Solutions Engineer, APO - Bay Area

020 Cisco Systems, Inc.

San Francisco (CA)

On-site

USD 212,000 - 268,000

Full time

5 days ago

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Benefits offered by this job

Bonus eligibility

Comprehensive benefits package

Paid time off

Job summary

Cisco Systems, Inc. is seeking a Partner Solutions Engineer to drive strategic partner relationships and joint business planning. You will work with Account Executives to shape partner strategy, enable partner SEs, and align on high‑impact opportunities across the Cisco portfolio.

The role requires 5+ years in pre‑sales or solutions engineering, strong networking knowledge, and the ability to travel up to 25% for partner meetings and events. A relevant degree and certifications are preferred.

Qualifications

5+ years in technical pre‑sales, systems engineering, solutions architecture, or technical consulting.
Broad Enterprise Networking knowledge (Catalyst, Meraki, SD-WAN).
Experience presenting to executives and partners.

Responsibilities

Build strategic partner relationships and advise from solution design to value realization.
Develop joint GTM strategy and identify architectural growth opportunities.
Deliver partner SE enablement sessions, workshops, and PoC guidance.
Coordinate with regional field SEs and Account Executives for deal alignment.
Champion Cisco differentiation and influence resources and roadmap direction.

Skills

Partner relationships

Stakeholder influence

Presentation skills

Training/workshops

Education

Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science / Electrical Engineering / IT

Networking certification CCNP/CCNA or equivalent

Tools

API programmability

Python/REST scripting

AI productivity tools

Job description

Candidate must relocate or live in the listed Territory Meet the Team Join a dynamic team of Solutions Engineers dedicated to shaping the future of technology with Cisco's most impactful partners. In this role, you'll partner closely with our Account Executives to build and strengthen partner relationships, shape partner strategy, and empower partner SEs to lead with Cisco-powered solutions. This is a relationship-driven, partner-facing role at the intersection of Cisco's cutting-edge portfolio and our partner ecosystem. You won't just support architectures - you'll be instrumental in helping our partners innovate, grow, and win in the AI era.

What You'll Do

As a Partner Solutions Engineer, your core mission encompasses five key strategic pillars: Strategic Partner Relationships & Advisory: Build trusted, strategic relationships with partner executives and their engineering teams, serving as a trusted advisor from solution design through operationalization and value realization.

Joint Strategy & Technical Growth Planning: Develop partner go-to-market strategy through joint business planning, identifying high-impact architectural growth opportunities across the Cisco portfolio.

Partner SE Technical Enablement & Workshops: Deliver high-impact technical enablement to partner SEs—including hands-on training sessions, workshops, certification support, and demo/PoC guidance.

Regional Field Alignment & Deal Co-Selling: Coordinate with Cisco regional field SEs and Account Executives to align on strategic deals, share best practices, and drive consistent architectural direction.

Portfolio Positioning & Partner Advocacy: Articulate the business and technical differentiation of Cisco solutions while championing the voice of the partner back into Cisco to influence resources, enablement, and future roadmap direction.

Minimum Qualifications

5+ years of related technical pre‑sales, systems engineering, solutions architecture, or technical consulting experience.

Strong portfolio breadth across Enterprise Networking (Catalyst, Meraki, SD-WAN) with solid working knowledge in Cybersecurity, Collaboration, or Data Center Networking.

Demonstrated ability to present, engage, and influence partner executives, technical practice leads, and solutions engineers.

Professional networking certification (e.g., CCNP, CCNA, or verified industry equivalent).

Must reside in or relocate to the SanFranciscoBayArea / Northern California, with the willingness and ability to travel up to 25% for partner meetings and industry events.

Preferred Qualifications

Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Information Technology, or a related technical discipline (or equivalent practical experience).

Prior experience working within the channel partner ecosystem (e.g., Tier‑1 VARs, MSPs, System Integrators) or as a partner‑side Solutions Engineer.

Advanced or expert-level certifications (e.g., CCIE, CCDE, Cisco DevNet, AWS Certified Solutions Architect, Google Cloud, Terraform).

Hands‑on knowledge of API programmability, automation scripting (Python/REST), and modern AI productivity tools.

Competitive architectural knowledge across rival platforms (HPE/Aruba, Juniper/Mist, Arista, Fortinet, Palo Alto Networks).

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 $212,200.00 to $268,100.00 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 of unused sick time carried forward from one calendar year to 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: