate

Experience and Skills

• 7+ years of professional Deal Desk experience within SaaS
• 3+ years of people management, ideally leading analysts or managers in a deal desk or commercial operations environment
• Proven track record handling complex, high-value enterprise SaaS deals, including non-standard terms and multi-year structures
• Excellent understanding of Deal Support topics: hybrid and consumption pricing, deal structuring, contracting, and order management, with familiarity with revenue recognition policies
• Deep understanding of commercial legal terms and conditions
• Outstanding business partnering skills, able to influence outcomes with the Sales field, Product COEs, GTM Legal, and Finance
• Strong oral and written communication and excellent documentation skills
• Strong proficiency with Salesforce (SFDC) and CPQ required, including configuring, reviewing, and processing deals end to end
• Conga experience a plus
• Proficiency with AI tools and agents, including Google Gemini, and comfort adopting AI-assisted workflows to improve quote construction, contract review, and team productivity
• Strong Excel, contract review, and business writing skills; FP&A experience a strong plus

Attributes

• Customer first: a customer-first perspective and ethos in how offers are designed
• Sound commercial judgment: weighs revenue, margin, risk, and customer outcome, and can defend a recommendation
• Credible with senior stakeholders: builds trust with Sales leaders and executives, and guides decisions with data and clear rationale
• Product-curious: learns Anaplan's products quickly and can articulate the value they deliver to customers
• Strong communicator: clear and concise across Zoom, Slack, email, and in leadership forums
• Builder and coach: develops people and raises the bar for the team
• Systematic thinker: spots recurring problems and fixes the process, not just the instance
• Organized and dependable: prioritizes well and meets deadlines under quarter-end pressure
• Collaborative: works as a peer with Finance, Legal, Rev Rec, Product COEs, and global Deal Desk counterparts