Solutions Engineer - ORANGE COUNTY

020 Cisco Systems, Inc.; Irvine (CA); On-site; USD 202,000 - 258,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental and vision benefits

401(k) with company match

Restricted stock units (RSUs)

Job summary

Cisco Systems, Inc. in Orange County, CA seeks a proactive, highly technical, AI-first Solutions Engineer to co-own the Commercial Sales region and drive strategic account planning.

You will lead technical engagements across Cisco's portfolio, deliver demos and roadmaps, and integrate agentic AI into the sales workflow while collaborating with account executives, engineers, and partners. Candidates should have 5+ years in technical consulting and at least one relevant certification; relocation

Qualifications

• Minimum of 5 years of professional experience in technical consulting and customer-facing solutions architecture.
• Active, verified industry certifications (e.g., CCNA/CCNP, AWS/Azure, Security+).
• Strong knowledge of core networking, security protocols, and cloud architectures.

Responsibilities

• Strategic business ownership with Account Executive to drive territory revenue.
• Full-portfolio technical leadership across Networking, Security, Observability, and AI.
• Lead high-impact technical engagements: discovery workshops, demos, Roadmaps, POVs, BoMs.
• Integrate agentic AI and automation into sales workflow for prototypes.
• Translate complex architectures into clear business outcomes for executives.
• Collaborate across regional teams, architecture specialists, and channel partners.

Skills

Technical consulting

Solutions architecture

Customer-facing skills

Networking fundamentals

Cloud architecture

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Information Technology or equivalent

Tools

Cisco CCNA/CCNP

AWS/Azure certifications

Security+ or equivalent

Job description

Candidate MUST reside or be willing to relocate to the Orange County, California area.

Meet the Team

In Commercial Sales, we operate at the intersection of technical excellence, rapid innovation, and strategic partnership. We succeed because we listen deeply, anticipate market shifts, and deliver transformative customer outcomes. Our culture relies on trust, continuous growth, high EQ, and cross‑functional collaboration. We are seeking a proactive, highly technical, and AI‑first Solutions Engineer to step in and co‑own our business in the region.

Key Responsibilities

• Strategic Business Ownership

  Partner seamlessly with your Account Executive to run your territory as a unified business unit. Co‑own account planning, opportunity targeting, and revenue growth.

• Full‑Portfolio Technical Leadership

  Serve as a trusted technical consultant across Cisco’s entire portfolio, including Enterprise Networking, Security, Observability, Collaboration, AI Infrastructure, Agentic Ops, and Automation.

• Customer Execution & Deliverables

  Lead and execute high‑impact technical engagements, including discovery workshops, custom solution demos, Architectural Roadmaps, Proofs of Value (POVs), and accurate Bills of Materials (BoMs).

• AI‑Driven Innovation & Agentic Ops

  Integrate agentic AI, vibe coding, and automated scripts into your daily sales workflow to build prototype applications, streamline technical discovery, and model modern technical agility for customers.

• Executive Relevance & High EQ

  Translate dense technical architectures into clear business outcomes. Present with confidence, authority, and empathy across all layers of leadership within customer organizations, internal Cisco teams, and the Channel partner community.

• Cross‑Functional Collaboration

  Serve as a generous team player, collaborating across regional teams, architecture specialists, business units, and channel partners to deliver cohesive end‑to‑end solutions.

Minimum Qualifications

• Minimum of 5 years of professional experience in technical consulting, customer‑facing solutions architecture
• Possession of at least one active, verified industry certification (e.g., Cisco CCNA/CCNP, AWS/Azure certifications, Security+ or equivalent).
• Documented technical competence in core networking, security protocols, and cloud architecture environments.
• Completion of a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Information Technology, or a minimum of 4 years of documented equivalent practical technical experience.

Preferred Qualifications

• Minimum of 5 years of specialized pre‑sales engineering experience.
• Documented experience in the development of AI applications, autonomous agents, and automated workflows using modern AI platforms.
• Demonstrated experience delivering technical presentations and system demonstrations to executive‑level stakeholders (Director level and above).
• Completion of documented continuing education courses, technical certifications, or verifiable contributions to emerging technology projects within the preceding 12 months.

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 $202,400.00 to $257,900.00 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 January1st 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 full salary ranges for this position, by specific state, are listed below: New York City Metro Area: $212,200.00 - $308,300.00 Non-Metro New York state & Washington state: $202,400.00 - $296,900.00 * For quota‑based sales roles on Cisco’s sales plan, the ranges provided in this posting include base pay and sales target incentive compensation combined. ** Employees in Illinois, whether exempt or non‑exempt, will participate in a unique time off program to meet local requirements.