Business Development Executive (Central Region)

By joining the National Student Clearinghouse, you can be sure that the work you do now will help shape the future of education and the workforce in the U.S. As the trusted source for higher education data since 1993, the Clearinghouse is the leading provider of transcript and data exchange services, automated enrollment and degree verifications, learner insights and research, and compliance solutions for schools, businesses, and learners nationwide. As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, the Clearinghouse works with nearly 3,600 postsecondary institutions to meet their compliance needs and with thousands of high schools and districts to provide continuing collegiate enrollment, progression, and completion statistics about their alumni. In addition, the Research Center publications inform policymakers and business leaders about student educational pathways. Using our unique combination of data, analytics, and software to drive our mission, security and privacy is paramount. Join us as we continue to invest in our talent and new advanced technologies to unlock the power of data on behalf of all learners.

The Senior Specialist, Secondary Education Relationships is responsible for promoting the use of Clearinghouse offerings to educational organizations that have a need to access the company's data about post-secondary progress, state education organizations charged with oversight of the public schools, the country's largest school districts, and outreach organizations committed to ensuring student success. These organizations include governmental and other entities with a legitimate reason to use Clearinghouse data to monitor student progress or to examine trends that impact public policy. In this role, you will be the primary relationship manager for the Clearinghouse's work with outreach and educational organizations and support the field efforts related to business with states and large school districts. You will develop and execute a national approach to sustain and grow the Clearinghouse's services to educational organizations and support efforts to retain and grow business with all states and the leading school districts.

You will be the ideal candidate if you have a robust understanding of how verified data informs educational policy and program analysis, and you understand the importance and how the role feeds to the success of the organization. Traveling nationally (up to 50% or more of the time) is not a concern and you enjoy meeting current and prospective customers virtually and face-to-face.

Currently, this is a remote-first position, and the regional travel requirements are up to 50% or more of the time. Therefore, candidates must either reside within the noted region and in one of the specific states as listed under the What you Bring to the Table section.

• Demonstrate the Clearinghouse's core competencies: Customer Focus, Optimizes Work Processes, Collaborates, Communicates Effectively, and Be Open and Authentic.
• Use a structured approach to opportunity planning to understand customer motivation, buying criteria, selection processes and solution preferences.
• Use a disciplined approach to prepare, set meeting objectives, dialog, position, handle objections, close and follow-up to calls.
• Demonstrate proficiency in relating, questioning, listening, positioning, and checking to determine client needs and concerns.
• Conduct regular client satisfaction visits with as many accounts as possible throughout the year on site, virtually and at conferences and events.
• Serve as a strategic partner to build, grow, and maintain profitable and long-lasting relationships with key accounts.
• Accurately record activities within Salesforce.
• Participate in major national and regional industry association and themed conferences.
• Build territory, account, and opportunity plans to focus activities based on Education Solution's mission and product priorities.
• Use information from Clearinghouse sources to help clients understand how to better use the company's products and solutions.
• Employ opportunity management practices to prospect, qualify, propose, negotiate, contract, and provide ongoing support to clients.
• Recognize how new processes can help make the department more successful and willingly provides input to measure success.
• Partner with others across the organization (e.g. product teams, implementation, legal, finance) to ensure shared objectives are met in serving a client.
• Ensure open dialog to determine how each party's interest can be considered in the development of a solution.
• Bring an outward mindset towards including others in solutioning while maintaining one's own personal interests - demonstrates balance of self-awareness and self determination to create better results.
• Demonstrate problem solving skills including brainstorming options, evaluation of alternatives, enlarging the potential benefits, building reciprocity, and employing objective standards.
• Bring energy, curiosity, and conviction to conversations; Effective in a wide range of settings, from one on one meetings to presentations.
• Build rapport by relating to others, acknowledging, and empathizing; listen to understand the business issues, and for emotional content.
• Craft questions that convey expertise, elicit information, and drive deeper to ensure needs and ideas are explored fully.
• Use persuasive techniques to overcome objections and demonstrate how perceptions are shared.
• Regularly elicit feedback and confirm agreements or need for further clarity.
• Demonstrate openness to new perspectives and ideas.
• Seeks to understand others' interests and needs through thoughtful questioning and listening.
• Build trust with internal and external stakeholders by demonstrating consistency between words and actions.
• Faces difficult issues and tackles them with optimism and confidence; confident delivering all messages to internal and external stakeholders.
• Understands which issues to tackle and demonstrates a willingness to develop tactics to address concerns.

Position may be required to perform other duties as required. These essential functions are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the job. Reasonable accommodations will be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform these essential functions.

• Bachelors degree in business, marketing, or any related field. A combination of education and experience including military service will also be considered.
• 5 years of professional experience in the education industry, business development and/or sales.
• Experience working in or selling into state educational agencies and/or school districts or educational organizations focused on measuring student success and/or guiding student pathways into college.
• A history of consistently meeting or exceeding annual sales/business development targets.
• Proven track-record of developing positive relationships with internal and external stakeholders.
• Demonstrated ability:
  
  
  
  • Working on multiple initiatives simultaneously in a time critical environment.
  • Lead complex business development opportunities that are win-win for the client and the organization.
  
  
  
  
• Strong negotiating skills.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite and Salesforce and willingness to learn new applications.
• Excellent communication skills with the ability to communicate effectively with all levels of staff.
• Demonstrates the Clearinghouse's core competencies: customer focus, optimizes work processes, communicates effectively, collaborates, and is open and authentic.
• Due to the specific region this role supports, candidates must reside in one of the Clearinghouse's approved States for hiring purposes located East of the Mississippi River. Refer to our HR Policies Page, located on our Careers site at https://www.studentclearinghouse.org/careers/human-resource-policies/, for more details.
• Must be currently authorized to work in the United States on a full-time basis. We do not intend to sponsor external applicants for work visas, and may consider sponsorship only if no qualified candidates can be found who are authorized to work without sponsorship.
• Must be at least 18 years old.

