Account Executive - Portfolio - Commercial

Cisco Systems, Inc.; Houston (TX); On-site; USD 260,000 - 352,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental and vision insurance

401(k) with Cisco matching

Paid parental leave

Job summary

Cisco Systems, Inc. in Houston seeks a Portfolio Account Executive to drive the regional sales of Cisco's portfolio.

You will plan sales strategies, develop proposals, deliver customer presentations and demos, and create new business opportunities with Cisco Account Managers, Systems Engineers, and Partners. The role requires 5+ years in tech sales, ability to travel to customer sites, and a track record in winning major opportunities.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of proven sales experience in a technology customer facing role.
• Ability to travel as needed to customer sites for in person meetings/engagements.
• Proven track record in managing and winning major strategic opportunities, with the ability to work unsupervised; able to interact as a valuable team member.
• Experienced in multi-level selling, comfortable influencing CxO, IT Managers, Purchasing, etc.

Responsibilities

• Plan sales strategies and develop proposals to meet regional quotas.
• Deliver customer presentations and demos to drive opportunities and brand preference for Cisco.
• Collaborate with Cisco Account Managers, Systems Engineers, Technical Leaders, Sales Managers and Partners.
• Develop a business plan to meet and exceed assigned quota in the Houston region.

Skills

Sales experience

Travel readiness

Relationship building

Strategic selling

Cxo influence

Education

Bachelor's degree or equivalent

Job description

The application window is expected to close on: 09/29/2026

The application window is expected to close on September 30, 2026. Job posting may be removed earlier if the position is filled or if a sufficient number of applications are received.

Candidate must be located in or willing to relocate to the Houston Metro region.

Meet the Team:

Are you passionate about technology? Are you looking to build a sales career at an established, strong, and evolving company? As a Portfolio Account Executive at Cisco, you'll play a pivotal role in the sales process and work with the portfolio of technology products. This position covers our Commercial sector accounts. A successful Cisco Portfolio Account Executive will work with Cisco Account Managers, Systems Engineers, Technical Leaders, Sales Managers and Partners to plan sales strategies, develop proposals, deliver customer presentations/demos, and create new business opportunities.

Your Impact:

• In this position, you will be facilitating the success of the Houston Texas Region Cisco Sales Team in selling our Portfolio of products with measurable sales objectives for the region you support.
• You will be quick to find opportunities, able to handle people and prioritize sales engagements, highly capable as a trusted consultant and mentor to salespeople, and committed to improving the competency of the team.
• You will be responsible for developing a business plan to meet and exceed assigned quota. You will plan sales strategies, develop proposals, deliver customer presentations, and drive brand preference for Cisco.
• You'll help advance the Commercial Sales Team and help make an impact in the community around you.

Minimum Qualifications:

• 5+ years of proven sales experience in a technology customer facing role.
• Ability to travel as needed to customer sites for in person meetings/engagements.
• Bachelor's degree or equivalent work experience.
• Proven track record in managing and winning major strategic opportunities, with the ability to work unsupervised; ability to interact as a valuable team member.
• Experienced in multi-level selling, comfortable influencing CxO, IT Managers, Purchasing, etc.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Technical software sales experience is desired.
• Ability to handle a long and complex sales cycle.
• Excellent written and verbal communications skills.
• Strong listening and presentation skills.
• Ability to collaborate with multiple teams and multiple levels of the organizations (account managers, technical leaders, Partners, Channels, etc.).
• Requires a solution sales approach versus a product specific approach.
• Must work well in teams and be able to create an outcome where everybody wins.
• Position requires a passion for driving strategies; a strong personality with demonstrated leadership skills working in a complex matrix organization.
• Local travel and some overnight travel is required.

Why Cisco?

At Cisco, we're revolutionizing how data and infrastructure connect and protect organizations in the AI era - and beyond. We've been innovating fearlessly for 40 years to create solutions that power how humans and technology work together across the physical and digital worlds. These solutions provide customers with unparalleled security, visibility, and insights across the entire digital footprint.

Fueled by the depth and breadth of our technology, we experiment and create meaningful solutions. Add to that our worldwide network of doers and experts, and you'll see that the opportunities to grow and build are limitless. We work as a team, collaborating with empathy to make really big things happen on a global scale. Because our solutions are everywhere, our impact is everywhere.

We are Cisco, and our power starts with you.

Message to applicants applying to work in the U.S. and/or Canada:

The starting salary range posted for this position is $259,900.00 to $351,700.00 and reflects the projected salary range for new hires in this position in U.S. and/or Canada locations, not including incentive compensation*, equity, or benefits.

Individual pay is determined by the candidate's hiring location, market conditions, job-related skillset, experience, qualifications, education, certifications, and/or training. The full salary range for certain locations is listed below. For locations not listed below, the recruiter can share more details about compensation for the role in your location during the hiring process.

U.S. employees are offered benefits, subject to Cisco's plan eligibility rules, which include medical, dental and vision insurance, a 401(k) plan with a Cisco matching contribution, paid parental leave, short and long-term disability coverage, and basic life insurance. Please see the Cisco careers site to discover more benefits and perks. Employees may be eligible to receive grants of Cisco restricted stock units, which vest following continued employment with Cisco for defined periods of time.

U.S. employees are eligible for paid time away as described below, subject to Cisco's policies:

• 10 paid holidays per full calendar year, plus 1 floating holiday for non-exempt employees
• 1 paid day off for employee’s birthday, paid year-end holiday shutdown, and 4 paid days off for personal wellness determined by Cisco
• Non-exempt employees** receive 16 days of paid vacation time per full calendar year, accrued at rate of 4.92 hours per pay period for full time employees
• Exempt employees participate in Cisco's flexible vacation time off program, which has no defined limit on how much vacation time eligible employees may use (subject to availability and some business limitations)
• 80 hours of sick time off provided on hire date and each January 1st thereafter, and up to 80 hours ofunused sick timecarried forwardfrom one calendar yearto the next
• Additional paid time away may be requested to deal with critical or emergency issues for family members
• Optional 10 paid days per full calendar year to volunteer

For non-sales roles, employees are also eligible to earn annual bonuses subject to Cisco's policies.

Employees on sales plans earn performance-based incentive pay on top of their base salary, which is split between quota and non-quota components, subject to the applicable Cisco plan. For quota-based incentive pay, Cisco typically pays as follows:

• .75% of incentive target for each 1% of revenue attainment up to 50% of quota;
• 1.5% of incentive target for each 1% of attainment between 50% and 75%;
• 1% of incentive target for each 1% of attainment between 75% and 100%; and
• Once performance exceeds 100% attainment, incentive rates are at or above 1% for each 1% of attainment with no cap on incentive compensation.

For non-quota-based sales performance elements such as strategic sales objectives, Cisco may pay 0% up to 125% of target. Cisco sales plans do not have a minimum threshold of performance for sales incentive compensation to be paid.

The applicable full salary ranges for this position, by specific state, are listed below:

New York City Metro Area:

$292,000.00 - $440,900.00

Non-Metro New York state & Washington state:

$269,300.00 - $411,100.00

* For quota-based sales roles on Cisco's sales plan, the ranges provided in this posting include base pay and sales target incentive compensation combined.

** Employees in Illinois, whether exempt or non-exempt, will participate in a unique time off program to meet local requirements.