Optical Networking Technical Sales Engineer | Nokia | Dallas / Hybrid / Remote

Nokia; Dallas (TX); Hybrid; USD 120,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

Nokia is seeking an Optical Networking Technical Sales Engineer to join the Mission Critical Enterprise (MCE) team in support of utilities, transportation, public safety, healthcare, and education networks. You will lead pre-sales efforts, design DWDM transport architectures, and present solutions to technical and executive audiences.

You will leverage deep expertise in ROADM, coherent optics, and OTN to shape opportunities, respond to RFPs, and guide solution sizing while collaborating with

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree required in a related technical discipline.
• Experience in optical networking, DWDM, ROADM, coherent optics, and OTN preferred.
• Strong pre-sales, solution design, and RFP/writing experience.

Responsibilities

• Partner with account teams to shape and win optical networking opportunities.
• Lead technical discovery sessions and design DWDM transport solutions using Nokia 1830 portfolio.
• Deliver technical presentations and demos to engineers and executives.
• Drive end-to-end RFP/RFI responses and solution sizing proposals.
• Collaborate with product, R&D, and engineering to capture customer feedback.

Skills

DWDM transport

ROADM architectures

Coherent optics

OTN

Pre-sales

RFP responses

Executive communication

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Telecommunications, Optical Engineering or related

Job description

Position Summary:

Nokia is actively seeking an experienced, high-caliber, and technical Optical Networking Technical Sales Engineer to join our Mission Critical Enterprise (MCE) team supporting utilities, transportation, public safety, healthcare, and research & education networks. In this critical pre-sales and business development role, you will act as the technical voice in the room, helping mission-critical customers design DWDM transport architectures that are resilient, secure, and ready for advanced data center and AI workloads. You will leverage your deep specialist expertise in optical networking, ROADM, coherent optics, and OTN to shape and win complex enterprise opportunities. This opportunity offers competitive compensation, executive technical visibility, and exceptional career growth prospects within a premier global telecommunications equipment enterprise.

Detailed Job Description:

As an Optical Networking Technical Sales Engineer supporting Mission Critical Enterprise customers at Nokia, you will take full operational, tactical, and technical ownership of pre-sales technical discovery, solution design on the Nokia 1830 portfolio, RFP responses, and customer demonstrations. Your day-to-day responsibilities include partnering with account teams to shape and win opportunities, delivering high-impact technical presentations and demos that influence customer decisions from engineers to executives, and collaborating closely with product and engineering squads. You will utilize your proactive engineering and communication skills to turn complex optical technologies into clear business value. Furthermore, you will manage application requirements via the direct application link at https://lnkd.in/g6iRj-9n or by contacting Earl Kennedy directly, ensuring strict compliance with hands-on DWDM and optical transport experience standards.

Key Responsibilities:

• Partner strategically with account teams to identify, shape, and win optical networking sales opportunities across Mission Critical Enterprise (MCE) sectors.
• Lead comprehensive technical discovery sessions and design resilient, secure DWDM transport solutions leveraging the Nokia 1830 portfolio.
• Deliver compelling technical presentations, architectural walkthroughs, and product demonstrations that influence key customer stakeholders from engineers to executives.
• Drive end-to-end RFP and RFI responses, technical compliance matrices, and solution sizing proposals.
• Collaborate closely with product line management, R&D, and engineering squads to communicate customer feature requests and feedback.
• Design optical transport systems incorporating ROADM, coherent optics, OTN, and high-availability protection schemes.
• Maintain meticulous technical documentation, solution blueprints, proposal repositories, and CRM tracking records.
• Represent Nokia as a trusted technical advisor at industry events, client workshops, and executive briefings.

Required Qualifications & Skills:

• Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Telecommunications, Optical Engineering, Computer Science, or a related technical discipline.
• Minimum of 6 to 8+ years of progressive professional experience in optical networking, technical sales engineering, or pre-sales solution architecture.
• Deep, demonstrable hands-on operational expertise in DWDM transport, ROADM architectures, coherent optics, and OTN.
• Comprehensive understanding of mission-critical enterprise network requirements across utilities, transportation, public safety, or government sectors.
• Exceptional customer-facing communication, presentation, and negotiation skills with the ability to bridge complex technology and business value.
• Proven track record leading technical discovery, solution design, and winning complex RFPs for tier-1 telecommunications or enterprise vendors.
• Excellent written and verbal English communication skills with strong executive stakeholder management abilities.
• Mandatory legal work eligibility and availability for operations based in Dallas, hybrid, or remote working models.

Nice-to-Have Skills:

• Professional vendor certifications (e.g., Nokia Certified Optical Network Professional, Cisco CCIE, or equivalent optical accreditations).
• Prior professional working experience in optical product line management, network planning, or field deployment engineering.
• Advanced knowledge of sub-sea optical networks, open line systems (OLS), and software-defined networking (SDN) control for optical transport.
• Familiarity with AI infrastructure transport requirements and data center interconnect (DCI) architectures.

Application Information:

• Contact Name: Earl Kennedy (Director Optical Business Development Consulting Engineering)
• Company Website: https://www.nokia.com
• Salary/Rate: Market Competitive / Enterprise Sales Package
• Deadline: Open until filled (Urgent MCE Sales Engineering Opening)
• Notice Period: Immediate to 30 Days
• Contract Duration: Permanent / Full-Time (Dallas / Hybrid / Remote)

Recruitment Pro Tip:

When applying for this Optical Networking Technical Sales Engineer position at Nokia, ensure your resume explicitly highlights your hands‑on Nokia 1830 or DWDM/ROADM design experience, your pre‑sales RFP track record, and your ability to articulate complex optical architectures to executive audiences.