Be ready to go over:

• Technical alignment – How you translate customer requirements into actionable requests for engineering and production teams.
• Internal stakeholder management – Strategies for resolving competing priorities between sales goals and manufacturing constraints.
• Panel presentation dynamics – Demonstrating your ability to communicate clearly and professionally with a diverse group of interviewers from different departments.

Example scenarios:

• "Describe a time you had to negotiate a contract that required significant customization from our engineering team. How did you align both sides?"
• "How do you handle a situation where production delays threaten a critical delivery deadline for your key account?"

Strategic Sales & Aerospace Sector Expertise

The aerospace and defense market is highly regulated, cyclical, and characterized by long-term contract structures. You must demonstrate that you understand how to navigate this unique environment, identify key decision-makers, and manage complex procurement pipelines.

Be ready to go over:

• Long-cycle sales methodology – How you maintain momentum and build relationships over multi-year sales cycles.
• Regulatory and compliance awareness – Understanding the impact of defense standards, ITAR, and government procurement policies on commercial transactions.
• Account expansion – Strategies for identifying new applications for Ati's materials within existing client portfolios.
• Advanced concepts (less common) – Joint venture negotiations, multi-year pricing agreements (MYAs), and raw material surcharge indexing.

Example scenarios:

• "How do you approach a multi-year procurement contract negotiation with a major defense contractor?"
• "Walk us through how you would identify and qualify a new commercial opportunity within an existing aerospace account."

As an Account Executive / Field Sales Representative at Ati, your primary mandate is to defend and grow the company's revenue within the aerospace and defense sectors. This is a highly visible, hands-on role that combines strategic account planning with active field sales execution.

On a day-to-day basis, you will be responsible for managing a portfolio of high-value accounts. This involves maintaining close contact with customer procurement, engineering, and program management teams to anticipate their material needs. You will act as the primary point of contact, ensuring that any technical, quality, or delivery issues are resolved quickly by coordinating with Ati's internal manufacturing and quality assurance teams.

In addition to account maintenance, you will drive strategic growth. This means identifying new defense programs, commercial aerospace platforms, and space exploration initiatives where Ati's specialized materials can provide a competitive advantage. You will lead the preparation of complex proposals, negotiate pricing and contractual terms, and collaborate with executive leadership to secure final approval for major agreements.

Ultimately, your success in this role is measured by your ability to secure long-term commercial commitments, expand Ati's footprint within key accounts, and deliver accurate demand forecasts that allow manufacturing facilities to optimize production scheduling.

To be competitive for this position at Ati, you must bring a combination of sophisticated sales experience, industry knowledge, and strong interpersonal capabilities.

Technical & Industry Skills

• Aerospace & Defense Expertise – A deep understanding of the aerospace and defense supply chain, including familiarity with major OEMs and Tier 1 suppliers.
• Contract Negotiation – Proven experience structuring and negotiating complex, multi-year commercial agreements and pricing structures.
• CRM Proficiency – Experience utilizing modern CRM platforms (such as Salesforce) to manage pipelines, track customer interactions, and generate accurate sales forecasts.

Experience & Education

• Sales Track Record – Typically 5+ years of successful field sales or account management experience in heavy industry, manufacturing, or specialty materials.
• Educational Background – A Bachelor's degree in business, marketing, engineering, or a related technical field is required. An MBA or advanced technical degree is highly valued.
• Government Procurement Knowledge – Familiarity with defense contracting processes, ITAR compliance, and military material specifications is highly preferred.

Soft Skills

• Exceptional Coachability – A demonstrated willingness to accept feedback, self-correct, and continuously refine your professional approach.
• Cross-Functional Leadership – The ability to influence and collaborate with diverse internal teams, from shop-floor operators to executive leadership.
• Resilience & Patience – The stamina required to manage long, complex sales cycles without losing focus or momentum.

Q: How difficult is the interview process for the Account Executive position? A: Candidates generally describe the process as difficult and highly thorough. While the sales concepts themselves are standard, Ati's deep focus on behavioral psychology, personal feedback, and cross-functional panel evaluations adds a layer of complexity that requires careful preparation.

Q: What is the company culture like within the sales organization? A: The culture is highly professional, collaborative, and performance-driven. Because Ati deals with highly engineered products for critical applications, there is a strong emphasis on precision, quality, and cross-functional teamwork rather than a transactional "lone wolf" sales approach.

Q: How long does the entire interview process typically take? A: The timeline can vary, but candidates should expect a thorough process that takes anywhere from 3 to 6 weeks from the initial HR screen to a final offer, depending on scheduling across different cross-functional departments.

Q: Is a technical engineering background required for this role? A: While a formal engineering degree is not strictly mandatory, you must possess a strong technical aptitude. You must be comfortable learning about material science, metallurgy, and complex manufacturing processes to communicate effectively with both internal engineers and customer technical teams.

To set yourself apart during your Ati interview loop, keep these practical, insider tips in mind:

• Prepare your feedback stories: Before your first interview, write down two or three concrete examples of times you received tough constructive feedback. Be ready to explain exactly how you processed it, what you changed, and the positive outcomes that resulted. This is a major focus area for Ati interviewers.

• Showcase your cross-functional impact: During panel interviews, make a conscious effort to address the priorities of different departments. When speaking to an operations or engineering representative, focus on how you manage customer expectations to prevent production bottlenecks. When speaking to HR, emphasize your team-first mentality.

• Understand the product landscape: Take the time to research Ati's core product offerings, particularly their high-performance metals, alloys, and precision components. Being able to reference their material capabilities in relation to current aerospace and defense trends will demonstrate your genuine interest and preparation.

• Structure your answers: Use the STAR method (Situation, Task, Action, Result) for all behavioral questions. Ensure your "Action" section clearly highlights your specific contribution, while the "Result" quantifies the commercial or relational impact of your efforts.

The Account Executive / Field Sales Representative position at Ati is an exceptional opportunity for a sophisticated commercial professional. By managing high-value accounts in the aerospace and defense sectors, you will play a direct role in supporting some of the world's most advanced engineering and defense platforms. The role offers a perfect blend of strategic autonomy, technical complexity, and high-stakes commercial negotiation.

To succeed in this competitive interview process, focus your preparation on demonstrating strong commercial acumen, deep industry awareness, and an outstanding capacity for self-reflection and collaboration. By preparing for their structured behavioral questions and showcasing your ability to navigate complex, cross-functional organizations, you can build a compelling case for your candidacy.

The salary range shown above reflects the competitive compensation structure for this critical field position. Your specific placement within this range will depend on your depth of experience, industry expertise, and geographic location. To explore additional insights, real candidate interview reports, and detailed preparation resources, be sure to utilize the tools available on Dataford as you prepare to take the next step in your career with Ati.