Additional Desired Qualifications

• Master's degree in business, marketing, or related field.
• Familiarity with commercializing big data and/or data-related services.
• Familiarity with the problems, issues, and methods of states and secondary education institutions.
• Experience in education administration or previous knowledge of the features and benefits of Clearinghouse services.
• Experience with Salesforce and/or Pardot.

• Use of a computer for 8 or more hours a day.
• Use of a telephone and/or copy machine.
• Frequently required to sit for 7 or more hours per day.
• Occasionally required to use hands and fingers to operate, handle, and reach.
• Vision abilities include close vision and the ability to adjust focus.
• Occasionally lift and/or move up to 25 pounds and use hands and fingers to operate, handle, and reach.
• Must be able to hear, speak, read, and concentrate.
• Stand for extended periods of time, up to 3 hours at a time at conferences or while making presentations.
• Must be flexible to perform out-of-town assignments and travel via car, plane, and/or train, regionally up to 50% or more of the time including evening and weekends when needed.

The National Student Clearinghouse provides a robust benefit program designed to help meet the needs of each employee and their family, both now and in the future. We offer comprehensive medical, dental, and vision insurance, as well as life and disability insurance benefits, for employees and their qualified dependents. Health care, dependent care, and limited purpose flexible spending accounts, as well as a health savings account with annual employer contributions of $300 for employees and $600 for employees who are enrolled with their spouse and/or dependents, voluntary supplemental health plans for Accident and Hospital Indemnity coverage, and infertility coverage are options available for employees to set aside pre-taxed dollars for certain qualifying expenses. We offer a very generous 401k matching contribution program with the opportunity to defer pre-tax and Roth contributions, as well as catch-up contributions for those who are eligible! We are proud to offer a competitive paid leave program consisting of vacation, sick, and personal time, as well as paid holidays, up to 3 weeks of paid parental leave during a 12-month period , and up to 5 days of paid military leave per calendar year . Vacation time will accrue based on length of service, and new full-time hires can accrue up to 13 days of vacation and up to 10 days of sick time per year. On an annual basis, new employees may use up to 32 hours of accrued sick time as personal time. Additionally, the Clearinghouse observes at least 15 paid holidays per year, including company year-end close between Christmas and New Years Holidays.

Another perk is that employees have the option to get reimbursed for basic wholesale company and roadside assistance memberships (e.g., Costco and AAA) and to request a buy back on portions of unused accrued vacation based on tenure and certain other qualifications. Employees can further their education and professional development by using our Employee Education Assistance Program, which establishes reimbursement for qualified education expenses upon successful completion of the program, and leveraging the enterprise-wide LinkedIn Learning subscription. There are additional employee benefits too, including but not limited to, mental health with up to eight free therapy sessions for employees and their family members and well-being reward benefits. With the Clearinghouse being an eligible 501(3)(c) nonprofit organization, employees are eligible for service credit towards the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program (PSLF). To find out more, please request a copy of our Benefits at a Glance!

Additionally, we reasonably believe that the salary range for this position is between $96,000 and $120,000. Eligible for incentive compensation.

The pay range listed above represents a good faith estimate and is not a guarantee of compensation or salary. The National Student Clearinghouse considers multiple factors when determining base pay for offers, including but not limited to the responsibilities and scope of the role, as well as a candidate's experience, education, knowledge, skills, abilities, internal equity, and alignment with market data.

Internal Candidates: If you feel you meet the qualifications for the role, we strongly encourage you to apply and focus on preparing for the application process. Finalist internal candidates will receive a compensation review prior to any offer being made. In accordance with the Clearinghouse's compensation and promotion guidelines, internal compensation practices will be applied first, which may result in pay that differs from the posted salary range.

This job announcement was posted to the National Student Clearinghouse's Careers site at www.studentclearinghouse.org/careers on 6/12/2026 and the online application period will be open for at least 3 days. A completed online application is required to be considered for this opportunity.

Equal Opportunity Employer/Protected Veterans/Individuals with Disabilities: The National Student Clearinghouse is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to actual or perceived race, creed, color, religion, alienage or national origin, ancestry, citizenship status, age, disability or handicap, sex, marital status, veteran status (or known to have a spousal, family, business, social or other relationship or association with a protected veteran), sexual orientation, genetic information, arrest record, natural hairstyle, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local laws. Our management team is dedicated to this policy with respect to recruitment, hiring, placement, promotion, transfer, training, compensation, benefits, employee activities and general treatment during employment.

Pay Transparency Notice: The National Student Clearinghouse is a federal contractor that abides by all applicable equal opportunity laws and regulations. Under these laws, companies doing business with the federal government must provide applicants and employees with certain policies, including the following information. The contractor will not discharge or in any other manner discriminate against employees or applicants because they have inquired about, discussed, or disclosed their own pay or the pay of another employee or applicant. However, employees who have access to the compensation information of other employees or applicants as a part of their essential job functions cannot disclose the pay of other employees or applicants to individuals who do not otherwise have access to compensation information, unless the disclosure is (a) in response to a formal complaint or charge, (b) in furtherance of an investigation, proceeding, hearing, or action, including an investigation conducted by the employer, or (c) consistent with the contractor's legal duty to furnish information. 41 CFR 60-1.35(c)