An Account Executive at ISS Governance (Institutional Shareholder Services) plays a critical role in driving revenue and expanding the footprint of the world's leading provider of corporate governance and responsible investment solutions. In this role, you are responsible for positioning sophisticated data, analytics, and research platforms to institutional investors, asset managers, corporations, and advisory firms. You act as the strategic bridge between complex financial and sustainability data and the institutional clients who rely on it to make critical investment and voting decisions.

The impact of this position is substantial. By expanding the adoption of ISS Governance products—particularly in high-growth areas like ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) research, climate solutions, and proxy voting services—you directly contribute to the global shift toward sustainable finance and active ownership. You will navigate complex, multi-stakeholder sales cycles, engaging with portfolio managers, heads of ESG, and C-suite executives who require tailored solutions to meet regulatory demands and fiduciary duties.

This role is highly strategic and intellectually stimulating. Rather than executing transactional sales, you will run consultative, value-based sales processes that require a deep understanding of market trends, regulatory shifts, and investment workflows. Successful Account Executives at ISS Governance thrive on solving complex client challenges, demonstrating executive presence, and articulating the tangible value of specialized financial data.

The questions you will encounter during the interview process are designed to evaluate your sales methodology, domain expertise, and ability to navigate complex client scenarios. These questions are drawn from real interview experiences and are structured to test your practical approach to selling high-value, specialized solutions rather than rote memorization.

Sales Strategy & Pitching

These questions assess your ability to structure a sales process, handle objections, and communicate the value of complex platforms to sophisticated buyers.

• Walk me through a successful enterprise deal you closed from sourcing to signing. What was your strategy?
• How do you approach pitching a highly technical or data-heavy product to a non-technical stakeholder?

To succeed in the ISS Governance interview process, you must approach your preparation with a structured mindset. The hiring team looks for candidates who combine elite sales execution with a genuine curiosity for finance and sustainable investing.

Role-Related Knowledge – You must demonstrate a strong grasp of the financial markets, institutional investment workflows, and the ESG landscape. You do not need to be a research analyst, but you must be able to speak credibly about how portfolio managers and compliance officers use data to mitigate risk and identify opportunities.

Sales Execution & Pitching – Your ability to run a structured, consultative sales process is heavily scrutinized. You should be prepared to demonstrate how you uncover client pain points, map solutions to those needs, handle objections logically, and drive a deal forward without being overly aggressive.

Adaptability & Agility – The interview process often tests your ability to think on your feet, sometimes requiring you to prepare presentations with limited preparation time. Interviewers evaluate how you handle ambiguity, structure your thoughts under pressure, and respond to unexpected questions.

Culture Fit & Professionalism – ISS Governance values collaborative, high-integrity professionals who can represent the brand to institutional clients. You should show that you are receptive to feedback, resilient in the face of setbacks, and committed to long-term client success.

The interview process for the Account Executive position at ISS Governance is thorough and designed to evaluate both your immediate sales capabilities and your long-term potential within the firm. While the exact flow can vary slightly depending on the seniority of the role and the location, candidates should prepare for a multi-stage evaluation that tests both sales mechanics and domain alignment.

The process typically begins with an initial human resources screening call to assess your background, career motivations, and basic alignment with the role. This is followed by a more detailed, conversational interview with the hiring manager, focusing on your sales experience, track record, and understanding of the financial services space. From there, you will progress to panel interviews with team members and senior leaders, culminating in a practical sales presentation or pitch simulation.

The timeline above outlines the typical progression from your initial application to the final decision. Candidates should use this sequence to pace their preparation, focusing first on high-level behavioral alignment before diving deep into product positioning and presentation structure. Be aware that the final rounds require a significant commitment of time and energy, so structured preparation early in the process is highly advantageous.

The Sales Presentation

The sales presentation is the most critical component of the evaluation process. It simulates a real client interaction and allows the hiring panel to observe your communication style, executive presence, and ability to handle pressure in real-time.

Be ready to go over:

• Value-Based Positioning – How to connect the features of an ISS platform to the strategic goals of a prospective client.
• Objection Handling – Navigating unexpected pushback on pricing, methodology, or competitor offerings.
• Presentation Structure – Building a logical, engaging narrative that starts with client challenges and ends with a clear call to action.
• Time Management – Delivering a concise, impactful pitch while leaving ample time for Q&A and discussion.

