Key Account Management and Business Development Training Course

Duration 10 days 20 modules · 65 contact hours
Level Intermediate Certificate on completion
Who attends Key Account Managers, Business Development Managers and others
Fee from USD 2,200 KSh 190,000 for Kenyan organisations
Where 52 cities + online See dates by city
Next start 16 Nov 2026 Course code SD-S-042

Before you join: Participants should have practical experience selling business-to-business products, services or solutions, and should understand their organisation's sales process, customer types and commercial objectives.

Dates & prices

Two start dates a month in every city, and live online on weekdays or weekends. Fees are per participant; classroom fees include tuition, materials, lunch and refreshments, and the certificate.

Suggest a date or city

Showing the next six months. Later dates, other cities and private deliveries for your team are available on request.

Course overview

Strategic accounts often represent a disproportionate share of revenue, margin, market access and future growth. Yet many account teams still rely on relationship strength, product presentations and reactive opportunity management. This leaves suppliers exposed when customer priorities change, competitors gain access to senior sponsors, procurement resets terms or internal teams pursue conflicting account activity. Effective key account management requires a disciplined account strategy, credible commercial insight, coordinated stakeholder engagement and measurable joint value creation.

This course develops the methods used to manage, protect and grow complex business-to-business accounts. Participants assess account attractiveness, segment account portfolios, map buying centres, analyse customer strategy and build account plans linked to revenue, margin, retention and growth objectives. They apply SPIN Selling, MEDDICC qualification, value-based selling, opportunity strategy, negotiation planning and executive meeting techniques. The course also addresses business development: target-market selection, prospecting, opportunity shaping, bid strategy, pipeline governance and internal account-team leadership.

Teaching combines short instructor briefings with account cases, stakeholder-mapping work, commercial simulations, negotiation scenarios, peer review and structured application planning. Participants use their own accounts, customers or target opportunities where confidentiality permits. They leave with a completed strategic account plan or business development plan, including stakeholder maps, opportunity priorities, value propositions, engagement actions, risk controls and performance measures.

The course is suited to experienced sales professionals moving from transactional selling into strategic account responsibility, as well as managers responsible for major customers, complex opportunities and growth accounts.

What you will be able to do

  • Assess account portfolios using attractiveness, relationship strength, risk and growth criteria
  • Build strategic account plans linked to customer priorities, commercial objectives and action ownership
  • Map buying centres and create stakeholder engagement strategies for complex account decisions
  • Develop quantified value propositions using customer economics, operational evidence and business cases
  • Qualify complex opportunities using MEDDICC criteria, deal risks and decision-process evidence
  • Lead discovery conversations using SPIN Selling questions and hypothesis-led account research
  • Prepare negotiation strategies using BATNA, concession planning and value-tradeoff analysis
  • Present a complete account growth plan with priorities, measures, risks and governance

Benefits of attending

For you

  • Produce a credible account plan for executive and internal review
  • Handle senior stakeholder conversations with stronger commercial preparation
  • Prioritise account opportunities using evidence rather than intuition
  • Improve negotiation discipline when customers request concessions or revised terms
  • Build a repeatable method for pursuing larger, longer-cycle opportunities

For your organisation

  • Increase focus on accounts with the strongest strategic and commercial potential
  • Improve retention through earlier identification of relationship and delivery risks
  • Create more consistent opportunity qualification and pipeline forecasting
  • Reduce unstructured discounting through value-based negotiation preparation
  • Coordinate sales, delivery, marketing and leadership actions around priority accounts

Course modules

20 modules over 10 days

Participants can distinguish strategic account management from transactional sales and set account-management priorities.

  • Key account management distinguishes strategic customers from transactional revenue accounts
  • Portfolio concentration analysis identifies revenue dependency and growth exposure
  • Account segmentation combines current value, potential, fit and relationship strength
  • Customer lifetime value separates profitable growth from expensive account activity
  • Buying-centre mapping identifies economic, technical, user and coach roles
  • Account manager mandates define ownership, escalation authority and internal responsibilities

Participants can rank accounts and allocate time, resources and executive attention using clear criteria.

