Principal NPI Solutions Architect

Palo Alto Networks, Inc.; Santa Clara (CA); On-site; USD 130,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Palo Alto Networks, Inc. is looking for a Lead NPI Solution Architect in Santa Clara, California. The candidate will own the E2E solution design for complex new product introductions and act as a strategic liaison across various departments.

Ideal candidates should have extensive experience in Technical Product Management, Solution Architecture, and a deep understanding of CPQ and SAP ERP systems. This role emphasizes strong communication, negotiation, and storytelling skills.

Qualifications

• 8+ years of experience in a relevant technical discipline.
• Hands-on experience in Technical Product Management or Systems Consulting.
• Strong technical knowledge of CPQ and SAP ERP platforms.
• Exceptional skills in negotiation and alignment.

Responsibilities

• Drive cross-functional discovery sessions for complex NPIs.
• Map product requirements to backend ecosystems.
• Ensure all solutions have early sign-offs and architectural walkthroughs.
• Minimize technical debt in operational gaps.
• Translate business concepts into precise architectures.
• Collaborate with multiple stakeholders for solution design.
• Ensure post-NPI operational support and clean transitions.

Skills

Technical Product Management

Solution Architecture

New Product Introduction (NPI)

Opportunity-to-Cash (O2C) flows

Salesforce CPQ

SAP ERP

Digital Licensing

Storytelling and negotiation skills

Education

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or related

Master's degree in a related field

PhD in Computer Science or related

Tools

Salesforce CPQ

SAP ERP

Job description

Job Summary

As the company scales to handle a 2x surge in New Product Introduction (NPI) volume, we are transitioning to a "Design-First" model. We are seeking a high-caliber Lead NPI Solution Architect with profound expertise across the end-to-end Opportunity-to-Cash (O2C) lifecycle. In this role, you will be the primary solution orchestrator balancing business velocity with architectural rigor, owning the E2E solution design for complex NPIs and acting as a strategic bridge between Business Stakeholders, Product Teams, and IT Engineers.

Key Responsibilities

• Drive Complex Discovery: Lead cross-functional discovery, kickoff sessions, and solution walkthroughs for high-impact, non-standard NPIs across the enterprise portfolio.
• Architect O2C Systems Integration: Map product requirements seamlessly into complex backend ecosystems, ensuring flawless transactional integrity across Salesforce/CPQ, SAP ERP, and proprietary Entitlement/Licensing engines.
• Enforce Gatekeeping & Quality: Champion the "Design-First" framework. Ensure all non-standard solutions achieve early requirement sign-off and a comprehensive architectural walkthrough before releasing to downstream IT/SDLC execution layers.
• Minimize Technical Debt: Proactively identify and remediate operational gaps in the quoting-to-billing pipeline, shifting the organization away from manual fixes toward standardized, automated logic.
• Bridge Business & IT: Translate high-level business product concepts and monetization strategies into precise Solution architectures and designs that IT engineering can build against without ambiguity.
• Manage and work with Cross-Functional stakeholders: Ability to work with multiple stakeholders Product Managers, Finance, Sales Operations, Legal, Compliance, and IT Core Engineering teams, to understand their requirements to design solutions and act as the trusted advisor for all solutions.
• Post-NPI Deployment Support: Take operational ownership of newly launched products through the stabilization and normalization phases, minimizing post-production defects and ensuring clean transition to run teams.
• AI Ready - Ability to evolve the NPI process using AI Workflow & Agentic Orchestration: Experience designing business systems where AI agents interact via APIs with enterprise software (like ERP, CRM, or PLM) to automate data extraction, ingest unstructured inputs, and trigger lifecycle workflows.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree with 8 years of experience, or Master's degree with 6 years of experience, or PhD with 3 years of experience in Computer Science, Information Systems, Business Administration, or a related technical discipline.
• Hands‑on experience in Technical Product Management, Solution Architecture, or Systems Consulting with a heavy focus on New Product Introduction (NPI) and Opportunity-to-Cash (O2C) flows.
• Strong technical and functional knowledge of CPQ platforms (e.g., Salesforce CPQ, Callidus) involving complex bundling, discounting, and guided selling.
• Deep experience with SAP ERP modules (specifically SD/Billing, FI/CO) handling order management, revenue recognition, and invoicing.
• Deep understanding of Digital Licensing, Entitlements, and Provisioning engines within SaaS, PaaS, or hybrid hardware environments.
• Proven track record of tracing a single SKU's lifecycle downstream through quoting, booking, provisioning, billing, and accounting.
• Exceptional storytelling, negotiation, and alignment skills, with the ability to communicate with both business executives and core developers.

Preferred Qualifications

• Prior experience engineering recurring revenue models, consumption/drawdown models, ramp deals, or enterprise license agreements (ELAs) is highly preferred.

Compensation Disclosure

The compensation offered for this position will depend on qualifications, experience, and work location. For candidates who receive an offer at the posted level, the starting base salary (for non‑sales roles) or base salary + commission target (for sales/com‑missioned roles) is expected to be the annual range listed below. The offered compensation may also include restricted stock units and a bonus. A description of our employee benefits may be found here.

EEO and Accommodation

We are committed to providing reasonable accommodations for all qualified individuals with a disability. If you require assistance or accommodation due to a disability or special need, please contact us at [e-mail].

Palo Alto Networks is an equal‑opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity in our workplace, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran status, race, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or other legally protected characteristics.

All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.

Is role eligible for Immigration Sponsorship? No. Please note that we will not sponsor applicants for work visas for this position.