Head of Key Technical Initiatives & Sales… at Adobe · San Jose

Head of Key Technical Initiatives & Sales Innovation Location: San Jose The Opportunity Adobe's Technical Pre-Sales (TPS) organization is building its next frontier of enterprise sales innovation. As AI reshapes how companies buy and deploy technology, Adobe is investing in a dedicated leader to identify, incubate, and scale the technical sales motions that will define how Adobe wins the most complex enterprise deals of the next decade. We are seeking a Sr. Director to lead Key Technical Initiatives & Sales Innovation—a new, high-impact function within TPS chartered to operate at the intersection of technical strategy and commercial outcomes. This leader will run a small, agile, senior incubation team responsible for designing time-bound, high-ambiguity initiatives—from concept to maturity—then deliberately transitioning proven models into the core business. This role exists to look around corners and serve as a customer growth engine powered by technical innovation: to translate emerging technology and customer friction into new sales motions, de-risk and operationalize innovation, and hand off mature initiatives so they become business as usual. With a lean team of 8–10, this leader drives impact through influence, design, and executive partnership—not headcount. What You'll Do Incubation of "Change-the-Business" Technical Initiatives Identify net-new, non-incremental opportunities where technical innovation can unlock customer explanation, faster deal conviction, platform-level adoption, and enterprise transformation narratives. Incubate initiatives that do not yet belong cleanly in TPS, Business Unit, or Sales motions—including Prove-Before-You-Buy validation motions, executive technical pilots, and new agentic, AI-led, or cross-cloud sales experiences. Create new systems rather than optimize existing ones; operate in space before a motion becomes business as usual. Design-to-Maturity Operating Model Ownership Own initiatives end-to-end through maturity: value proposition and intent, technical scope and guardrails, sales alignment and qualification criteria, governance, and success metrics. Design all initiatives to be time-boxed, test-and-learn oriented, and operationally transferable; define clear graduation criteria and transition plans to execution teams once proven. Maintain explicit stop/go decision authority—shut down, pivot, or double down based on evidence, not advocacy. Enterprise Impact & Outcome Accountability Be accountable for whether initiatives change deal outcomes, not just whether experimentation occurs. Measure impact through signals including deal velocity and conversion, technical win confidence, and platform or product pull-through. Report initiative performance and investment recommendations to executive leadership with rigor and transparency. Cross-Functional Leadership with an Agile Team Lead through influence, clarity, and design—not headcount; operate with intentionally lean org design while achieving Senior Director-level impact, aligning cross-functional teams to unlock customer growth, not just deliver technical solutions. Orchestrate work across Technical Pre-Sales, Product, Engineering, Partners, and Sales Leadership without creating permanent shadow organizations or duplicative delivery capabilities. Partner with existing TPS teams and field leaders to ensure innovations are adopted and scaled effectively once proven. Executive-Level Thought Partnership Serve as a trusted advisor to SVPs and VPs on where to invest in new sales motions, where technical risk is slowing growth, and how innovation shows up credibly in enterprise sales. Represent initiatives in executive forums and customer conversations when stakes are high. Engage regularly with senior leadership to shape prioritization and ensure the innovation portfolio is aligned to Adobe's most critical commercial priorities. What You Need to Succeed Successful engagement will be defined by multiple initiatives successfully graduating into core TPS motions that measurably improve customer growth outcomes—including faster time-to-value, increased platform adoption, and expansion within the existing customer base. Success also includes executive trust that high-ambiguity investments are rigorously managed and that non-performing initiatives are decisively shut down.. 12–15+ years of experience leading complex, cross-functional initiatives spanning Sales, Technical Pre-Sales, or Enterprise Strategy—with a proven record of turning ambiguous ideas into operational reality. Demonstrated ability to design and operationalize new technical sales motions at scale; experience with Prove-Before-You-Buy, POC, or pilot program design is highly valued. Strong technical fluency paired with sharp business judgment; able to credibly engage product, engineering, and sales leadership in the same conversation. Track record of leading through influence across