  • Account attractiveness assesses revenue potential, margin, strategic fit and accessibility
  • Relationship position measures trust, access, preference and competitive vulnerability
  • ABC portfolio categories guide contact frequency, investment and leadership involvement
  • Whitespace analysis identifies unmet needs, adjacent buyers and expansion opportunities
  • Risk-adjusted scoring compares growth prospects against retention and delivery exposure
  • Resource allocation links account tiering to coverage models and service levels

Participants can research customer strategy and convert external evidence into account hypotheses.

  • Annual reports reveal strategic priorities, capital plans and stated business risks
  • PESTLE analysis identifies external forces affecting customer investment decisions
  • Porter's Five Forces clarifies competitive pressure within the customer's market
  • Customer value-chain mapping locates operational costs, bottlenecks and decision points
  • Trigger events signal budget shifts, leadership changes, acquisitions and compliance needs
  • Research hypotheses guide discovery questions before senior customer conversations

Participants can map stakeholder influence and plan engagement for complex account decisions.

  • Power-interest grids prioritise stakeholders requiring active relationship investment
  • Buying roles distinguish sponsors, champions, blockers, users and procurement contacts
  • Influence maps reveal informal alliances, reporting lines and decision dependencies
  • Stakeholder objectives identify personal, functional and organisational success measures
  • Multi-threading plans reduce dependency on single customer relationships
  • Contact strategies match messages, channels and meeting purposes to stakeholder roles

Participants can build trusted senior relationships through relevant insight and disciplined follow-through.

  • Credibility combines business insight, delivery evidence and reliable commitments
  • Executive conversations begin with customer priorities rather than product features
  • Meeting contracts establish purpose, participants, decisions and preparation requirements
  • Trusted-adviser behaviours include candour, curiosity, discretion and commercial challenge
  • Follow-up discipline converts meetings into agreed actions, owners and deadlines
  • Relationship health indicators expose access gaps, disengagement and sponsor turnover

Participants can conduct structured discovery conversations that reveal business problems and decision criteria.

  • SPIN Selling structures situation, problem, implication and need-payoff questions
  • Hypothesis-led discovery tests researched assumptions without leading the customer
  • Problem statements connect operational symptoms to financial and strategic consequences
  • Root-cause questioning separates stated requests from underlying business needs
  • Decision criteria uncover technical, commercial, risk and implementation requirements
  • Discovery summaries confirm facts, assumptions, priorities and agreed next actions

Participants can create evidence-based value propositions linked to customer outcomes and economics.

  • Value Proposition Canvas links customer jobs, pains and gains
  • Outcome statements describe measurable business improvements rather than solution features
  • Cost-of-inaction analysis quantifies losses from delayed customer decisions
  • ROI models compare investment, benefits, timing and implementation assumptions
  • Proof points use customer evidence, operational data and relevant case examples
  • Value messages adapt economic arguments for finance, operations and executive audiences

Participants can structure a strategic account plan with objectives, actions, owners and measures.

  • Account plan sections connect customer context, strategy, opportunities and risks
  • SMART commercial objectives specify revenue, margin, retention and timeframe targets
  • Growth themes organise opportunities around customer priorities and investment programmes
  • Action plans assign activities, accountable owners, dates and required support
  • RACI matrices clarify sales, delivery, marketing and leadership account responsibilities
  • Review cadences maintain momentum through monthly actions and quarterly strategy reviews

Participants can assess opportunity quality and choose appropriate pursuit actions.

  • MEDDICC assesses metrics, economic buyer, decision criteria and decision process
  • Identify pain, champion and competition to test opportunity strength
  • Qualification gaps expose missing evidence before forecast commitments are made
  • Mutual action plans align buyer and seller milestones toward decisions
  • Deal strategy identifies win themes, vulnerabilities and required interventions
  • No-bid decisions protect resources when strategic fit or access remains weak

Participants can select target markets and build focused new-business development plans.

  • Ideal customer profiles define firmographic, commercial and strategic target characteristics
  • Total addressable market estimates reachable demand within defined customer segments
  • Target-account lists combine market fit, trigger events and access potential
  • Account research briefs capture priorities, stakeholders, competitors and recent developments
  • Outbound sequences combine insight messages, referrals, calls and follow-up timing
  • Business development scorecards track activity quality, conversion and pipeline creation

Participants can govern account pipelines using stage evidence, probabilities and review discipline.

