Senior Director, Strategic Accounts
About The Position
As the global leader in high-speed connectivity, Ciena is committed to a people-first approach. Our teams enjoy a culture focused on prioritizing a flexible work environment that empowers individual growth, well-being, and belonging. We’re a technology company that leads with our humanity—driving our business priorities alongside meaningful social, community, and societal impact. The Senior Director, Strategic Accounts plays a critical role in driving Ciena’s growth with our most strategic customers. This leader brings operational rigor, commercial excellence, and a customer-first mindset to define and execute go-to-market strategies that accelerate bookings, revenue, and market share. The role combines hands-on executive customer engagement with global sales leadership, ensuring sustained success across complex, high-value accounts.
Requirements
- 15+ years of progressive experience in senior sales leadership roles within telecommunications, networking, or a closely related technology industry
- Proven success owning and growing strategic or global accounts with responsibility for significant revenue and margin targets
- Demonstrated ability to lead and scale world-class, geographically distributed sales teams
- Extensive experience engaging, influencing, and negotiating with executive-level customer stakeholders
- Telecom infrastructure (preferably optical and/or routing and switching) experience and/or large network (service provider) footprint complex sales
- Understand hyperscaler business
- Running large accounts that have oversized influence on the company's revenue
- Strong commercial acumen with a track record of driving revenue growth, market share expansion, and gross margin improvement
- Exceptional communication, collaboration, and stakeholder-management skills
- Bachelor’s degree required; advanced business degree or equivalent experience strongly preferred
Nice To Haves
- Direct experience managing Strategic Accounts with complex, multi-year investment cycles
- Balanced background selling both directly and through partners or indirect channels
- MBA or equivalent advanced business education
- Experience driving transformational platform refresh or replacement programs within customer networks
- Demonstrated ability to introduce innovative approaches that deliver value beyond the scope of the role
Responsibilities
- Lead and execute short-, medium-, and long-term go-to-market strategies to drive growth in bookings, revenue, margin, and market share across strategic accounts
- Own and consistently deliver quarterly and annual financial commitments, including bookings and revenue targets aligned to equal or majority share of customer spend across applicable Ciena solutions
- Build, lead, and inspire a high-performing global sales team through coaching, mentorship, and role-model leadership
- Engage directly with executive-level customer stakeholders to strengthen relationships, uncover growth opportunities, and differentiate Ciena’s portfolio from competitors
- Personally spearhead complex, high-impact sales pursuits as needed to accelerate deal closure and customer outcomes
- Maximize lifecycle value by expanding services revenue, including negotiation of profitable long-term maintenance and support agreements
- Collaborate cross-functionally to align customer requirements with Ciena’s global product roadmap and marketing strategy
Benefits
- medical, dental, and vision plans
- participation in 401(K) (USA) & DCPP (Canada) with company matching
- Employee Stock Purchase Program (ESPP)
- Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
- company-paid holidays
- paid sick leave
- vacation time
- Paid Family Leave
- other leaves of absence
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Senior
