Strategy & Planning Manager - Bay Area
About The Position
The SE HAI community is a high-performing, dynamic group of professionals dedicated to driving innovation and technical excellence across our most critical customer segments. As the company’s highest-selling segment in recent years, we operate in a unique, fast-paced market where we co-define next-generation products directly with our customers. We serve as the strategic backbone of our sales organization, ensuring our engineers are empowered with the tools and insights needed to navigate state-of-the-art industry trends. Our culture is defined by a "Win As One" mentality, where cross-functional collaboration, recognition, and accountability drive our collective success in an ever-evolving market. Joining this team offers a unique opportunity to shape the future of our operational strategy while working alongside industry leaders committed to excellence, growth, and customer success.
Requirements
- 5+ years of experience in strategy, operations, program management, or pre-sales engineering.
- Bachelor’s degree in a technical or business-related field.
- Proficiency in Salesforce, data analysis, and modern AI-driven productivity platforms.
- Experience in defining KPIs, monitoring performance, and executing strategic planning in large organizations.
Nice To Haves
- AI tools knowledge.
- Field experience as a Solutions Engineer (SE) with an understanding of HAI or SP business landscape and portfolio.
- Leadership in fostering a high-performance culture through mentorship, team recognition, and professional development.
- Experience in cross-functional collaboration, specifically in aligning engineering teams with global sales and marketing objectives.
- Critical thinking skills with a proven track record of driving innovation and change management in complex environments.
- Executive presence with superior verbal and written communication skills for high-level storytelling and presentations.
Responsibilities
- Develop and implement comprehensive strategies for the SE team to support HAI growth objectives, aligning goals with broader sales, marketing, and product strategies.
- Create and execute operational strategies that support SE and Architecture team objectives; identify potential risks, develop mitigation plans, and present insights to leadership.
- Define success metrics and track progress against strategic objectives; monitor KPIs to assess the effectiveness of pre-sales strategies and initiatives.
- Analyze performance metrics to identify areas for improvement and implement corrective actions; establish a framework for continuous feedback and iteration.
- Act as a central point of coordination between the HAI Sales Engineering team, Americas SE leadership, Global SE, Sales, and Marketing to ensure alignment on goals and deliverables.
- Identify skill needs and implement training programs to support the SE team; mentor and guide team leaders to enhance strategic thinking and technical capabilities.
- Foster a high-performance culture of inspiration and recognition, serving as the primary advocate for the HAI SE community to ensure our impact and requirements are represented within the broader Americas and Global SE organizations.
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
- 1 floating holiday for non-exempt employees
- 1 paid day off for employee’s birthday
- paid year-end holiday shutdown
- 4 paid days off for personal wellness
- 16 days of paid vacation time per full calendar year (non-exempt)
- flexible vacation time off program (exempt)
- 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
- 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 (for non-sales roles)
- performance-based incentive pay (for sales roles)
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Manager
