Director of Accounts

About the Company

Serve Freight is a US freight brokerage specializing in complex shipments that are time-sensitive and require close coordination. The company handles project cargo, transactional truckload, and construction freight for customers who want one accountable partner from quote through proof of delivery. It is growing quickly, remains profitable, and is building the operational foundation for its next stage of scale.

Role Overview

The Director of Accounts will oversee both account managers and account executives. This is a hands-on leadership position for someone who is comfortable speaking directly with customers, not only reviewing reports. The role is responsible for holding both teams to performance standards: account executives for new business, account managers for retention and growth, and ensuring every account has clear ownership from the first quote through renewal.

This is a player-coach role with real authority. You will mentor through data rather than anecdotes and personally step into accounts when extra senior-level support is needed. The position reports directly to the CEO.

Location

The role is remote or hybrid, with office options in Asheville, North Carolina, or Cleveland, Ohio.

Key Responsibilities

Own the commercial team, including both account managers and account executives.

Drive new customer acquisition through the AE pipeline while also managing gross revenue retention and expansion across the AM book.

Set and enforce account ownership standards so every account has a designated owner, a current status in HubSpot, and a defined next action.

Coach and develop the team, helping build the next generation of AE and AM talent at Serve Freight.

Hold weekly one-on-ones with every AE and AM and use data to guide coaching.

Work with overseas brokers managing their own books and create alignment, trust, and consistent standards across a distributed team.

Develop KPIs and scorecards that track pipeline health, activity levels, win rates, sales cycle timing, average deal size, retention, and expansion.

Lead pipeline hygiene reviews to keep deal stages accurate, close dates realistic, and stalled opportunities visible early.

Own the forecasting rhythm, including weekly, monthly, and quarterly commitments to John.

Design deal review structure, including the cadence, meeting format, and discussion questions.

Manage the AE-to-AM handoff so accounts never lose coverage during transition.

Create a coverage model that prevents service gaps when team members are out or move off an account.

Address service escalations before they turn into churn risks.

Lead quarterly business reviews with top customers.

Identify cross-sell and upsell opportunities within both the AM book and the AE pipeline.

Work to convert spot freight into contracted lanes whenever possible.

Build SOPs for onboarding, daily operations, escalations, handoffs, and QBRs across both teams.

Implement scorecards and SLAs tied to new business, retention, expansion, response time, and margin.

Partner with BizOps on rolling out margin-per-load and cost-per-load methodology to the commercial team.

Work with HubSpot administration on CRM cleanliness, stage discipline, and forecasting reports.

Partner with operations to ensure service-level commitments are met on every load.

Coordinate with finance on customer billing, accounts receivable, and credit terms.

Support FY26 OKRs related to commercial growth and gross margin protection.

What Success Looks Like After 12 Months

Every account has a named owner and a documented status in HubSpot, with no account left unmanaged or unquoted.

The commercial pipeline is organized, forecastable, and trusted by the team.

Forecast accuracy stays within 10% on a rolling 30-day basis.

AE and AM SOPs, scorecards, and the coverage model are documented and actively used.

The top 20 customers are on a regular QBR cadence.

The team has grown, and at least one new AE or AM has been hired and developed.

New business growth and account retention are both on plan, without sacrificing one for the other.

Required Experience

You should have at least 5 years of experience in freight brokerage or 3PL, with exposure to both new business development and account management.

You need a record of personally closing new business and personally growing retained named accounts, with measurable gross margin improvement rather than success in only one area.

Experience in brokerage pricing is required, including lane pricing, bids, spot versus contracted freight, and margin protection.

You must have demonstrated success leading both a sales team and an account management team at the same time.

Experience creating SOPs, scorecards, and operational workflows is required.

You should be comfortable building KPIs, dashboards, and a forecasting cadence.

You must be able to manage your own accounts while also leading a team.

Experience with TMS platforms is required; Turvo is a plus, and familiarity with HubSpot is also a plus.

Preferred Experience

Exposure to multiple transportation modes, such as truckload, ocean, and intermodal, is preferred.

Experience leading distributed or remote teammates is preferred.

Background in construction, foodservice, or industrial verticals is preferred.

Experience recovering accounts that were under-supported or at risk of being overlooked is a plus.

Who This Role Fits Best

This role is suited to an operator who can win new business and protect existing revenue, understanding that these are distinct disciplines.

It is a strong fit for someone who will personally call a customer when the situation calls for it, rather than only reviewing reports.

The right person is direct, decisive, and comfortable holding customers, carriers, AEs, and AMs to a clear standard.

This role suits a builder who notices when an account is slipping and closes the gap without waiting for direction.

It is ideal for someone who wants full ownership of the commercial function at a growing company, not just one part of it.

Compensation

The package includes a competitive base salary and variable pay tied to new business, retention, and forecasting discipline. Exact details will be shared during the interview process.