Principal Technical Marketing Engineer

Zscaler, Inc.; San Jose (CA); Hybrid; USD 172,000 - 245,000; Full time

Job summary

Zscaler’s San Jose-based Technical Marketing Engineer role is a hands-on, hybrid position requiring on-site work three days a week. You will drive POV engagements, architect and maintain lab environments, and troubleshoot complex networking issues during customer pilots.

You will author deployment guides and deliver technical training to field teams and partners, accelerating adoption of our Zero Trust solutions.

Qualifications

• Curiosity and active exploration of AI tools to enhance workflows.
• 5+ years in technical marketing, solutions architecture, or advanced systems engineering with routing, switching, TCP/IP, L2/L3 segmentation, and tunneling (WireGuard, IPsec, VxLAN).
• Proven POV pilot leadership and executive evaluation experience in complex enterprise and edge networks.
• Hands-on lab proficiency using bare-metal hardware, ESXi and KVM, and lab emulation platforms (EVE-NG, GNS3).
• Advanced packet analysis using Wireshark, tcpdump, and traffic generation to diagnose routing issues.
• Experience producing production-grade collateral and delivering enablement sessions to sales, services, and partners.

Responsibilities

• Lead POV engagements & field validations by directly owning and executing hands-on POVs, demos, and pilot evaluations with enterprise prospects to validate capabilities and accelerate deals.
• Architect, build, and maintain advanced lab topologies by designing, deploying, and sustaining lab environments that simulate complex branch, edge, and network topologies.
• Drive complex technical troubleshooting & escalation resolution by acting as the bridge between field teams and core engineering to diagnose and resolve critical issues during pilots.
• Author technical documentation, deployment guides, and reference architectures to standardize best practices and accelerate post-sale value.
• Deliver field readiness & enablement training by creating and conducting high-impact technical training programs for SEs, services, and partners.

Skills

POV engagements

Networking expertise

Lab architecture

Technical troubleshooting

Technical writing

Training delivery

Tools

ESXi

KVM

EVE-NG

GNS3

Wireshark

tcpdump

Python

Bash

Ansible

Terraform

REST APIs

AWS

Azure

Job description

Zscaler (NASDAQ: ZS) accelerates digital transformation so customers can be more agile, efficient, resilient, and secure. The Zscaler Zero Trust Exchange platform protects thousands of customers from cyberattacks and data loss by securely connecting users, devices, and applications in any location. Distributed across 160+ public exchanges globally and thousands of private exchanges at the edge, the SASE-based Zero Trust Exchange is the world’s largest in-line cloud security platform.

We believe the future of work is Human + AI and are building an AI-native enterprise where human potential is amplified by machine intelligence to solve the world’s hardest security challenges. Driven by deep customer obsession, we are committed to the mission, outcome, and to each other. We bring these commitments to life through three core behaviors: ownership and collaboration, trust through outcomes and impact, and a challenge culture with ongoing feedback. Ready to make an impact at the company pioneering security transformation in the AI era? Join us at Zscaler.

Role

We are seeking a hands‑on, self‑starting Technical Marketing Engineer (TME) with deep networking expertise to drive technical enablement, customer validation, and field readiness for our next‑generation Zero Trust Branch solutions. This is a hybrid role on‑site three days a week in San Jose, reporting to the VP, Product Management. In this high‑impact role, you will architect and maintain complex lab environments, lead hands‑on Proof of Value (POV) customer engagements, and provide technical troubleshooting to resolve escalations. As the bridge between engineering and field teams, you will author comprehensive deployment guides, technical collateral, and test plans while delivering interactive training to systems engineers and partners. This is an ideal position for a practitioner who thrives on solving real‑world enterprise networking challenges and accelerating customer adoption across distributed edge environments.

What you'll do (Role Expectations)

• Lead Customer Proof of Value (POV) Engagements & Field Validations by directly owning and executing hands‑on technical POVs, architectural demonstrations, and pilot evaluations with enterprise prospects and customers to validate technical capabilities, eliminate sales friction, and accelerate enterprise deal closure
• Architect, Build, and Maintain Advanced Lab Topologies by designing, deploying, and maintaining resilient physical and virtual networking lab environments simulating complex enterprise branch, edge, retail network topologies to rigorously test product behavior, interoperability, and real‑world scale
• Drive Complex Technical Troubleshooting & Escalation Resolution by serving as the direct technical escalation bridge between field teams and core engineering to diagnose, reproduce, and resolve critical L2/L3 networking escalations, network segmentation challenges, and packet‑level anomalies during active customer pilots
• Author Technical Documentation, Deployment Guides, and Reference Architectures by developing production‑ready technical collateral, including step‑by‑step deployment runbooks, reference architectures, white papers, competitive test plans, and solution briefs to standardize best practices and accelerate post‑sales time‑to‑value
• Deliver Field Readiness & Enablement Training by creating and conducting high‑impact technical training programs, interactive workshops, and technical webinars for Systems Engineers (SEs), professional services, and channel partner architects to scale deployment self‑sufficiency across distributed enterprise environments

