Role Overview

The Senior Secure Edge Architect serves as the technical sales lead for SonicWall's Cloud Secure Edge portfolio within North America. The role pairs consultative selling with deep technical expertise, working alongside channel partners (including MSPs, VARs, and Distributors) to design, demonstrate, validate, and close security solutions that meet customer requirements.

Key Responsibilities

1. Solution Design, Demonstration, and Validation

• Conduct technical discovery sessions to assess customer architecture, security posture, and requirements, including identity, remote access, and cloud and SaaS usage.
• Design and recommend Cloud Secure Edge solutions, including Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA), secure web access, and related cloud-delivered security services.
• Deliver tailored product demonstrations, proofs of concept (PoCs), and technical workshops that map solutions to customer pain points.
• Respond to technical sections of RFPs, RFIs, and security questionnaires, and provide architecture guidance to partner engineers and customers.
• Provide pre-sales technical guidance on deployment planning and integration with customer environments, and coordinate with Product Management, Engineering, and Support on escalations and feedback.

2. Channel Partner Enablement and Management

• Cultivate and maintain strong relationships with channel partners to drive joint sales efforts.
• Train and enable partner sales and engineering teams on solution positioning, technical differentiation, deployment best practices, and competitive messaging.
• Collaborate with partners to develop co-marketing strategies, joint sales initiatives, and technical training programs, including partner certification pathways.
• Monitor channel partner performance, providing technical and commercial support to optimize their sales effectiveness.

3. Sales Process Improvement

• Analyze current sales processes and identify opportunities to streamline sales motions and increase efficiency.
• Implement best practices and standardize technical sales processes associated with the Managed Service Provider (MSP) channel, including PoC frameworks, demo environments, and deployment handoffs.
• Collaborate with internal teams to develop technical tools, reference architectures, solution briefs, playbooks, and training materials for the sales team and channel partners.

Qualifications

Education and Experience

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Business, or a related field (preferred but not required).
• Minimum of five years of experience in a technical sales, sales engineering, or solutions consulting role, preferably within the cybersecurity, network security, or IT industry.
• Proven record of accomplishment in meeting or exceeding sales targets and quotas.

Skills and Competencies

• Proficiency in Salesforce CRM for managing sales activities and customer relationships.
• Strong knowledge of channel sales and experience working with channel partners, particularly MSPs.
• Excellent communication, negotiation, and presentation skills, including the ability to engage both technical and executive audiences.
• Ability to build and maintain relationships with clients and partners.
• Strategic thinking with the ability to analyze sales processes and implement improvements.
• Self-motivated, results-oriented, and capable of working independently as well as part of a team.

Technical Knowledge

• Strong understanding of cybersecurity and network security concepts, including:
  • Zero Trust
  • SASE and SSE architectures
  • ZTNA
  • Secure Web Gateways
  • Firewalls
  • VPN technologies
  • Endpoint Security
• Working knowledge of networking fundamentals, including:
  • TCP/IP
  • DNS
  • Routing
  • TLS
• Experience with Identity and Access Management technologies, including:
  • SAML
  • Single Sign-On (SSO)
  • Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)
  • Directory services such as Microsoft Entra ID
• Familiarity with cloud and SaaS environments such as Microsoft 365, AWS, and Azure.
• Understanding of APIs, automation, and multi-tenant MSP management platforms.
• Ability to quickly grasp technical products and effectively communicate value propositions to clients and partners.
• Relevant industry certifications such as CISSP, Security+, Network+, or vendor-specific certifications are preferred.

• Willingness to travel within the assigned territory as needed, including customer visits, partner meetings, industry events, and trade shows.
• Valid driver's license and reliable transportation.

The ideal candidate combines strong cybersecurity expertise with channel-focused pre-sales experience and has a proven ability to support MSP partners, deliver compelling technical demonstrations, and drive revenue growth through consultative solution selling. Experience with cloud-delivered security, Zero Trust architectures, and partner enablement will be critical to success in this role.