Solutions Engineer, SLED

020 Cisco Systems, Inc.; Indianapolis (IN); On-site; USD 189,000 - 238,000; Full time

Job summary

Cisco is seeking a Solutions Engineer to own the technical relationship for strategic accounts and to guide Cisco’s portfolio—Secure Networking, Cybersecurity, Cloud Infrastructure, and Collaboration—through digital transformation initiatives.

You will lead strategic account planning, architect multi-technology solutions, and deliver high-impact demos and PoCs. Travel within the assigned territory is required.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's or Master's in CS/CE/IT or related field.
• 5+ years in technical pre-sales, systems engineering, or solutions consulting.
• Experience presenting to technical decision-makers and IT leadership.
• Proven ability translating business challenges into technical designs.
• Willingness to travel regularly within the territory.

Responsibilities

• Lead strategic account planning with Account Executives to identify opportunities.
• Design and validate cross-architectural solutions with PoCs and demos.
• Provide executive technical advisory to IT leadership and stakeholders.
• Differentiate Cisco offerings to displace competitors and expand accounts.
• Collaborate across Cisco teams and channel partners to deliver outcomes.

Skills

Technical pre-sales

Systems engineering

Solutions consulting

Sales collaboration

Travel readiness

Python

REST APIs

Education

Bachelor's or Master's in CS/CE/IT

Tools

Python

REST APIs

Job description

Candidate must relocate or live in the listed Territory Meet the Team At Cisco, our Technical Sales and Solutions Engineering team is at the forefront of digital transformation, bridging cutting-edge technology with real-world business impact. We are trusted technical advisors who partner closely with commercial sales leaders, account teams, specialized architecture organizations, and our world-class channel ecosystem to solve our customers' most critical challenges. We champion Cisco’s culture of innovation and operational excellence, embodying a \"first and most\" engineering mindset where technical depth meets strategic business execution. Our team thrives on collaboration, continuous learning, customer advocacy, and giving back to our communities through active volunteerism and inclusive team culture.

Your Impact As a Solutions Engineer, you will own the technical relationship and brand authority for Cisco across key customer and partner accounts. You will act as the lead technical sales advisor, aligning Cisco’s industry-leading portfolio—across Secure Networking, Cybersecurity, Cloud Infrastructure, and Collaboration—to drive strategic digital transformation, expand account penetration, and displace competitive solutions. Strategic Account Planning & Opportunity Discovery: Partner closely with Account Executives to execute strategic account plans, pinpoint technical growth opportunities, and align Cisco architectures with customer business objectives. Solution Design & Technical Validation: Lead end-to-end technical discovery, architect cross-architectural solutions, and deliver high-impact demonstrations and proofs-of-concept (PoCs) that address specific customer business challenges. Executive Technical Advisory: Drive strategic solution conversations with customer IT leaders and technical executives, influencing enterprise architecture roadmaps and accelerating deal momentum. Competitive Differentiation & Market Expansion: Leverage deep competitive intelligence and market insights to position Cisco differentiators, displace rival technologies, and drive net-new customer acquisition. Cross-Functional & Partner Orchestration: Mobilize and collaborate across Cisco Business Entities (BEs), specialist engineering teams, and certified channel partners to lead virtual sales teams and optimize customer success.

Minimum Qualifications

• 5+ years of experience in technical pre-sales, systems engineering, or technical solutions consulting in enterprise networking, cloud, cybersecurity, or collaboration technologies (or 4+ years with a Master's degree / 1+ years with a PhD).
• Demonstrated experience designing, presenting, and delivering enterprise technology solutions to technical decision-makers and IT leadership.
• Demonstrated experience translating high-level customer business challenges into actionable technical requirements and multi-technology designs.
• Demonstrated track record of partnering with commercial sales teams and channel partner ecosystems across the full sales cycle.
• Ability to travel regularly within the assigned territory for in-person customer engagements and technical demonstrations.

Preferred Qualifications

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Information Technology, or a related technical discipline.
• Active Cisco Professional or Expert level certifications (e.g., CCNP, CCIE) or industry-equivalent cloud/cybersecurity credentials (e.g., AWS/Azure Solutions Architect, CISSP).
• Proven track record of successfully displacing competitive enterprise networking, cloud, or cybersecurity solutions.
• Hands-on experience with modern network programmability, APIs, automation frameworks (Python, REST), or AI-driven infrastructure management.
• Strong consultative discovery, executive presentation, and cross-functional leadership skills.

THIS JOB DESCRIPTION DOES NOT APPLY FOR EMPLOYEES IN AUSTRIA, BELGIUM, FRANCE, GERMANY & NETHERLANDS

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 $188,500.00 to $238,200.00 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: 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. Cisconians power the future. We make impact as a team, innovating fast and fearlessly to create meaningful solutions on a large scale. The depth and breadth of our technology doesn't just benefit our customers – it also means limitless opportunities for us to experiment and learn. We understand the power each of our unique backgrounds bring when we work together. Because of that, we have a global network of thinkers, doers, experts, and curious creators who help one another do their life’s best work.