Director, SE Strategy, Planning & Operations

Cisco•Austin, NC

About The Position

The application window is expected to close on: 10/09/2026. Meet the Team Americas Sales Strategy, Planning, and Operations (SP&O) is a dynamic organization where innovation and technology come together to help our sales teams deliver on customer outcomes. We are seeking a best-in-class Sales GTM Strategy, Planning & Operations Director who can be a strategic partner & advisor to sales Solutions Engineering (SE) leader (VP/SVP) to help shape Americas Sales SE strategy, support Run the Business & execute key initiatives that translate into sales growth in partnership with the Sales Leadership Team and cross-functional collaborators (Theaters, Operations, Specialist, Finance, & Business Units). Your Impact This Director will be reporting to Senior Director and will own below for Engineering group in Americas Sales.

Requirements

10+ years' experience including experience in management consulting, GTM strategy, strategy planning, or sales SE including people leadership/management.
Proven experience in management consulting (or equivalent experience), with a focus on strategy planning & transformation, preferably within a sales context.
BS/BA Degree.
Demonstrated management experience leading strategy teams with a proven track record of team development.
Sales/GTM Strategy experience within the tech sector highly preferred.
Strong in framing & structuring business problems, prioritizing the effort, conducting complex quantitative and qualitative analysis, building an exec level story complete with recommendations.
Experience translating Business Priorities into actionable GTM Programs including (but not limited to) offer creation, campaign creation, and enablement all of which are measurable
Strong AI tools, analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to synthesize complex data into actionable insights.
Excellent communication and presentation skills, with the ability to influence and engage stakeholders at all levels.
Demonstrated ability to lead strategic initiatives and drive transformation in a complex, global organization; executing programs that can span 6-12 months through to completion.
Self-starter with a high degree of initiative, capable of working independently and managing multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment.
Curious and flexible, you enjoy variety and are willing to tackle different roles/responsibilities as business needs evolve.
A standout colleague: You love a challenge, you've always got your teammate's ask, and you're inspired working with others to achieve success.
Fail forward demeanor, leads as a natural innovator in the face of change and adversity.

Nice To Haves

MBA Preferred.

Responsibilities

Build Growth Plan: Develop Annual/Long Range strategic sales SE plan through structure frameworks, partnerships with cross functional teams, and the build-out GTM playbooks. Design & operationalize SE priorities (including KPIs) with the structure PMO approach.
Holistic Planning Engine: Serve as the primary orchestrator for End-to-End planning (meaning bringing everything together that’s Including GTM Strategy, BE Interlocks, Operations, Readiness, Recognition, Events) – which includes process, structure & milestone deliverables by partnering with cross functional groups. Ensure all tasks are meticulously captured, assigned, tracked, and driven to timely completion.
Run the Hub: Own and Govern Americas SE sales/SP&O cadence (Standard operating model / procedure / process / rhythm & run-of-show).
Operations Excellence: Partner with revenue operations & execution teams on key operations activities (Compensation, Readiness) & initiatives supporting the Sales SE group.
Strategic Initiative Leadership: Identify, develop, and lead high-impact strategic sales SE initiatives that align with the organization's goals and drive transformation across global markets.
Conduct Strategic, Data-Driven Analyses (using Market Research, Business & Competitive intelligence): Identify levers to grow across discrete new, renew, and expand sales motions. Advise GTM strategy that supports growth and scale of the global business. Define and leverage GTM levers to instrument growth-driven programs in our business.
Advisory: Be a strategic partner & advisor to sales SE leader (VP/SVP) and support end to end on Strategy, Planning & Operations aspects of Sales Solutions Engineering group.
People Leadership: Serve as a people leader and guide a dynamic Sales SE GTM Strategy Planning & Operations team by providing strategic guidance and insights to drive innovation and continuous improvement in sales practices.
AI-Forward: Leverage AI tooling to accelerate ideation, strategic planning, and execution — using AI-driven insights to sharpen decision-making and drive faster, more informed outcomes.
Executive Communication: Tell the growth plan & priorities story in both what we need to do and how we will do to senior executives across sales, specialist, product business unit and executive leadership teams. Prepare Americas Sales SE Head for the Board, ELT and SLT level strategic meetings and presentations.
Cross-functional Collaboration: Partner with internal stakeholders, including sales, specialist, global SE, marketing, product development, and operations, to ensure alignment and successful execution of strategic initiatives.
Change Management: Advocate for and implement change management practices that facilitate the adoption of new strategies and processes within the sales organization.
Strategic Assessment: Assess how best to spend a $1 of coverage against what customers, regions, products to increase output, including key strategic questions around renewals, customer success, field roles and Sales organization structure/governance/design.

Benefits

medical, dental and vision insurance
a 401(k) plan with a Cisco matching contribution
paid parental leave
short and long-term disability coverage
basic life insurance
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
16 days of paid vacation time per full calendar year, accrued at rate of 4.92 hours per pay period for full-time employees (Non-exempt employees)
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) (Exempt employees)
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
Employees may be eligible to receive grants of Cisco restricted stock units, which vest following continued employment with Cisco for defined periods of time.
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.