About the role
Are you ready to unlock intelligence?
If you don’t think you meet all of the criteria below but are still interested in the job, please apply. Nobody checks every box - we’re looking for candidates that are particularly strong in a few areas, and have some interest and capabilities in others.
About the Role:
We’re looking for a Federal AE to drive growth across key Civilian agencies - specifically DOE, DOJ, VA, and Department of Commerce. This role is focused on landing new logos, expanding existing relationships, and helping agencies modernize digital services using Kong’s API and AI Gateway. Ideal for someone who understands Civilian priorities like citizen experience (CX), data sharing, Zero Trust, and cloud/AI adoption, and knows how to navigate complex, partner-driven Federal sales cycles.
What You’ll Do
• Own and grow a portfolio across DOE, DOJ, VA, Commerce.
• Drive new business + expansion aligned to agency modernization priorities.
• Run full sales cycle (pipeline → capture → close).
• Work closely with SIs + partners (Booz, Accenture Federal, SAIC, Leidos, etc.).
• Build relationships with CIOs, CTOs, program + digital leaders.
• Align Kong to initiatives like CX, interoperability, AI enablement, Zero Trust.
• Develop account plans tied to budget + funding (TMF, FITARA, etc.).
• Maintain clean pipeline + forecasting in Salesforce.
• Represent Kong at agency + industry events.
What You Bring
• 7+ years selling into Federal Civilian agencies (ideally DOE, DOJ, VA, Commerce).
• Track record closing complex, multi-stakeholder deals.
• Strong understanding of:
CX + digital services
Data sharing / interoperability
Zero Trust + security
Cloud + AI adoption
• Experience with Federal procurement + contract vehicles (GSA, SEWP, CIO-SP3/4, Polaris).
• Comfortable in partner-led motions with major SIs.
• Strong executive presence (CIO/CTO/program level).
• Solid pipeline discipline (Salesforce).
• Background in API, infra, security, or AI is a plus.
#LI-TM2
About Kong:
Kong Inc., the AI Connectivity Company, is building the connectivity layer of AI. Trusted by the Fortune 500® and AI-native startups alike, Kong’s unified API and AI platform enables organizations to secure, manage, accelerate, govern, and monetize the flow of intelligence across APIs and AI traffic — on any model, any cloud. For more information, visit www.konghq.com.
About Kong
Kong Inc. provides a unified, cloud-native API platform designed to help organizations manage, secure, and accelerate their APIs, microservices, and AI connectivity. They specialize in API gateway and service mesh technologies compatible with hybrid, multi-cloud, and on-premise environments.
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Job details
Location
Maryland, Virginia + 1 more
Funding
Total raised
$345M
Last stage
Growth
Investors
Founders
Marco Palladino
Co-Founder & CTO
What happens next.
No applications, no recruiter spam. Just the intro.
Confirm the fit
A few questions to make sure this role is the right shape for you. Two minutes.
I pitch you to the company
I write the intro, send it to the founder, and handle the back-and-forth.
A meeting lands on your calendar
If they’re a yes, I book the chat. You show up — that’s the whole job-hunt.
