Director, Route to Market Strategy & Execution - Splunk

Cisco Systems, Inc.; Milpitas (CA); On-site; USD 234,000 - 330,000; Full time

Job summary

Cisco Systems, Inc. in Milpitas seeks an accomplished leader to shape Route-to-Market strategy and execution across product, partner programs, and incentives.

You will drive integration with Product, Sales, and global partners to accelerate revenue and maximize ROI. The role emphasizes AI-enabled analytics, market insights, and cross-functional governance to design end-to-end partner roadmaps, optimize experiences, and develop scalable models.

Qualifications

• 15+ years of experience in commercial strategy or sales operations within technology/B2B.
• 5+ years designing commercial business models (SaaS, AI monetization, Enterprise Agreements).
• Experience leading results in a fast-paced, AI-driven organizational environment.
• Leadership experience with a track record of coaching high-performing teams.

Responsibilities

• Identify RTM opportunities and accelerate scalable route-to-market execution.
• Conduct market research and AI-enabled analysis to uncover needs and trends for RTM strategies.
• Partner with Product, Partner, and Sales to define Cisco's RTM strategy across product portfolio.
• Design and execute end-to-end roadmaps for partner program conversion with governance.
• Explore diverse partnership models to drive joint value and growth.
• Develop a consistent portfolio development process aligned with evolving products.
• Coordinate cross-functional execution while protecting partner revenue and reducing disruption.
• Influence senior Cisco stakeholders to align cross-Cisco priorities.
• Integrate market insights and metrics to drive continuous improvement and accountability.

Job description

The application window is expected to close on: 10/04/2026

Meet The Team

You will join the Route to Market Strategy & Execution Team, a dynamic group shaping how Cisco's products, offers, and solutions reach the market through powerful partner ecosystems. This team develops and executes go-to-market strategies, creates high-impact partner programs and incentives, and drives product value to accelerate sales and maximize shared ROI. Working cross-functionally with Product, Sales, and global partners, the team leads initiatives that create seamless solutions, strengthen partner success, and unlock new avenues for growth.

Your Impact

• AI-Powered Innovation: Leverage AI, analytics, and emerging technologies to identify RTM opportunities, optimize partner experiences, and accelerate scalable route-to-market execution.
• Market & Partner Insights: Conduct market research, partner discovery, and AI-enabled analysis to uncover customer and partner needs, competitive trends, and friction points-translating insights into actionable RTM strategies.
• Route-to-Market Strategy: Partner with Product, Partner, and Sales teams to define Splunk's route-to-market strategy across its product portfolio.
• Strategic Roadmap Execution: Design and execute the end-to-end roadmap for partner program conversion, ensuring alignment with product strategy through clear timelines and governance.
• Partnership Model Innovation: Explore and operationalize diverse partnership models that drive joint success and create long-term value.
• Portfolio Development: Define a consistent development process tailored to Cisco's and Splunk's evolving product portfolios.
• Business Continuity: Coordinate cross-functional execution of strategic priorities while protecting partner revenue, minimizing disruption, and safeguarding Splunk's core business.
• Executive Alignment: Influence senior Cisco stakeholders and drive alignment around cross-Cisco priorities and strategic opportunities.
• Performance Management: Integrate market insights, develop strategic metrics, and monitor Partner NPS and financial performance to drive continuous improvement, operational rigor, and accountability.

Minimum Qualifications

• 15+ years of experience in commercial strategy, program management, or sales operations within a technology or B2B environment.
• Bachelor's Degree or equivalent combination of skills and experience
• 5+ years of experience in designing commercial business models, including SaaS, AI product monetization, and Enterprise Agreements.
• Experience leading and delivering results within a fast- paced, AI-operated organizational environment.
• Leadership experience with a track record of building and coaching high-performing teams.

Preferred Qualifications

• MBA or advanced degree in Business, Marketing, or a related field.
• Deep experience in "zero to one" market entry or scaling strategic platforms through broad adoption and sustained growth.
• Exceptional ability to influence without authority and bridge the gap between technical program design and market execution.
• Proficiency in leveraging AI and advanced analytics to optimize business processes and partner experiences.

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 $233,900.00 to $330,400.00 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:

$233,900.00 - $380,000.00

Non-Metro New York state & Washington state:

$220,900.00 - $344,300.00

* 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.