Who You Are (Success Profile)

• You act like an owner. Your passion for the mission fuels your bias for action. You operate with integrity because you genuinely care about the outcome, navigating seamlessly between high‑level strategy and hands‑on execution.
• You are customer‑obsessed. You build deep empathy for the customer—both internal and external—and anchor your decisions in solving their real‑world problems. You champion their needs from start to finish, knowing their success is our success.
• You operate with urgency. You understand that in a high‑growth environment, speed and quality are not mutually exclusive. You have a relentless focus on execution and a bias for action, delivering high‑impact results quickly to win for the customer and the team.
• You are driven by innovation. You have a deep curiosity for how things work and are energized by solving complex technical challenges. You believe in the power of technology to accelerate transformation and are always looking for a better, more secure, and scalable way.
• You lead with integrity. You do the right thing, even when it’s hard. You hold yourself and others to a high standard of accountability and build trust by matching your words with consistent, transparent action.

What We're Looking for (Minimum Qualifications)

• Demonstrated curiosity and active exploration of AI tools, with a proven history of integrating new technologies to enhance daily workflows and augment problem‑solving
• 5+ years of hands‑on experience in technical marketing, solutions architecture, or advanced systems engineering with deep subject matter expertise in enterprise routing, switching, TCP/IP, L2/L3 network segmentation, and tunneling protocols (WireGuard, IPsec, VxLAN)
• Proven track record of leading and winning hands‑on customer Proof of Value (POV) pilots and executive architectural evaluations within complex enterprise and distributed edge networking environments
• Hands‑on proficiency in building and maintaining multi‑vendor physical and virtual network lab topologies using bare‑metal appliances, hypervisors (ESXi, KVM), and network emulation platforms (EVE‑NG, GNS3)
• Advanced packet analysis and troubleshooting expertise using Wireshark, tcpdump, and traffic generation tools to diagnose real‑time routing anomalies, latency/jitter, MTU issues, and NAT/firewall traversal
• Demonstrated track record of authoring production‑grade technical collateral (deployment runbooks, reference architectures, white papers) and delivering technical enablement sessions to sales engineering, professional services, and partner teams

What Will Make You Stand Out (Preferred Qualifications)

• Practical experience with Python, Bash scripting, or infrastructure‑as‑code and configuration management tools (e.g., Ansible, Terraform, REST APIs) to automate lab deployment, test execution, and repetitive networking workflows
• Working knowledge of public cloud networking architectures (AWS VPCs/Transit Gateways, Azure Virtual WAN, GCP Cloud Routers) or container networking environments (Docker, Kubernetes) connecting distributed branch edges to cloud workloads
• Recognized networking or security certifications (e.g., CCIE/CCNP Enterprise or Security, JNCIP, PCNSE) or direct architectural experience with retail, kiosk, IoT/OT, or cellular WAN/5G failover deployments

#LI-Hybrid

#LI-CM3

Zscaler’s salary ranges are benchmarked and are determined by role and level. The range displayed on each job posting reflects the minimum and maximum target for new hire salaries for the position across all US locations and could be higher or lower based on a multitude of factors, including job‑related skills, experience, and relevant education or training.

The base salary range listed for this full‑time position excludes commission/ bonus/ equity (if applicable) + benefits.

Base Pay Range

$171,500 - $245,000 USD

At Zscaler, we are committed to building a team that reflects the communities we serve and the customers we work with. We foster an inclusive environment that values all backgrounds and perspectives, emphasizing collaboration and belonging. Join us in our mission to make doing business seamless and secure.

Our Benefits program is one of the most important ways we support our employees. Zscaler proudly offers comprehensive and inclusive benefits to meet the diverse needs of our employees and their families throughout their life stages, including:

• Time off plans for vacation and sick time
• Parental leave options
• Retirement options
• In‑office perks, and more!

Learn more about Zscaler's hybrid working model and benefits here .

By applying for this role, you adhere to applicable laws, regulations, and Zscaler policies, including those related to security and privacy standards and guidelines.

Zscaler is committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all individuals. We strive to create a workplace where employees are treated with respect and have the chance to succeed. All qualified applicants will be considered for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy or related medical conditions), age, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, genetic information, disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local laws. See more information by clicking on the Know Your Rights: Workplace Discrimination is Illegal link.

Pay Transparency

Zscaler complies with all applicable federal, state, and local pay transparency rules.

Zscaler is committed to providing reasonable support (called accommodations or adjustments) in our recruiting processes for candidates who are differently abled, have long term conditions, mental health conditions or sincerely held religious beliefs, or who are neurodivergent or require pregnancy‑related support.