  • Pipeline stages reflect observable customer commitments rather than seller activity
  • Stage-exit criteria require evidence before opportunities advance or enter forecasts
  • Weighted pipeline forecasts combine probability, value, timing and confidence assumptions
  • Coverage ratios compare qualified pipeline value against sales-target requirements
  • Ageing analysis identifies stalled opportunities requiring intervention or closure
  • Forecast calls separate upside, commit and excluded opportunities using evidence

Participants can position their offer against competitors and create differentiated win themes.

  • Competitive positioning compares customer perception, capability, evidence and commercial terms
  • Battlecards record competitor strengths, weaknesses, likely messages and responses
  • Win themes link customer priorities to differentiated and provable supplier value
  • Incumbent advantage analysis identifies switching barriers, relationships and installed solutions
  • Displacement strategies target dissatisfaction, risk exposure and unmet customer outcomes
  • Red-team reviews challenge assumptions before proposals, presentations and negotiations

Participants can coordinate internal specialists to shape commercially viable customer solutions.

  • Solution shaping aligns customer outcomes, scope, delivery model and commercial viability
  • Pre-sales briefings define customer context, objectives, roles and evidence required
  • Internal stakeholder maps identify technical, legal, finance and delivery dependencies
  • Bid-governance gates assess qualification, investment, risk and executive approvals
  • Assumption logs record unresolved issues affecting scope, price and implementation
  • Account-team meetings convert customer intelligence into coordinated internal actions

Participants can develop proposal strategies that respond directly to customer decision requirements.

  • Proposal compliance matrices map customer requirements to response ownership
  • Executive summaries lead with customer outcomes, evidence and recommended action
  • Storyboards organise proposals around evaluation criteria and win themes
  • Pricing narratives explain investment logic, value drivers and commercial assumptions
  • Proposal risk reviews test claims, commitments, dependencies and approval requirements
  • Oral presentation plans assign speakers, messages, transitions and anticipated questions

Participants can prepare negotiations that protect value while preserving strategic relationships.

  • BATNA analysis establishes alternatives before price, scope or contract negotiations
  • Reservation points define minimum acceptable outcomes and walk-away conditions
  • Concession plans trade lower-priority items for meaningful reciprocal customer commitments
  • Issue matrices separate price, terms, service levels, scope and risk
  • Negotiation agendas sequence easy agreements before difficult commercial issues
  • Relationship considerations balance immediate value with long-term account objectives

Participants can respond constructively to procurement pressure, discount requests and competitive tenders.

  • Procurement strategies distinguish competitive bidding, reverse auctions and collaborative sourcing
  • Should-cost questions test customer assumptions behind requested price reductions
  • Value defence reconnects commercial terms to outcomes, risk and implementation commitments
  • Discount governance requires approval thresholds, rationale and documented trade-offs
  • Tender tactics prevent late-stage scope changes from eroding margin
  • Escalation protocols involve executives when strategic risk exceeds account authority

Participants can identify account risks early and implement retention or recovery actions.

  • Account health scores combine relationship, delivery, commercial and competitive indicators
  • Churn signals include reduced access, complaints, usage decline and procurement activity
  • Service recovery plans define customer commitments, owners, deadlines and escalation paths
  • Executive sponsorship restores confidence when operational issues threaten strategic relationships
  • Risk registers record probability, impact, early warnings and mitigation actions
  • Save plans prioritise customer outcomes before renewal dates or contract milestones

Participants can lead account teams with clear roles, operating rhythms and shared customer priorities.

  • Account-team charters establish purpose, membership, decision rights and meeting rhythm
  • Customer plans align sales, service, operations, finance and leadership contributions
  • Account reviews examine progress, blockers, decisions, risks and next commitments
  • Conflict resolution addresses competing priorities through customer-impact evidence
  • Executive sponsors receive concise updates, decisions required and relationship intelligence
  • Knowledge management captures customer insights, commitments and lessons from pursuits

Participants can measure account performance using commercial, relationship and execution indicators.

  • Account scorecards track revenue, margin, retention, pipeline and share of wallet
  • Leading indicators measure stakeholder access, actions completed and opportunity progression
  • Lagging indicators reveal booked revenue, renewal rates and margin performance
  • Customer feedback loops capture relationship quality, service concerns and improvement priorities
  • Variance analysis explains gaps between account plans, forecasts and actual results
  • Quarterly business reviews connect performance evidence to future account commitments

Participants can build, review and present a complete strategic account or business development growth plan.