large organizations without direct headcount authority; thrives with limited resources and high expectations. Outstanding executive presence and communication skills—able to represent innovation investments to C-level stake holders and senior Adobe leadership with clarity and conviction. Experience with enterprise AI, agentic systems, or emerging technical sales capabilities as they apply to complex deal cycles. Comfortable with ambiguity, disciplined about evidence, and willing to make difficult stop/go decisions. Willingness to travel up to 35%. About Adobe Adobe empowers everyone to create through innovative platforms and tools that unleash creativity, productivity and personalized customer experiences. Adobe’s industry-leading offerings including Adobe Acrobat Studio, Adobe Express, Adobe Firefly, Creative Cloud, Adobe Experience Platform, Adobe Experience Manager, and GenStudio enable people and businesses to turn ideas into impact, powered by AI and driven by human ingenuity. Our 30,000+ employees worldwide are creating the future and raising the bar as we drive the next decade of growth. We’re on a mission to hire the very best and believe in creating a company culture where all employees are empowered to make an impact. At Adobe, we believe that great ideas can come from anywhere in the organization. The next big idea could be yours. Let’s Adobe together At Adobe, we believe in creating a company culture where all employees are empowered to make an impact. Learn more about Adobe life, including our values and culture, focus on people, purpose and community, Adobe for All, comprehensive benefits programs, the stories we tell, the customers we serve, and how you can help us advance our mission of empowering everyone to create. Adobe is proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity employer. We do not discriminate based on gender, race or color, ethnicity or national origin, age, disability, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, veteran status, or any other protected characteristic. Learn more. Adobe aims to make our Careers website and recruiting process accessible to any and all users. If you have a disability or special need that requires accommodation to navigate our website or complete the application process, email accommodations@adobe.com or call +1 408-536-3015. AI Use Guidelines for Interviews: Our interviews are designed to reflect your own skills and thinking. The use of AI or recording tools during live interviews is not permitted unless explicitly invited by the interviewer or approved in advance as part of a reasonable accommodation. If these tools are used inappropriately or in a way that misrepresents your work, your application may not move forward in the process. At Adobe, we empower employees to innovate with AI — and we look for candidates eager to do the same. As part of the hiring experience, we provide clear guidance on where AI is encouraged during the process and where it’s restricted during live interviews. See how we think about AI in the hiring experience. Expected Pay Range: Our compensation reflects the cost of labor across several  U.S. geographic markets, and we pay differently based on those defined markets. The U.S. pay range for this position is $276,800 -- $465,350 annually. Pay within this range varies by work location and may also depend on job-related knowledge, skills, and experience. Your recruiter can share more about the specific salary range for the job location during the hiring process. In California, the pay range for this position is $299,300 - $465,350 At Adobe, for sales roles starting salaries are expressed as total target compensation (TTC = base + commission), and short-term incentives are in the form of sales commission plans.  Non-sales roles starting salaries are expressed as base salary and short-term incentives are in the form of the Annual Incentive Plan (AIP). In addition, certain roles may be eligible for long-term incentives in the form of a new hire equity award. State-Specific Notices: California: Fair Chance Ordinances Adobe will consider qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records for employment in accordance with state and local laws and “fair chance” ordinances. Colorado: Application Window Notice Aug 18 2026 12:00 AM If this role is open to hiring in Colorado (as listed on the job posting), the application window will remain open until at least the date and time stated above in Pacific Time, in compliance with Colorado pay transparency regulations. If this role does not have Colorado listed as a hiring location, no specific application window applies, and the posting may close at any time based on hiring needs. Massachusetts: Massachusetts Legal Notice It is unlawful in Massachusetts to require or administer a lie detector test as a condition of employment or continued employment. An employer who violates this law shall be subject to criminal penalties and civil liability.