Example scenarios:

• Pitching an ISS ESG rating platform to an asset manager who believes their internal research is sufficient.
• Presenting a proxy voting solution to a corporate prospect with a highly compressed timeline.
• Conducting a discovery call to uncover pain points in a prospect's current sustainability reporting workflow.

ESG and Governance Domain Knowledge

Because ISS Governance is a highly specialized firm, you must demonstrate a solid understanding of the ecosystem in which your clients operate. You do not need to be an expert on day one, but you must show a strong baseline of industry literacy.

Be ready to go over:

• The Proxy Voting Cycle – Understanding why institutional investors vote their shares and how ISS research supports this process.
• ESG Frameworks and Ratings – Familiarity with how environmental, social, and governance factors are quantified and integrated into investment strategies.
• Regulatory Drivers – How global regulations are forcing financial institutions to adopt more rigorous reporting and compliance tools.

Example scenarios:

• Explaining to a prospect how ISS data can help them comply with emerging climate disclosure requirements.
• Discussing the strategic importance of governance factors in mitigating investment risk during a client meeting.

Enterprise Sales Execution

This area evaluates your capability to manage complex, multi-month sales cycles involving multiple decision-makers, legal reviews, and procurement processes.

Be ready to go over:

• Stakeholder Mapping – Identifying and building relationships with champions, influencers, and economic buyers within an organization.
• Pipeline Management – Maintaining a healthy, active pipeline and accurately forecasting deal closure dates.
• Negotiation and Closing – Navigating contract negotiations and securing commitment from enterprise clients.
• Advanced concepts – Managing cross-border sales, handling complex security and compliance questionnaires, and structuring multi-year enterprise agreements.

Example scenarios:

• Walk through how you would navigate a situation where your primary champion leaves the prospect company mid-deal.
• Describe how you would build a business case for a CFO to secure budget approval for a premium data subscription.

As an Account Executive at ISS Governance, your primary responsibility is to identify, qualify, and close new business opportunities within your assigned territory or sector. You will manage the entire sales cycle, from initial outbound prospecting and qualification to conducting product demonstrations, negotiating contracts, and finalizing agreements.

You will work closely with internal teams to ensure a seamless client experience. This includes collaborating with Business Development Representatives (BDRs) to build pipeline, partnering with product specialists to deliver deep-dive technical demonstrations, and coordinating with client success teams to ensure smooth onboarding. You will also share market feedback with product management and research teams to help shape the future direction of ISS solutions.

In addition to new business acquisition, you will be responsible for managing relationships with key strategic accounts, identifying opportunities for upselling and cross-selling additional modules, and ensuring high retention rates. Your success will be measured against specific revenue targets, pipeline growth metrics, and client satisfaction benchmarks.

A competitive candidate for the Account Executive position should possess a blend of enterprise sales expertise and financial market acumen.

• Must-have skills – Proven track record of meeting or exceeding sales quotas in a business-to-business (B2B) environment, exceptional presentation and communication skills, and the ability to articulate complex value propositions to senior executives.
• Nice-to-have skills – Experience selling financial technology, market data, or ESG solutions; familiarity with institutional investment workflows; and proficiency with CRM platforms like Salesforce.
• Experience level – Typically requires 3 to 7 years of professional sales experience, ideally within the financial services, fintech, or corporate governance sectors.
• Education – A bachelor's degree in business, finance, economics, international relations, or a related field is highly preferred.

Q: How difficult is the interview process for the Account Executive role? A: The process is moderately challenging and highly rigorous. While the individual conversational rounds are accessible, the sales presentation round requires deep preparation, domain understanding, and the ability to maintain composure under direct questioning.

Q: What is the company culture like at ISS Governance? A: The culture is professional, intellectually driven, and highly collaborative. Because the company deals with complex financial and governance issues, employees tend to be analytical, detail-oriented, and passionate about the evolving sustainable finance landscape.

Q: How much preparation time should I dedicate to the sales presentation? A: You should dedicate significant time to researching the assigned product, understanding the target persona, and practicing your delivery. Even if you are given a short turnaround time, focus on structuring a clear, client-centric narrative rather than trying to memorize technical specifications.

Q: What is the typical timeline from the first interview to an offer? A: The timeline can vary from three to six weeks depending on the location and the complexity of the scheduling. Be prepared for a thorough evaluation process, and maintain active, professional communication with your recruiter throughout.