Inside Solution Architect

The Network for AI (NFAI) Inside Solutions Architect / Specialist is responsible for driving data center networking and routing solution opportunities across commercial and lower-tier enterprise accounts through a virtual-first engagement model.

This role serves as the inside counterpart to field-led enterprise specialist coverage, owning a defined segment of accounts where opportunities may involve meaningful technical complexity, multi-stakeholder buying processes, and executive alignment.

Key Responsibilities

• Drive pipeline development and revenue growth for HPE Networking’s data center networking, routing, and AI infrastructure connectivity portfolio across assigned commercial and lower-tier enterprise accounts.
• Lead consultative discovery conversations to understand customer business objectives, infrastructure requirements, and modernization initiatives.
• Translate business and technical requirements into solution architectures in collaboration with Sales Engineers, recommending appropriate designs, deployment models, and phased adoption strategies.
• Provide architectural guidance during early opportunity stages, helping customers and internal teams evaluate topology options, fabric architectures, scalability considerations, and integration points.
• Progress opportunities using structured sales methodologies, ensuring alignment around decision criteria, business value, and stakeholder sponsorship.
• Build and communicate compelling business cases that connect networking modernization initiatives to measurable business outcomes such as scalability, performance, resilience, operational efficiency, and cost optimization.

Customer & Executive Engagement

• Establish trusted relationships with technical and business stakeholders including network architects, IT managers, infrastructure leaders, and operations teams.
• Engage confidently with director-, VP-, and selected C-level stakeholders when executive sponsorship is required to advance an opportunity.
• Navigate complex buying committees and align internal and external stakeholders around architecture direction and investment rationale.

Technical Leadership & SME Support

• Act as a subject matter expert for the NFAI portfolio, supporting Account Managers and Sales Engineers with technical positioning, solution architecture guidance, and competitive differentiation.
• Assist account teams in designing networking solutions that align with validated architectures, customer requirements, and HPE Networking best practices.
• Provide architectural input during account strategy development, helping teams identify modernization opportunities and expansion paths.
• Support technical discussions such as solution topology, scalability planning, integration with compute/storage platforms, and AI infrastructure connectivity requirements.
• Collaborate with Sales Engineers on detailed solution validation while maintaining ownership of overall solution strategy and value articulation.

Partner & Internal Collaboration

• Collaborate closely with Account Managers, Sales Engineers, channel partners, and field specialists to advance complex opportunities and ensure coordinated pursuit strategies.
• Qualify when to lead independently versus when to engage additional technical, executive, or specialist resources based on opportunity complexity and account dynamics.
• Leverage partner ecosystems to expand reach, accelerate solution adoption, and support joint account strategies.

Pipeline & Forecast Discipline

• Maintain accurate pipeline visibility, forecasting, and opportunity hygiene within Salesforce and associated sales tools.
• Apply disciplined opportunity qualification and prioritization to ensure efficient use of time and resources across a higher-volume inside sales environment.

Portfolio & Market Expertise

• Maintain deep working knowledge of HPE Networking’s data center switching, routing, AI networking, and fabric architectures.
• Understand how networking infrastructure integrates with compute, storage, and AI workloads within modern data center and hybrid cloud environments.
• Stay current on validated designs, architectural best practices, and evolving networking technologies relevant to AI and data center modernization.
• Maintain awareness of competitive networking technologies to articulate architectural differentiation and displacement strategies.

Education & Experience

• 6–8+ years of experience in networking technology sales, specialist sales, or hybrid technical-commercial roles.
• Proven success selling and positioning networking infrastructure solutions within commercial and/or enterprise environments.
• Demonstrated ability to participate in or lead solution architecture discussions related to switching, routing, and data center networking.
• Experience collaborating with Sales Engineers on solution design and technical validation.

Knowledge & Skills

• Strong understanding of data center networking architectures including leaf-spine designs, fabric architectures, and scalable routing solutions.
• Ability to translate customer requirements into credible solution designs and architectural approaches.
• Capability to provide SME support to account teams by guiding solution positioning, architecture decisions, and technical strategy.
• Strong executive communication skills and ability to build credibility with both technical and business stakeholders.
• High level of sales discipline, forecasting accuracy, and opportunity management rigor.
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced inside sales environment that requires balancing technical engagement with opportunity volume.