Global Alliance Director - HPE

suse; Texas; On-site; USD 205,000 - 225,000; Full time

Job summary

SUSE is seeking a Global Alliance Director to lead our strategic partnership with Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) in the US. You will drive alliance strategy, coordinate cross-organization sales plays, and manage MDF budgets with a focus on SAP, SLES/Linux, and AI/infra solutions.

The role requires extensive experience in enterprise infrastructure software, exceptional executive communication, and the ability to travel up to 30% globally to align field teams and accelerate multi-year,

Qualifications

• 10+ years in enterprise infrastructure software or global alliance leadership.
• Strong familiarity with HPE ecosystem desired.
• Proven success managing multi-million dollar MDF budgets.
• Excellent presentation and executive communication skills.
• Strong commercial acumen with complex contract negotiation experience.

Responsibilities

• Own the global alliance strategy with HPE and drive joint initiatives.
• Design and orchestrate Sell-With & Sell-Through plays across SUSE and HPE.
• Direct a global, funded headcount program and MDF budgeting.
• Lead negotiations and modernization of frame contracts and amendments.
• Coordinate internal sales alignment and enablement with regional leaders.
• Maintain deep technical and market fluency to align SUSE with HPE’s engineering teams.

Skills

Alliance leadership

Go-To-Market

MDF management

Contract management

Sales enablement

Technical fluency

Travel willingness

Job description

About Us

SUSE is a global leader of enterprise open source software. By transforming community innovations into secure, sovereign and AI-ready solutions, SUSE empowers customers to escape vendor lock-in and regain control of their IT destiny. Through industry-leading Linux, Kubernetes, Edge and AI infrastructure solutions, SUSE delivers the flexibility to innovate everywhere-from the data center to multi-cloud and out to the edge. Only SUSE also manages many Linux and Kubernetes distributions. At SUSE, Choice Happens because we prioritize community, interoperability and relentless innovation. Discover how we power mission-critical resilience at www.suse.com .

Global Alliance Director - HPE

Job Description

How You'll Contribute

• Strategic Alliance Leadership: Own, develop, and drive the global alliance strategy for SUSE's 30+ year relationship with Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE). You will build upon our foundational legacy business (SAP and SLES/Linux) to drive explosive growth in modern solutions, particularly around HPE's AI factory solutions, virtualization, and high-performance computing (HPC) environments.
• Go-To-Market Orchestration (Sell-With & Sell-Through): Act as the primary orchestrator-the "spider in the web"-connecting HPE and SUSE sales organizations. You will design, implement, and drive joint sales plays, ensuring alignment between field teams to accelerate "sell-with" and "sell-through" revenue.
• MDF & Funded Headcount Management: Strategically manage a significant Market Development Fund (MDF) budget. You will direct a global virtual team of "funded heads" (HPE-badged resources dedicated to SUSE) across various geographies, optimizing their placement and activities to drive maximum ROI and field execution.
• Commercial & Contract Management: Lead the negotiation, modernization, and ongoing management of complex frame agreements, contracts, and historical amendments. You will navigate commercial nuances and ensure smooth operational cadence with your global HPE counterparts.
• Internal Sales Alignment & Enablement: Serve as the central point of contact for regional SUSE sales leadership. You will help resolve compensation and alignment queries, drive field excitement, and conduct high-level training and presentations on joint sales plays.
• Technical & Market Fluency: While a dedicated Solution Architect handles technical design, you must be highly conversant in modern infrastructure trends. You will navigate HPE's highly engineering-focused culture, understanding how SUSE fits into their control planes, at-scale platforms, and neo-cloud provider hardware.

What You'll Bring

• A seasoned professional with 10+ years of experience in the enterprise infrastructure software industry, with significant tenure in global alliance, partnership leadership, or channel ecosystem roles.
• Deep familiarity with the HPE and their ecosystem is highly desired.
• Proven success managing million-dollar Market Development Funds (MDF) and directing globally distributed, partner-badged "funded headcount" or virtual overlay teams.
• Exceptional presentation and training skills . You must be highly capable of standing in front of executive audiences and global sales teams to deliver compelling joint value propositions and actionable sales plays.
• Strong commercial acumen with a track record of untangling, negotiating, and managing complex, multi-year enterprise frame contracts and alliance agreements.
• A natural orchestrator and cross-functional leader capable of building networks at all levels. You excel at matchmaking between internal sales leaders and external partner organizations to drive field-level execution.
• Technical conversancy in Artificial Intelligence infrastructure, Kubernetes, Virtualization, and High-Performance Computing (HPC) to effectively collaborate with HPE's engineering-centric teams.
• Willingness and ability to travel up to 30%, including global travel.

This position is subject to a background check(s), including criminal, credit, and/or employment references. The candidate is required to complete the background check(s) once an offer has been accepted. This will be conducted by SUSE's external provider, where legally permitted.

For US Only - US Pay Transparency Disclaimer

If this role is filled in the United States of America, the starting base salary will be within the applicable pay range displayed below. In addition to base salary, this position may be eligible for a commission plan and a competitive benefits package. US benefits include comprehensive medical coverage, life and disability insurance, a 401(k) plan, an Employee Assistance Program, and generous paid time off and leave policies.

Final compensation will be determined based on factors such as experience, skills, geographic location, internal equity, and budget. This pay transparency information applies to US-based roles only.

Base Pay Range Min & Max

• 205000
• 225000

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