Director, Pre-Sales Engineering
CoStar Group
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Benefits offered by this job
Job summary
CoStar Group seeks an experienced Director of Pre-Sales Engineering (Zonda unit) to lead a high-performance team in delivering technical pre-sales support for residential and commercial real estate technology solutions. The role requires deep B2B tech understanding, strategic collaboration with Sales, Product, and Contracts, and a track record in creating precise solution scoping and compelling demonstrations.
Based onsite in Irvine, CA, with strong leadership skills.
Qualifications
- Bachelor's degree in Business, Engineering, IT, CS or equivalent professional experience.
- 8+ years in pre-sales engineering or related roles.
- Proven leadership of technical or customer-facing teams.
- Experience supporting complex B2B technology solutions with demos and POCs.
Responsibilities
- Lead and develop the Pre-Sales Engineering team with clear performance expectations.
- Oversee pre-sales activities: discovery, demonstrations, scoping, proposals, pricing, and sales support.
- Review architecture plans, configurations, and cost implications for accurate estimates.
- Manage intake, asset collection, and routing to relevant teams.
- Collaborate with Sales, Product, and Contracts to define pricing and quotes.
Skills
Education
Tools
Job description
CoStar Group (NASDAQ: CSGP) is a leading global provider of commercial and residential real estate information, analytics, and online marketplaces. Included in the S&P 500 Index, CoStar Group is on a mission to digitize the world’s real estate, empowering all people to discover properties, insights and connections that improve their businesses and lives.
CoStar Group (NASDAQ: CSGP) is a leading global provider of commercial and residential real estate information, analytics, and online marketplaces. Included in the S&P 500 Index, CoStar Group is on a mission to digitize the world’s real estate, empowering all people to discover properties, insights and connections that improve their businesses and lives.
We have been living and breathing the world of real estate information and online marketplaces for over 35 years, giving us the perspective to create truly unique and valuable offerings to our customers. We’ve continually refined, transformed, and perfected our approach to our business, creating a language that has become standard in our industry, for our customers, and even our competitors. We continue that effort today and are always working to improve and drive innovation. This is how we deliver for our customers, our employees, and investors. By equipping the brightest minds with the best resources available, we provide an invaluable edge in real estate.
Zonda is redefining the future of housing. We are perfectly placed in the heart of the fast-growing real estate industry. We are making big bets on the future of real estate, trailblazing a 2030 vision for the industry. Here at Zonda, you’ll be able to use your passion and curiosity to drive the next generation of real estate analysts, advisors, technologists, and marketers.
Learn more about Zonda
Zonda is seeking an experienced and strategic Director, Pre-Sales Engineering to lead our Pre-Sales Engineering function supporting innovative digital solutions for the residential homebuilding industry.
This highly visible leadership position serves as a critical link between Sales, Product Management, Production, Technology, and our homebuilder and developer customers. The Director will lead and develop a team of Pre-Sales Engineers, remain directly involved in complex estimates and solution design, and drive initiatives that improve operational efficiency, scalability, and revenue growth.
The ideal candidate combines strong leadership and consultative sales experience with an understanding of residential homebuilding, digital visualization, and technology solutions. This individual will play an important role in informing Zonda's product strategy through customer needs, competitive intelligence, and solution feasibility, strengthening customer relationships, and enhancing the effectiveness of our sales organization.
This position is open to U.S.-based candidates, with a preference for individuals located in or near Orange County, California, who can regularly collaborate with our Irvine-based team.
- Lead, mentor, and develop the Pre-Sales Engineering team, establishing performance expectations, accountability, and scalable processes to support business growth.
- Oversee technical pre-sales activities, including customer discovery, solution demonstrations, product scoping, technical proposals, pricing estimates, and sales support.
- Remain directly involved in complex estimates and solution design, including reviewing architectural plans, structural options, elevations, production requirements, and opportunities to reuse existing 3D models and other assets.
- Oversee discovery, support, and quote intake, including request triage, submission standards, collection of missing assets, and routing to appropriate teams.
- Partner with Sales leadership and Directors of Business Development to support strategic opportunities, expand customer relationships, and drive revenue growth.
- Serve as a trusted technical advisor to regional and national homebuilders and developers, translating complex business requirements into effective technology solutions.
- Lead the implementation, adoption, and ongoing optimization of ClickUp as a centralized workflow management platform, including defining intake and asset-handling requirements, evaluating and coordinating implementation partners, and improving request tracking, automation, resource allocation, and team efficiency.
- Partner with Sales Operations, Product Management, and Contracts to define and maintain Salesforce product catalog requirements, customer‑specific price books, quoting standards, and product approval workflows.
- Collaborate with Product Management, Production, and Technology teams to evaluate solution feasibility, support product enhancements, and align technical capabilities with customer needs.
- Define deliverable solutions with Sales, Product Management, and Production, communicating scope limitations, customization requirements, and cost implications to establish clear customer expectations and prevent commitments that exceed delivery capabilities.
