Job Title Consultant, Sales Engineer
Job Location South Africa (Johannesburg or Cape Town) - Remote
Position Type Full-Time/Regular
Job Description
Ciena Corporation offers leading network infrastructure solutions, intelligent software and a comprehensive services practice to many of the largest, most reliable and sophisticated Internet content provider, service provider, enterprise, government, and research and education networks across the globe. As a customer facing Sales Engineer (SE), the ideal candidate would work independently and/or with association to an Account Manager to develop our presence in the Africa region with focus on the South African market.
A solid technical background is therefore mandatory with the ability to drive business development activities. The candidate must be comfortable with speaking to the customer about new ideas and tailoring them to their business needs, communicate solutions to customers and manage ongoing technical relationship. As well, they will work with the internal CIENA organization to drive product requirements and provide customer feedback to product management.
What Does Ciena Expect of You?
- Youre a proven relationship builder you know how to build trusted and long-term customer relationships quickly.
- Proven technical expertise solid technical knowledge with deep understanding of network architectures and key transport, (Optical is a must) and IP technologies (DWDM, OTN, IP, L2, etc.)
- Agility you are readily able to manage competing and ever-changing account priorities and maintain a balanced and methodical approach to problem solving.
- Business acumen you will have detailed knowledge of Cienas products, the competitive landscape.
- Communication expertise you can effectively tailor a message/articulate a value proposition to an audience to enable engagement at all levels of an organization, i.e., able to communicate a good blend of technology/networking trends, as well as an understanding of customer priorities and business outcome objectives as well as the business value of Ciena solutions.
- The ability to influence youre capable of working with internal stakeholders to drive decision-making and strategic thinking, and with external stakeholders to influence the adoption of Ciena solutions.
- A commitment to learning you keep abreast of the market and competition and use that information to Cienas advantage.
- Network and applications engineering for CIENA products, provide product and technical expertise to drive sales efforts
- Act as the first-line technical support Go-To person for allocated sales opportunities within allocated accounts
- Consult with current and potential customers on application of CIENA products for next generation architectures
- Complete network designs for customer application of CIENA networking products
- Drive introduction of new concepts / features into customer networks
- Lead and transition customers from end-of life products to other Ciena products
- Influence Customer requirements and translate high-level customer requirements into Ciena system requirements
- Expertise in use of CIENA network design and modelling tools
- Prepare quotations and assist in proposal preparation for all CIENA products using internal tools
- Assist in the development of pricing strategies and incentives to win business
- Prepare design and applications presentations
- Prepare design packs for Ciena internal services departments and the customer.
- Review quotes, RFx's, Product presentations and forecasts
- Serve as a senior technical resource for customer related issues
- Interface with sales group and product management/marketing to develop and/or propose product enhancements to meet customer requirements
- Work closely with customer service managers, supply chain, PLM and others to ensure a great customer experience
- Typical candidates have a technical degree and at least 10+ years telecommunication industry experience
- Engineering background in the Telcom and Internet industry with focus on packet optical & packet networking solutions and architectures, Knowledge of SDN, NFV, & Orchestration and how customers can benefit from it.
- Exhibit a high degree of presentation, interpersonal and communications skills
- Highly motivated technical individual that desires to work on application of advanced networking architectures
- The ability to demonstrate leadership in technical sales activities
- Ability to understand customer needs and use technical expertise to develop customer solutions
- Ability to build strong customer relationships and support an overall sales strategy
- Flexible individual that is able to handle multiple tasks with minimal supervision
- Team player and strong collaborator with superior verbal & written communication skills
- Fluent in English. Competency in other languages is an advantage, notably French or other local languages.
- 40%+ travel required
Ciena is a networking systems, services, and software company that besides being a Global leader in Optical Networking technology, is an evolved market player in IP/Packet technology and Software Automation domain (BluePlanet).
Being globally recognised as a Great Place to Work company, Ciena continues to build upon its legacy of providing an open, flexible and cohesive work environment.
Our people promise
Our success is Rooted in People, as together, we Make a Difference, Are Empowered and Feel Included to create a culture of belonging, vibrancy, and happiness.
Ciena is rooted in people, from the individuals who work here, to customers, partners, suppliers, and the communities we live and work in - everyone!
We get that our everyday interactions shape who and what we are. So, whilst we build technology, we also build relationships!
Benefits
At Ciena, we value the commitment, skill, and dedication of all our employees. We know how much work goes into making the company a success. We strive to provide our employees with competitive benefits. Ciena is concerned with employees and will continue to offer benefits that meet your needs.
At Ciena, we are committed to building and fostering an environment in which our employees feel respected, valued, and heard. Ciena values the diversity of its workforce and respects its employees as individuals. We do not tolerate any form of discrimination.
If contacted in relation to a job opportunity, please advise Ciena of any accommodation measures you may require.
