Director, Solutions Engineer Forward Deployed - Splunk

The application window is expected to close on: 11/29/2026This role can be performed anywhere in the United States. The application window is expected to close on: November 10, 2026NOTE: Job posting may be removed earlier if the position is filled or if a sufficient number of applications are received. Meet the TeamThe Cisco-Splunk Forward Deployed Solutions Engineering (FDSE) team is an elite, hands-on technical organization that embeds directly alongside our most strategic global customers across the Americas to lead enterprise AI transformation with a tailored industry and public sector lens. We leverage the power of artificial intelligence to co-develop, integrate, and showcase 'art of the possible' prototype solutions that rapidly solve critical business challenges and accelerate production deployment. Positioned at the intersection of the Cisco portfolio and the Splunk Data Platform, our team establishes the industry benchmark for enterprise AI, observability, and data architecture excellence. We collaborate closely with Sales, Product & Technology, Software Engineering, Customer Success, and Global Partners to maximize customer focus and deliver transformative business value. Our community brings together visionary AI thought leaders, senior software engineers, and solutions architects who thrive in high-velocity, customer-embedded agile sprint environments.Your Impact Build, scale, and lead a high-performing team of customer-embedded Forward Deployed Solution Engineers operating across advanced AI deployments, cloud architectures, and mission-critical enterprise systems. Accelerate customer business outcomes, compress time-to-value, and deliver tangible technical proof that drives durable account retention and customer expansion. Hire, develop, and mentor top-tier engineering talent while fostering a culture of technical rigor, continuous learning, customer obsession, and extreme ownership. Partner directly with customer C-level technology executives, enterprise architects, and Cisco/Splunk product engineering leadership to translate real-world deployment telemetry into accelerated roadmap innovations.Minimum Qualifications · Minimum 10 years of professional experience in customer-facing pre-sales engineering, post-sales architecture, or professional services deploying distributed software and enterprise systems architectures (or Master’s degree plus 8 years / PhD plus 5 years).· Minimum 5 years of direct people management experience leading pre-sales, post-sales, or customer-embedded technical engineering teams driving business outcomes.· Minimum 3 years of experience architecting, deploying, or managing artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), or enterprise data platform solutions in production environments.· Minimum 3 years of experience designing and deploying distributed cloud-native, hybrid, or event-driven system architectures.· Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Information Technology, or a related technical discipline (or equivalent practical professional experience).Preferred Qualifications · Experience leading multi-level or matrixed technical organizations, with a demonstrated ability to build, scale, and inspire high-performing engineering teams.· Minimum 3 years of experience with Generative and Agentic AI architectures, machine learning platforms, container orchestration (Kubernetes), and event-driven data platforms.· Minimum 5 years of experience architecting solutions utilizing Cisco networking/security portfolios, the Splunk Data Platform, or equivalent premier enterprise software suites.· Demonstrated ability to establish trusted advisory relationships with customer C-level technology executives (CTOs, CIOs, CDOs) and lead executive technical briefings.· Active industry certifications in Artificial Intelligence or Cloud platforms, paired with proven experience implementing customer-embedded forward-deployed engineering methodologies. THIS JOB DESCRIPTION DOES NOT APPLY FOR EMPLOYEES IN AUSTRIA, BELGIUM, FRANCE, GERMANY & NETHERLANDSWhy Cisco? At Cisco, we’re revolutionizing how data and infrastructure connect and protect organizations in the AI era – and beyond. We’ve been innovating fearlessly for 40 years to create solutions that power how humans and technology work together across the physical and digital worlds. These solutions provide customers with unparalleled security, visibility, and insights across the entire digital footprint.Fueled by the depth and breadth of our technology, we experiment and create meaningful solutions. Add to that our worldwide network of doers and experts, and you’ll see that the opportunities to grow and build are limitless. We work as a team, collaborating with empathy to make really big things happen on a global scale. Because our solutions are everywhere, our impact is everywhere. We are Cisco, and our power starts with you. Message to applican