The Sales Engineer supports the SLED (State, Local, and Education) Sales team in achieving revenue goals by providing high-quality pre-sales technical support and value-focused presentations. Acting as a product solution specialist, this individual ensures the best technical solutions are provided based on customer requirements. This role requires significant customer interaction and a deep understanding of the sales cycle, specifically within the SLED market.
Strategic Collaboration: Work closely with Account Managers and Regional Directors to develop business and technical strategies that maximize the chance of winning business.
Needs Discovery: Investigate prospect needs and identify compelling events or business problems to offer attractive solutions.
Technical Support: Provide specialized support using established best practices and available technical resources.
Account Leadership: Take responsibility for lead technical activities, including building relationships across customer IT silos to document infrastructure and understand challenges.
Demonstrations & PoCs: Create and deliver Proof of Concepts (PoCs), manage competitive bakeoffs, and conduct live product demonstrations or whiteboard discussions.
Forecasting Support: Assist sales teams in accurately assessing and forecasting opportunities throughout the sales process.
Travel: Travel is required within the assigned territory and region, estimated at 40% - 50%.
Experience: Minimum 10 years in IT or 7 years as a pre-sales engineer, Network Engineer, or Application Engineer.
Minimum 5 years of experience in Network Observability and/or Network Security.
5+ years of experience selling directly into the SLED market.
Technical Expertise:
Expertise in Cisco routing, switching, gateways, and applications is required.
Proficiency in TCP/IP, SNMP, Netflow, VoIP, and various topologies such as LAN and WAN (MPLS).
Working knowledge of Linux and Windows operating systems.
Familiarity with Network Performance Management, SDN/NFV, and Cloud (Public/Private) environments.
Exceptional verbal and written communication, organization, and time management skills.
Must have attended formal sales training (e.g., Sandler, Siebel, or Afterburner).
Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, or equivalent is preferred.
MBA and formal presentation training are a plus.