- Establish and refine best practices for technical discovery, quoting accuracy, solution scoping, and Sales-to-Production handoffs, including documenting scope assumptions, exclusions, asset requirements, and delivery expectations.
- Develop and maintain competitive intelligence related to digital homebuilding solutions, emerging technologies, and artificial intelligence to support product differentiation and sales effectiveness.
- Identify and evaluate new technologies, automation opportunities, and process improvements that increase productivity, scalability, and service quality.
- Support enterprise customer engagements, including technical presentations, RFPs, RFIs, complex solution configurations, and strategic account initiatives.
- Partner with Finance, Sales Operations, and other stakeholders to maintain pricing integrity, evaluate custom solutions, and support commercially sound decisions.
- Develop technical sales enablement resources, training materials, product documentation, and competitive positioning tools to strengthen the sales team's effectiveness. Oversee Showpad administration, demo selection, and maintenance of current demonstration assets.
- Establish and monitor key performance indicators related to quote turnaround times, request volume, resource utilization, solution quality, and overall team performance, building reporting capabilities as ClickUp workflows are implemented.
- Provide strategic recommendations to executive leadership regarding operational improvements, product capabilities, competitive positioning, and future growth opportunities.
- Bachelor's degree in Business, Engineering, Information Technology, Computer Science, or a related field, or equivalent relevant professional experience.
- 8+ years of progressive experience in pre-sales engineering, sales engineering, solutions consulting, technical sales, or a related function.
- Demonstrated experience leading, mentoring, and developing technical or customer-facing teams.
- Experience supporting complex B2B technology solutions, including technical discovery, solution scoping, demonstrations, and customer presentations.
- Strong understanding of sales processes, pricing structures, and cross-functional collaboration in a technology-driven environment.
- Demonstrated ability to interpret architectural plans and configurable product requirements and translate structural options, elevations, and customization needs into accurate scope and estimates; ability to learn Zonda‑specific products and pricing.
- Experience with Salesforce or comparable CRM platforms and workflow or project management systems.
- Demonstrated ability to lead process improvement initiatives, implement operational efficiencies, and manage competing priorities.
- Excellent communication, presentation, analytical, and problem‑solving skills, with the ability to engage customers, technical teams, and senior leadership.
- Ability to translate technical concepts into clear business value and provide strategic guidance throughout the sales process.
- Experience working with residential homebuilders, developers, or technology providers serving the homebuilding industry.
- Familiarity with digital visualization solutions, including interactive floor plans, virtual walkthroughs, 3D renderings, interactive site maps, visualizers, and online design center technologies.
- Experience supporting SaaS solutions, enterprise technology sales, or integrated software platforms.
- Familiarity with CAD files, residential construction workflows, and the production requirements of digital visualization assets.
- Experience implementing or optimizing workflow automation solutions such as ClickUp.
- Experience evaluating and coordinating external implementation partners, including scope definition, deliverables, and collaboration with internal stakeholders on contract review.
- Experience coordinating Salesforce product catalog requirements, customer‑specific price books, pricing configurations, and quoting processes with CRM administrators and business stakeholders.
- Familiarity with emerging AI technologies, digital visualization platforms, and automation tools.
- Experience supporting enterprise or national accounts and collaborating with cross-functional stakeholders to develop customized technology solutions.
- Strong business acumen with an understanding of solution profitability, resource planning, and operational scalability.
When you join CoStar Group, you’ll experience a collaborative and innovative culture working alongside the best and brightest to empower our people and customers to succeed.
We offer you generous compensation and performance‑based incentives. CoStar Group also invests in your professional career and academic growth with internal training and tuition reimbursement.
- Comprehensive healthcare coverage: Medical / Vision / Dental / Prescription Drug
- Life, legal, and supplementary insurance
- Virtual and in person mental health counseling services for individuals and family
- Commuter and parking benefits
- 401(K) retirement plan with matching contributions
- Employee stock purchase plan
- Paid time off
- Tuition reimbursement
- On‑site fitness center and/or reimbursed fitness center membership costs (location dependent)
- Access to CoStar Group’s Employee Resource Groups
- Complimentary gourmet coffee, tea, hot chocolate, fresh fruit, and other healthy snacks
The final salary rate offered for this role will fall within the range set forth below based on a variety of factors, including but not limited to geographic location, skills, and competencies.
The final salary rate offered for this role will fall within the range set forth below based on a variety of factors, including but not limited to geographic location, relevant experience, skills, and competencies.
This position is eligible for a commission override opportunity in accordance with the company's applicable incentive compensation plan. Actual earnings will depend on the terms of the plan and applicable performance results.
We welcome all qualified candidates who are currently eligible to work full-time in the United States to apply. However, please note that CoStar Group is not able to provide visa sponsorship for this position.
CoStar Group is an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer; we maintain a drug‑free workplace and perform pre‑employment substance abuse testing.
CoStar Group is an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer; we maintain a drug‑free workplace and perform pre‑employment substance abuse testing
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