  • Account diagnosis consolidates portfolio position, customer strategy and relationship evidence
  • Stakeholder maps prioritise engagement actions for sponsors, champions and blockers
  • Value propositions connect customer outcomes to quantified commercial opportunity
  • Opportunity plans apply MEDDICC evidence, milestones, risks and pursuit actions
  • Negotiation and retention strategies protect margin, relationships and renewal prospects
  • Executive presentations defend account priorities, resource requests and performance measures

Exercises and examples are adapted to each cohort's sectors and roles.

What you take back to work

  1. Strategic account plan template
  2. Account portfolio prioritisation matrix
  3. Stakeholder influence map
  4. Customer value proposition and ROI model
  5. MEDDICC opportunity qualification checklist
  6. Account growth plan presentation

Who should attend

  • Key Account Managers — responsible for retaining and growing strategic customer relationships
  • Business Development Managers — pursuing complex new-business opportunities and target accounts
  • Sales Managers — leading account teams, pipeline reviews and commercial performance
  • Account Directors — coordinating executive relationships and cross-functional account delivery
  • Bid Managers — shaping pursuits before formal procurement and proposal submission
  • Customer Success Leaders — strengthening retention, expansion and senior customer engagement

Skills and tools covered

Strategic account planningStakeholder mappingValue-based sellingOpportunity qualificationCommercial negotiationPipeline governance

Tools and standards

SPIN Selling, MEDDICC, Value Proposition Canvas, RACI matrix

How the course runs

Training methodology

The programme uses short briefings to introduce account management and business development methods, followed by case analysis, account-planning workshops, stakeholder-mapping activities, discovery and negotiation simulations, and peer review. Participants apply each method to a live account, target customer or realistic case supplied by the instructor. Facilitated account-team discussions test assumptions, surface commercial risks and improve proposed actions. Daily application planning connects course methods to upcoming customer meetings, account reviews, pursuits and internal decision points.

Requirements and prerequisites

Participants should have practical experience selling business-to-business products, services or solutions, and should understand their organisation's sales process, customer types and commercial objectives. Familiarity with sales targets, account reviews, proposals or customer meetings is expected. Participants will benefit most if they can bring information about one live account or target customer, although this is not mandatory. No formal sales qualification, finance degree, CRM certification or prior knowledge of MEDDICC, SPIN Selling or negotiation theory is required.

A typical training day

08:30 – 10:30First session
10:30 – 10:45Refreshment break
10:45 – 12:30Second session
12:30 – 13:30Lunch and networking
13:30 – 15:00Third session
15:00 – 15:15Refreshment break
15:15 – 16:30Workshop and daily review

Live online deliveries follow the same structure in East Africa Time, with shorter screen blocks and longer breaks.

What the fee includes

  • Instruction by a practitioner facilitator
  • Full course workbook and materials
  • Exercise files, templates and case studies
  • Refreshments and lunch on classroom deliveries
  • Certificate of completion
  • Post-course application plan

Frequently asked questions

Participants should already have experience in business-to-business sales, account management, customer success or business development. The course does not require a formal sales qualification or previous training in named sales frameworks.

Bring information about one live account, target customer or significant opportunity where confidentiality permits. Useful materials include account notes, pipeline data, customer strategy documents, organisation charts and recent proposals.

It is designed for professionals responsible for strategic customers, complex pursuits or high-value growth accounts. It also suits sales managers who need a consistent method for account reviews and opportunity governance.

General sales courses commonly focus on individual meetings, presentations and closing techniques. This programme addresses longer-term account strategy, multiple stakeholders, internal coordination, pipeline decisions, customer value and account growth planning.

Participants build account and opportunity materials throughout the programme using their own commercial context or supplied cases. The resulting plan can support account reviews, customer meetings, pursuit decisions and leadership discussions after the course.

Each training day runs from 08:30 to 16:30 and provides about 6.5 contact hours. The first week establishes account strategy, customer insight and value methods; the second week develops opportunity, negotiation, governance and capstone planning work.

Questions about this course?

Ask about dates, fees, group bookings or running it for your team. Our training team replies by email.

Ask on WhatsApp info@skillsetdevelopment.com

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