Can I get an AE job without quota-carrying sales experience?
Hiring managers often require a proven sales or turnover record, meaning deep industry expertise and non-quota experience alone may not be enough to break through. This barrier stops qualified candidates from moving into account executive roles, leaving them stuck trying to prove their skills without a direct track record.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
- 1Focusing on information giving rather than direct selling
- 2Gaining experience in other in-home sales positions
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
r/hvacadvice2 people · September 2026
“Is two years of residential install enough experience to becoming a comfort advisor?”source ↗
Full_Requirement_911 · r/hvacadvice · 3 upvotes
r/salesforce1 person · September 2026
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
- 2Simple tool to track sales tax nexus across multiple sales channels
- 2How to hit reseller revenue quotas before getting clients
- 3How to handle inventory and fulfillment when sales pick up
- 23How to get Etsy traffic and sales for a niche store
- 3Is it too late to switch to a trade at 45?
- 6How do you transition out of a generalist IT management role?