Director, Systems Solutions Architecture

Ciena is committed to our people-first philosophy. Our teams enjoy a culture focused on prioritizing a personalized and flexible work environment that empowers an individual’s passions, growth, wellbeing and belonging. We’re a technology company that leads with our humanity—driving our business priorities alongside meaningful social, community, and societal impact.

We are seeking a Director, Sales Engineering as the customer facing, technical resource supporting one of Ciena’s primary Compute customers in the Seattle area.  The ideal candidate requires a strong technical background with an emphasis in optical networking/transport products and designing/deploying long haul DWDM solutions.  Additional desired experience includes routing/switching products and customer applications, operations automation tooling using common APIs (REST/gRPC), as well as an understanding of hyperscale network architecture and evolution. In addition, the ability to position Ciena’s leadership in networking hardware and software solutions as well as how Ciena’s offerings differentiate against the competition. This position is based in the Seattle Area, where the selected candidate must reside or be willing to relocate.

Responsibilities:

·         Design Long Haul DWDM solutions, prepare associated hardware & deployment services quotes, create detailed Visio diagrams of proposed solutions, author scope of work documents for new greenfield deployments as well as network augment projects, define channel plans, and coordinate closely with Ciena Deployment Team PMs to ensure successful execution of our proposals.

·         Perform technical oversight, including on-site customer engagements, support customer and internal architectural discussions and requirements definition into the engineering organizations.

·         Be able to create, communicate and articulate the value of solutions to customers.

·         Understand the customers current network, software applications and architecture.

·         Work with both internal and external organizations to drive solutions for our customers.

·         Consult with customers on best practices to automate and incorporate Ciena’s technology into their networks. 
 

General Activities:

·         Consulting sales engineer supporting one of Ciena’s strategic Compute customers.

·         Serve as a customer-facing primary contact for advanced technical issues.

·         Ability to understand network architectures and their building blocks.

·         Prepare designs, quotes, scope of work documents, and network diagrams.

·         Assist in the preparation of RFx responses, and forecasts.

·         Collect and assist in assessment of new product features.

·         Manage and track customer requests and help coordinate sales activities.

·         Assist Customer Product and Technology solution discussions and presentations.

·         Support in the development of pricing strategies and incentives to win business.

·         Assist in tracking of product deliverables and communicating issues to regional teams.

·         Lead the transition of customers from end-of life products to other Ciena solutions.

·         Plan and support product certification, acceptance testing, and network introduction activities.

·         Make independent decisions on routine technical activities in accordance with company policy and procedures.

·         Travel (up to 50%) to customers sites, R&D locations and technical conferences for customer engagements, technical discussions, and presentations.

·         Performs other duties as assigned.

Experience:

·         Optical Transport Network Design & Deployment, and Operations.

·         Building network cost models that drive optimization of network designs.

·         Understanding basic concepts of Data Center architectures, spine and leaf designs, edge networking, routing, switching and optical transport.

·         Understanding of Automation SW architecture, common workflows, ZTP methods, DCN networking, APIs and networking models.

·         Familiarity with cloud architecture and deploying / running applications in a cloud environment.

·         Construction of product feature / price analysis spreadsheets

·         Sales opportunity and quote tool experience a plus

·         Project management, organizational skills

·         Problem solving skills

·         Superior verbal and written communication skills

·         Strategy development

·         Time management skills: ability to plan, prioritize, execute & follow-up within a timely manner

·         Professionalism in attitude, conduct, and appearance

·         Ability to build strong customer relationships and support an overall sales strategy

·         Technical background and desire to learn new technologies

·         Demonstrated ability to manage on-going activities such as RFP activity, trials, and product acceptance

·         Must be able to communicate and work with Ciena engineering organizations and articulate the technical concepts and design to our customers.

·         Bachelor’s Degree (CS, EE), or equivalent experience required

·         10+ years telecommunications / industry experience desired

·         Sales Engineering, Engineering, Operations, Tech Support or Product Management background required

·         Prior Internet Content Provider sales experience would be beneficial

Compensation and Benefits

The annual total target compensation pay range for this position is $237,500 - $380,000.  This includes both base and incentive compensation.

Pay ranges at Ciena are designed to accommodate variations in knowledge, skills, experience, market conditions, and locations, reflecting our diverse products, industries, and lines of business. Please note that the pay range information provided in this posting pertains specifically to the primary location, which is the top location listed in case multiple locations are available.

Non-Sales employees may be eligible for a discretionary incentive bonus, while Sales employees may be eligible for a sales commission. In addition to competitive compensation, Ciena offers a comprehensive benefits package, including medical, dental, and vision plans, participation in 401(K) (USA) & DCPP (Canada) with company matching, Employee Stock Purchase Program (ESPP), Employee Assistance Program (EAP), company-paid holidays, paid sick leave, and vacation time. We also comply with all applicable laws regarding Paid Family Leave and other leaves of absence.

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