Director, Sales Development, Japan

Secure Every Identity from AI to Human

Identity is the key to unlocking the potential of AI. Okta secures AI by building the trusted neutral infrastructure that enables organizations to safely embrace this new era. This work requires a relentless drive to solve complex challenges with real-world stakes. We are looking for builders and owners who operate with speed and urgency and execute with excellence.

This is an opportunity to do career-defining work. Were all in on this mission. If you are too lets talk.

Based in Tokyo we are seeking a Director to lead our high-growth Japan Sales Development the leader of Sales Development you will be responsible for owning the management of overall inboundbusiness development and outbound prospecting pipeline strategy and execution. You will lead &motivate a team of highly driven SDRs and implement efficient processes & tools that optimize for scalein a fast-paced innovative and collaborative environment. This role reports to the Senior Director SalesDevelopment (APJ).

This is a high visibility role that is responsible for hiring on-boarding and coaching a group of highperforming sales professionals while collaborating with many other departments within our Go ToMarket Function (Marketing Operations and Sales etc.). You will own Japan xDR Go to Market strategywith a goal of improving the existing teams productivity efficiency and outbound quality to build andprogress pipeline to revenue.

At Okta our mission is to maintain a people-first diverse and inclusive culture. You will be responsiblefor building the Japan xDR team culture with a focus on coaching and mentoring. You will need to be anexpert in prospecting and account planning strategies with a high growth company and must be able toeducate others effectively in these areas. You will also focus on enabling continued growth of their repsin preparation for their progression here at Okta. If you thrive in a fast-paced environment and are eagerto take ownership over a large revenue generating piece of the business we want to hear from you!

Core Responsibilities

Strategic Leadership & Business Impact

• Own the end-to-end strategy for Sales Development across Japan setting the salesvision operating model and key performance metrics that fuel regional growth.
• Establish operational rigor and a culture of high performance across the SDRorganization ensuring the team is aligned to the go-to-market strategy and consistently
  produces high-quality pipeline.
• Translate market trends customer insights and competitive intelligence into targetedprospecting strategies that elevate pipeline performance across segments.
• Drive cross-functional collaboration with Sales Marketing Channel and RevOps toensure alignment on account coverage persona focus inbound/outbound prioritization
  and the SDR AE handoff model.

Outbound Excellence & Leading by Example

• Develop and lead the execution of a robust outbound strategy that systematicallygenerates high-quality new business pipeline.
• Model exceptional outbound behaviors by actively participating in call blitzesdemonstrating best-in-class outreach techniques objection handling and callpreparation.
• Set and reinforce high standards for outbound quality personalization andconsistencyensuring the team understands what great looks like.
• Leverage tools AI intent data and industry insights to create advanced outbound playswin-back motions event-triggered outreach and persona-based engagement strategies.
• Inspect outbound performance regularly identifying root causes of gaps and drivingrapid corrective actions across the team.

Operational Excellence & Execution Discipline

• Ensure tools systems and processes (e.g. Outreach CRM data enrichment AI tools)are optimized to support efficient prospecting and high conversion outcomes.
• Conduct regular inspections of operational workflows prospecting motions andproductivity metrics driving continuous improvement and operational innovation.
• Implement governance frameworks to uphold SDR productivity quality compliance andforecasting accuracy.
• Develop scalable mechanisms for pipeline generation including playbooks sequencescadences discovery frameworks and qualification standards.
• Partner with RevOps to build capacity models coverage plans and forecasting processesbased on ramp profiles and inbound supply.

Talent Development & Frontline Leadership

• Build coach and inspire a high-performing SDR leadership bench creating strong second-line leaders capable of developing their teams.
• Implement structured coaching frameworks that elevate SDR skills in prospectingqualifying discovery and opportunity creation.
• Provide targeted actionable feedback supported by regular call reviews performanceinspections and structured development plans.
• Develop career pathways that enable rapid ramp strong performance and optimizedtenure while promoting internal mobility into AE and other GTM roles.
• Drive a culture of accountability transparency and continuous improvementensuringunderperformance is addressed quickly and equitably.
• Foster an inclusive engaged and collaborative team environment where individuals feelsupported challenged and motivated to succeed.

Cross-Functional Partnership & Stakeholder Alignment

• Partner closely with Marketing to ensure inbound demand scoring routing andfollow-up SLAs are aligned and optimized.
• Collaborate with Sales Leaders to continuously refine territory models target personasand qualification standards to maximize coverage and opportunity quality.
• Work jointly with Enablement to design onboarding ramping programs skillsdevelopment sessions and ongoing coaching tracks.
• Serve as the voice of the SDR organization at the leadership table ensuring the teamsinsights inform regional planning and go-to-market strategy.

Pipeline Growth & Business Outcomes

• Drive execution of the Sales Development strategy to ensure pipeline targets areconsistently met or exceeded.
• Lead the team to create high-quality well-qualified opportunities that accelerate salescycles and improve win rates.
• Track analyze and report on SDR performance conversion rates and pipelinehealthdelivering actionable insights and areas of improvement.
• Continuously refine the pipeline generation strategy to adapt to changing marketconditions and business priorities.

Requirements

Experience

• 1015 years in Sales Development Inside Sales or GTM People Manager leading managers (second-line leadership).
• Proven experience building and scaling SDR teams and delivering consistent high-qualitypipeline.
• Demonstrated success driving outbound strategy messaging ICP refinement andpersona-based plays.
• Strong track record of partnering with Sales Marketing RevOps and Enablement.
• Experience with forecasting capacity planning segmentation and SDR/Sales handoffmodels.

Skills & Capabilities

• Strong operator with deep experience in sales tools (Salesforce Outreach AI tools).
• Data-driven decision maker with strong analytical and diagnostic skills.
• Ability to design and optimize prospecting workflows playbooks coaching frameworksand qualification standards.
• Skilled in building scalable programs for onboarding coaching and talent development.
• Excellent written and verbal communication in English & Japanese executive presenceand influence skills.

Leadership & Behavioral Expectations

• Leads from the frontmodels high-quality outbound calls outreach preparation andobjection handling.
• Strong coach who develops both SDRs and frontline managers through structuredframeworks and regular feedback.
• Creates a culture of accountability collaboration and high performance.
• Operates with integrity transparency and a strong sense of ownership.
• Comfortable driving both strategic planning and hands-on execution.
• Ability to adhere to the 4-day RTO policy (and potential future shift to 5 days RTO).

Preferred

• Experience in SaaS cybersecurity or enterprise software environments.
• Bachelors degree in Business Marketing or a related field (or equivalent experience).

Oktas Top 5 Core Leadership Competencies are part of the deeply ingrained principles that guide all ofour companys actions. They also align strongly to our cultural cornerstones our Okta values: love ourcustomers empower our people never stop innovating act with integrity and maintain transparency.
Its our expectation that our managers and leaders embody these core competencies:

• Builds Effective Teams: Building strong-identity teams that apply their diverse skills andperspectives to achieve common goals.
• Demonstrates Self-Awareness (EQ): Using a combination of feedback and reflection to gainproductive insight into personal strengths and weaknesses.
• Develops Talent: Developing people to meet both their career goals and the organizations goals.
• Drives Results: Consistently achieving results even under tough circumstances.
• Strategic Mindset: Seeing ahead to future possibilities and translating them into breakthrough
  strategies.

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