Manager, Large Enterprise Solutions Architecture

Klaviyo•San Francisco, CA

About The Position

We Don't Do Boring SEs. And We Don't Hire Boring SE Managers. At Klaviyo, while most companies hire SE managers to run 1:1s, attend forecast calls, and fill out headcount plans, that makes us yawn. We're building something different: an SE organization where managers are in the arena - coaching senior practitioners through complex technical wins, building systems that scale our best plays, and developing the next generation of technical leaders who can hold their own with any CTO or Chief Data Officer. You'll be our second Large Enterprise SE manager at the inflection point where we've proven the model and now need to scale it. You'll lead 4-6 battle-tested SEs (20+ years each) who know their craft. Your job: help them see around corners, elevate their strategic game, and multiply their impact. This is an in-the-field manager role. You'll coach your team and be shoulder-to-shoulder with them on strategic deals - building technical win plans, navigating customer data platform migrations, architecting AI/ML solutions, and building relationships with technical executives that turn evaluations into partnerships. If you're a manager who misses being in deals but knows your real leverage is through people and systems - this could be for you. What You'll Own Technical Leadership & Deal Strategy (You're In The Arena) Lead from the front on complex deals: Jump into strategic Large Enterprise opportunities ($500K+ ACV) where technical strategy will make or break the deal Coach your team to build technical win plans using MEDDPICC & Command of Sale methodology - driving discovery, qualification, differentiation, and technical close strategies Guide solution architecture across customer data platforms, B2C marketing orchestration, AI/ML use cases, analytics, and e-commerce/retail solutions Navigate multi-stakeholder technical evaluations with competing priorities, compliance requirements, and integration complexity Build strategic technical relationships: Develop your team's ability to engage VPs and C-level technical stakeholders (CTO, CDO, CMO) as trusted advisors Coach SEs on executive-level engagement - connecting our platform to strategic imperatives, not features to requirements Partner with R&D on product feedback loops, competitive positioning, and technical escalations Create the air cover and access that accelerates deal velocity Role model what great looks like: Demonstrate clear communication, technical depth, and bias for action Show them how to code-switch: technical depth with engineers, business value with executives Live the importance of preparation, follow-through, and keeping commitments Coaching & Team Development (You Scale Through People) Make your experienced SEs even better: Conduct weekly 1:1s focused on deal strategy and career development, not status updates Provide daily coaching through deal reviews and strategic guidance on active opportunities Push senior practitioners (20+ years each) on strategic thinking, executive presence, and influencing without authority Design onboarding that accelerates ramp-up and translates individual expertise into team capabilities Manage performance proactively: address gaps early with constructive feedback, navigate difficult conversations at all levels Systems Thinking & Workforce Planning (You Build What Scales) Turn wins into repeatable plays: Identify patterns in successful deals and design scalable processes Build technical qualification frameworks, win plan templates, POC playbooks that balance agility with repeatability Root cause wins AND losses to understand what works and how to replicate it Measure, optimize, and build the bench: Analytically evaluate team performance: deal coverage, win rates, technical close effectiveness, cycle time Diagnose system issues (losing on integrations? competitive positioning? executive access?) and optimize resource allocation Screen candidates for core SE competencies, maintain high hiring bar, and build your talent network Cross-Functional Partnership & Communication Align and collaborate: Partner with Large Enterprise sales on account strategy, Product/Engineering on roadmap priorities, Customer Success on handoffs, and Marketing on customer evidence Keep team apprised of organizational initiatives and translate them into action Share feedback with senior leadership, drive team engagement, and balance competing demands through strong prioritization

Requirements

10+ years in presales/solutions engineering with 3+ years managing SE teams
Track record coaching experienced ICs, scaling teams/processes, and strong people leadership (hiring, performance management, difficult conversations)
Deep credibility in Large Enterprise deals ($500K+ ACV) with complex, multi-stakeholder evaluations
Domain expertise in 2+ of: customer data platforms, marketing technology, AI/ML, analytics, e-commerce/retail
Technical depth to guide teams through advanced engagements and earn trust with technical executives
Fluency in Command of Sale (strongly preferred), Challenger, MEDDPICC, or similar
Track record building technical win plans and navigating complex evaluations with competing priorities
Ability to influence VP/C-level technical executives and build trusted advisor relationships
Excellent verbal and written communication; can alter delivery based on audience
Active listening with empathy while commanding accountability
Comfortable with difficult conversations at all levels; high emotional intelligence and judgment

Nice To Haves

You think in systems: See patterns, scale what works, build processes that create leverage not bureaucracy, and ask "how do we make this repeatable?"
You have excellent judgment: Balance priorities, know when to go deep/escalate/say no, make sound decisions under ambiguity
You're a talent magnet: High-slope people want to work for you, you hire well and develop people who outgrow roles
You code-switch effortlessly: Technical depth with engineers, business value with executives, coaching with your team - comfortable in details and at 30,000 feet
You're a culture carrier: Embody Klaviyo values, believe simple things should be easy and hard things possible, problem-solver and builder at heart
You stay hands-on without being a hero: Jump in when needed but don't steal opportunities, coach through doing but know when to step back

Responsibilities

Lead from the front on complex deals: Jump into strategic Large Enterprise opportunities ($500K+ ACV) where technical strategy will make or break the deal
Coach your team to build technical win plans using MEDDPICC & Command of Sale methodology - driving discovery, qualification, differentiation, and technical close strategies
Guide solution architecture across customer data platforms, B2C marketing orchestration, AI/ML use cases, analytics, and e-commerce/retail solutions
Navigate multi-stakeholder technical evaluations with competing priorities, compliance requirements, and integration complexity
Develop your team's ability to engage VPs and C-level technical stakeholders (CTO, CDO, CMO) as trusted advisors
Coach SEs on executive-level engagement - connecting our platform to strategic imperatives, not features to requirements
Partner with R&D on product feedback loops, competitive positioning, and technical escalations
Demonstrate clear communication, technical depth, and bias for action
Conduct weekly 1:1s focused on deal strategy and career development, not status updates
Provide daily coaching through deal reviews and strategic guidance on active opportunities
Push senior practitioners (20+ years each) on strategic thinking, executive presence, and influencing without authority
Design onboarding that accelerates ramp-up and translates individual expertise into team capabilities
Manage performance proactively: address gaps early with constructive feedback, navigate difficult conversations at all levels
Identify patterns in successful deals and design scalable processes
Build technical qualification frameworks, win plan templates, POC playbooks that balance agility with repeatability
Root cause wins AND losses to understand what works and how to replicate it
Analytically evaluate team performance: deal coverage, win rates, technical close effectiveness, cycle time
Diagnose system issues (losing on integrations? competitive positioning? executive access?) and optimize resource allocation
Screen candidates for core SE competencies, maintain high hiring bar, and build your talent network
Partner with Large Enterprise sales on account strategy, Product/Engineering on roadmap priorities, Customer Success on handoffs, and Marketing on customer evidence
Keep team apprised of organizational initiatives and translate them into action
Share feedback with senior leadership, drive team engagement, and balance competing demands through strong prioritization