Leader, AI Hyperspecialist Solutions Engineer

Cisco•Chicago, IL

19h•$235,300 - $374,100

About The Position

The AI Hyperspecialist Solutions Engineering leader directs a team of solutions engineers who partner with sales, customers, and product teams to design and implement AI-powered solutions. This role requires deep technical credibility in AI/ML combined with strong people leadership, ensuring the team effectively translates customer needs into technical solutions while driving revenue and customer success.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or related technical field
5+ years in solutions engineering, sales engineering, or technical consulting, with 2+ years in a leadership role
Strong understanding of AI/ML concepts — LLMs, embeddings, RAG, model APIs, prompt engineering
Experience with cloud platforms (AWS, GCP, Azure) and integration technologies (APIs, SDKs, webhooks)
Proven ability to communicate technical concepts to both technical and non-technical/executive audiences
Track record of supporting complex enterprise sales cycles

Nice To Haves

Hands-on experience building demos or POCs using LLM APIs (OpenAI, Anthropic, etc.) or ML frameworks
Background in customer-facing technical roles at a SaaS or AI/ML company
Familiarity with vector databases, agentic frameworks, or MLOps tooling
Experience presenting at conferences, webinars, or customer events
Prior experience in a specific target industry (e.g., enterprise software, fintech, healthcare)

Responsibilities

Manage, coach, and develop a team of solutions engineers/architects; conduct 1:1s, performance reviews, and skill development plans
Oversee technical discovery, solution design, demos, and proof-of-concepts (POCs) for prospective customers evaluating AI products
Guide the team in helping customers integrate AI/ML APIs, models, or platforms into their existing systems
Develop reusable solution architectures, demo environments, and best practices for common AI use cases (e.g., RAG, agents, fine-tuning, automation)
Partner closely with Sales, Product, Engineering, and Customer Success to align technical solutions with business goals and feed customer feedback into the product roadmap
Serve as an escalation point for complex technical objections or implementation blockers during the sales cycle
Build technical training materials and certifications for the solutions engineering team and broader sales org
Track team performance metrics (POC win rate, time-to-value, deal velocity) and continuously improve pre-sales processes
Recruit and interview candidates with strong technical and communication skills

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
grants of Cisco restricted stock units
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
16 days of paid vacation time per full calendar year for non-exempt employees
flexible vacation time off program for exempt employees
80 hours of sick time off provided on hire date and each January 1st thereafter
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
annual bonuses subject to Cisco’s policies (for non-sales roles)
performance-based incentive pay on top of their base salary (for sales roles)