Technical Activation Lead

Cisco•San Jose, CA

2d•$266,100 - $342,900•Remote

About The Position

The Technical Activation Lead joins Cisco’s Global GTM Incubation & Emerging Technologies team, which commercializes and scales new technology innovations. The team partners with Product leaders to test early go-to-market hypotheses, secure initial lighthouse customer wins, and create repeatable sales and partner playbooks for broader sales organizations. The role turns approved cross-product technical and architectural decisions into owned, dated workstreams that achieve demonstrable customer and field readiness. It coordinates work across AI Defense, Cloud Control, MCF, and future incubation offers, translating approved use cases and architecture into owners, dependencies, milestones, and acceptance criteria. The lead maintains technical activation and decision records, readiness checklists, partner-delivery trackers, use-case charters, and structured feedback registers, surfacing unresolved dependencies and progressing work based on evidence. The role coordinates product, engineering, sales engineering, demo, partner, customer experience/support, legal/security, and field execution, including partner statement-of-work deliverables. It develops reusable proof plans, deployment patterns, and field-readiness evidence, and manages gates from concept through coordinated proof, pilot, launch readiness, and scale. Examples include orchestrating AI Defense competitive-proof readiness, Cloud Control onboarding procedures, and a partner MCF managed-service practice high-level design, with acceptance based on tangible results.

Requirements

12+ years of demonstrated expertise in network software and solutions.
Strong architectural literacy and ability to create reference demos, proof plans, deployment patterns, and enablement materials for early-stage technology innovations.
Experience maintaining technical registers, decision logs, and readiness checklists, identifying dependencies, and raising issues using data-driven evidence.
5+ years of experience driving rapid prototyping and Proof of Concepts (PoCs) from initial concept through pilot, launch readiness, and scale.
Proven experience leading an engineering team aligned with sales counterparts.

Nice To Haves

Advanced expertise orchestrating sophisticated technical proofs, such as AI Defense, Cloud Control, or similar emerging technology validations.
Outstanding ability to handle ambiguity in fast-paced incubation environments and adapt to shifting priorities and early-stage go-to-market hypotheses.
Deep understanding of product partnership dynamics, including building repeatable sales and partner playbooks for lighthouse customer wins.
Strong background developing reusable results that streamline processes across cross-functional teams.
Excellent communication and project management skills, demonstrated through tangible technical milestones.

Responsibilities

Translate approved use cases and architecture into coordinated workstreams with accountable owners, dependencies, milestones, and acceptance criteria.
Maintain the technical activation register, decision log, readiness checklist, partner-delivery tracker, use-case charter, and structured feedback register.
Identify unresolved dependencies and advance work using evidence.
Coordinate product, engineering, SE, dCloud/demo, partner, CX/support, legal/security, and field execution, including partner SOW deliverables.
Make handoffs and test results reusable across teams.
Develop reference collaterals, including proof plans, deployment patterns, and field-readiness evidence.
Run readiness gates from concept through coordinated proof, pilot, launch readiness, and scale.
Orchestrate AI Defense competitive-proof readiness, Cloud Control onboarding procedures, and partner MCF managed-service practice high-level design.
Ensure acceptance proof is based on tangible results rather than meetings or demos.
Build repeatable sales and partner playbooks to support lighthouse customer wins and broader commercialization.

Benefits

Medical, dental, and vision insurance
401(k) plan with Cisco matching contribution
Paid parental leave
Short- and long-term disability coverage
Basic life insurance
Cisco restricted stock unit grants may be available, subject to eligibility and vesting conditions
10 paid holidays per full calendar year, plus one floating holiday for non-exempt employees
Paid birthday day off, year-end holiday shutdown, and four paid personal wellness days
Paid vacation time for non-exempt employees; exempt employees participate in a flexible vacation program with no defined limit, subject to availability and business limitations
80 hours of sick time off provided on hire and each January 1, with up to 80 hours of unused sick time carried forward
Additional paid time away may be requested for critical or emergency family issues
Optional 10 paid volunteer days per full calendar year
Annual bonuses for non-sales roles, subject to Cisco policies
Sales-plan employees may be eligible for performance-based incentive pay