Solutions Development Architect

AI in this role

Shape pre-sales AI solution strategies and architecture frameworks to align customer business priorities with technical outcomes.

solution-architecturepre-salescustomer-engagemententerprise-architecture

The Customer Engagement & Business Value Alignment role strategically advises pre-sales teams by shaping services solution strategies that align with business priorities, building trusted relationships to proactively uncover customer needs, and guiding customers with AI solutions, validated designs, architecture frameworks, and vertical use-cases. This role connects services to measurable customer KPIs such as time-to-value reduction, productivity gains, and risk mitigation, clearly articulating how AI solutions can accelerate these outcomes, and develops multi-phase strategic roadmaps that translate business objectives into actionable adoption journeys, enabling transformation through CX Professional Services while leading CX Services solution components in complex, multi-architecture customer opportunities. In Solution Architecture & Portfolio Leadership, the position identifies new and expansion opportunities using customer and vertical data and insights, leads the pre-sales services solution process by defining the vision-including current state, desired end state, and deployment sequencing-co-develops scalable, multi-architecture solutions balancing delivery effectiveness and cost, collaborates with internal teams and ecosystem partners for comprehensive implementations, and demonstrates architect-level understanding of at least two Cisco technical domains along with broad knowledge of the entire Cisco portfolio. For Sales Enablement & Opportunity Development, the role partners with Sales to identify and pursue high-value transformational opportunities aligned with Cisco's Premium Services strategy, qualifies the services pipeline by understanding customer challenges and desired outcomes, identifies opportunities where AI-driven solutions provide a competitive advantage, leads CX services components in RFI/RFP responses for assigned opportunities, and guides Deal Acceleration and Strategic Engagement Teams to expedite deal progression. In Delivery Alignment & Post-Sales Continuity, the role ensures seamless handoffs to delivery teams, maintains alignment to support solution realization, stays aware of delivery capabilities, trends, and demand, and remains lightly engaged post-sale to support solution realization and capture success stories. What You’ll Do: •Drives pre-sales of services solutions for multiple small or medium complexity accounts, working within established frameworks and collaborating with cross-functional teams; focus of work is on execution and refinement of existing overall solution design •Work is focused on cross-functional, complex, multi-architecture domain engagements •Uses a strong understanding of Cisco’s core technologies and how they apply to customer needs, applying best practices and standard architectures to solve business problems, leveraging AI for enhanced outcomes •Impact is typically within a region, business unit, or customer segment; Influences the quality, efficiency, and effectiveness of delivery at the Theater level by creating accurate scope, level of effort, and timing expectations for engagements •Advises customer’s IT and/or OT decisions at senior leadership levels (e.g., Sr. Director, VP), aligning solutions that integrate AI capabilities with business priorities •Applies industry and domain knowledge to identify customer needs and tailor Cisco offerings to support strategic goals •Builds trust and credibility through consistent engagement and outcomes requirements, contributing to long-term relationships •Supports adoption and expansion efforts by aligning solutions with customer value drivers and transformation plans •Supports CX-related RFP/RFI responses by contributing technical inputs and aligning solution components with customer needs in partnership with Sales and Service Sales teams •Applies AI and automation within established frameworks to support scalable solution design, optimize internal project delivery processes, and ensure delivery feasibility •Contributes to scalable solution planning and informs delivery approaches that streamline processes and improve performance •Supports innovation by integrating automation into solution planning and identifying criteria that contribute to delivery success •Contributes to digital transformation efforts and designs solution components that align with customer goals and enable scalable growth •Deep expertise in a single Cisco technical domain, covering all aspects of the technology in the domain, with a broader understanding of the entire Cisco portfolio •Leverage former technical delivery experience to create realistic and achievable proposals that can be delivered upon by CX's technical delivery teams •Demonstrates relevant technical proficiency across Cisco’s core offerings and applies them effectively in solution planning •Applies AI tools to enhance solution performance and inform scalable architecture design •Implements optimization techniques within solution frameworks to improve scalability and feasibility •Collaborates effectively across pre-sales and delivery teams and to support solution feasibility and alignment •Takes ownership of assigned solution areas, ensuring alignment with Cisco’s delivery capabilities and standards •Influences peers and cross-functional contributors through subject matter expertise and solution leadership, promoting the adoption of AI-powered tools to enhance internal team productivity •Provides guidance and training to engineers and architects within Theaters, focusing on services-led solution planning, architecture alignment, and CX delivery readiness •Seamlessly collaborates with Service Sales and the Deal Acceleration Team Minimum Qualifications: Bachelors + 8 years of related experience, or Masters + 6 years of related experience, or PhD + 3 years of related experience, or equivalent relevant work experience Expert level (e.g., CCIE) or equivalent relevant certification expected. Industry trend certifications preferred.

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.

How we rate this

Solutions Development Architect at Cisco rates 65 out of 100 for how much of the daily work is AI. That makes it Works on AI (AI Level 3 of 4). The level is about AI in the job, not seniority.

Classification

Works on AI. The daily work is on AI products, without building the model.

●●●● Builds AI80 to 100
●●●○ Works on AI60 to 79
●●○○ Uses AI40 to 59
●○○○ Little AI0 to 39

Levels come from how often the tools, models and workflows of the role are named in the posting itself. Open the description and count.

Prepare for this job

A free preview built only from this posting: what it asks for, what you could be asked in an interview, and how to adjust your resume.

Skills and AI tools this role asks for

Solution ArchitecturePre SalesCustomer EngagementEnterprise Architecture

Questions you could be asked

Tell me about a project where solution architecture was part of your work. What did you do?
Tell me about a project where pre sales was part of your work. What did you do?
Tell me about a project where customer engagement was part of your work. What did you do?
Tell me about a project where enterprise architecture was part of your work. What did you do?
Describe a typical day in a role like this one: which parts run through AI directly?

Adapt your resume

List these exact terms on your resume: Solution Architecture, Pre Sales, Customer Engagement, and Enterprise Architecture. An applicant tracking system matches the wording, not the idea.
Attach one line of real, concrete experience to at least one of them — a tool named with nothing behind it rarely survives a human read.
Show where AI is part of your daily process, not a one-off project — this role expects it to be a running habit.

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