Overview
Are you insatiably curious and do you lean into uncertainty, take risks, and learn quickly from? Are you passionate about cybersecurity? Do you enjoy working on a high-performing, fast-paced sales team? Are you insatiably curious and do you lean into uncertainty, take risks, and learn quickly from your mistakes? If so, we are looking for you!
The Microsoft Security organization’s mission of making the world a safer place has never been more important. As threats become more frequent and sophisticated, we must work to keep our customers safe through our Security Solutions. With thousands of global security experts worldwide, $1 billion+ invested annually in security research and development, and the cutting-edge AI- based Security innovations, Microsoft is ideally placed to think outside of the box and protecting customers and partners around the world.
As a Sales Security Specialist, you will drive consumption and grow business with existing strategic customers by initiating conversations, guiding others on demos or quotes and the collaboration with partners or internal teams (e.g., Technical Sales Professionals, Global Black Belts). You will bring impactful industry insights into customer engagements and closes deals with customers. Acts as a thought leader across solution areas to advise customers across business functions on digital transformation. Leads virtual transformational shifts to drive deployment and create business value for customers. May lead partner integration into account/territory planning and customer engagements. Provides thought leadership.
You will develop sales and business strategy options, while also being able to successfully execute complex opportunities. You will work cohesively in a highly matrixed environment with members of the Microsoft account team and services field, Microsoft partners, and Microsoft corporate sales, engineering, and marketing to solve customer security challenges, leverage best practices and deliver results and sales outcomes.
Responsibilities
Sales Execution
- Brings impactful Cybersecurity, Compliance, Governance & Risk industry insights into customer engagements and closes deals with customers. Acts as a thought leader across Cybersecurity, Compliance, Governance & Risk solution areas to advise customers across business functions on digital transformation. Leads virtual transformational shifts to drive deployment and create business value for customers. May lead partner integration into account/territory planning and customer engagements. Provides thought leadership in the Cybersecurity, Compliance, Governance & Risk domains.
- Orchestrates with team members across solution areas on conducting personal campaigns to discover new opportunities and generate new leads. Leads conversations with strategic/high-potential customers (e.g., high budget, global account, highly competitive) along with account teams or partners. Facilitates the account team unit (ATU) and/or Specialist Team Unit (STU) to build pipeline in collaboration with partners and services. Guides others on social selling. Applies Microsoft's sales process (MSP) to determine the quality of the opportunity and whether to proceed and educate the customers on how to best address their Cybersecurity, Compliance, Governance & Risk needs.
- Drives consumption and grow business with existing strategic customers by initiating conversations, guiding others on demos or quotes, and the collaboration with partners or internal teams (e.g., Technical Sales Professionals, Global Black Belts). For licensing transactions and project engagements, ensures rapid and robust deployment plan at point of sale that is validated by services and partners. Drives advanced workloads and usage.
- Explores and assesses the needs of strategic/high-potential customers. Articulates business value of the Microsoft Cybersecurity, Compliance, Governance & Risk portfolio and long-term implications for customer business. Collaborates with internal teams, partners, and services to lead the proposal or development of solutions that align with customer and Microsoft priorities. Analyzes Cybersecurity, Compliance, Governance & Risk market trends to identify opportunities for new solutions.
- Proactively builds and governs external stakeholder network and leverages internal partners to engage external stakeholders. Acts as a thought leader and subject matter advisor to the executive-level business decision makers at the customer's/partner's business. Guides others on identifying and engaging decision makers and stakeholders to expand the relationship with customers/partners.
- Develops strategies for driving and closing strategic and/or prioritized opportunities. Collaborates with account teams to ensure alignment with the account strategy and plan. Leads deal execution with the deal teams across the organization. Coaches others on the implementation of close plans (e.g., how to map timeline, engage the customer, get customer buy-in and commitment) to de-risk and drive predictable deal closure.
Scaling and Collaboration
- Leads the planning and execution on Cybersecurity, Compliance, Governance & Risk opportunities with resources and partners to cross-sell and up-sell. Identifies, leverages, and coordinates partners and resources across solution areas. Validates partner solution relevance for customers. Provides input and feedback to Global Partner Solutions (GPS) on developing partner strategies and connects the partner ecosystems to scale business results.
- Leads the sales orchestration with internal stakeholders and partners (e.g., Enterprise Operating Unit). Applies a holistic approach to build network across territories. Positions opportunities to promote collaboration and participation.
Technical Expertise
- Presales experience in XDR & SIEM, knowledge of cross-cloud Security and Security Operations
- Leads conversations and sets up events within Microsoft. Mentors others and develops strategies for best practice sharing across subsidiaries. Contributes ideas that can be instituted across Microsoft.
- Posts information or speaks at external events, drives conversations with prospective customers/partners as a thought leader across solution areas.*
- Leverages and shares competitor knowledge across solution areas as a subject matter expert to inform decisions on pursuit or withdrawal. Collaborates with the 'compete' global black belts (GBB) to proactively provide analysis of the competitive landscape in supported solution area. Leads the communication to provide feedback to other teams (e.g., sales, marketing, engineering) on future product trends or sales blocker.
Sales Excellence
- Builds and transforms new markets by leveraging technical and industry expertise, partners, and resources. Leads a team to explore business and emerging opportunities to optimize the portfolio and facilitate customer innovation.
- Reviews feedback report and sets long-term strategies aimed at maintaining levels of client satisfaction. Coaches others on ensuring customer/partner satisfaction and decreasing dissatisfaction by establishing recovery action plans to improve clients' overall experience. Manages and/or orchestrates sales and delivery success through the account team and pursuit team.
- Engages with internal and external stakeholders on business planning, Rhythm of Business (ROB) meetings to review and plan for strategic accounts across territories.
- Collaborates with extended sales team, partners, and marketing to lead business analysis (e.g., whitespace analysis, identify industry trends) to pursue high-potential customers and develop a target list of potential business. Acts as a thought leader and clears opinions and perspectives from business analysis.
- Manages the end-to-end business for strategic accounts across the organization. Leads forecasting for accounts and develops a portfolio and territory plan to drive intentional selling with on-strategy engagements in high propensity accounts. Mentors less experienced team members.
Completes required training and obtains relevant product and role certifications aligned to the role and workload/industry. Proactively seeks training, including information that adds to the understanding of customers' business, and shares it with team members.
Qualifications
10+ years of Cloud technology-related solution sales or pre-sales experience in Cybersecurity, Compliance, Governance & Risk domains
- Bachelor's Degree in Information Technology, or related field AND 8+ years Cloud technology-related solution sales or pre-sales experience in Cybersecurity, Compliance, Governance & Risk domains
- OR Master's Degree in Business Administration (i.e., MBA), Information Technology, or related field AND 7+ years of Cloud technology-related solution sales or pre-sales experience in Cybersecurity, Compliance, Governance & Risk domains.
8+ years Cybersecurity, Compliance, Governance & Risk solutions & implementation services sales experience selling to to CISO, CDO, CTO and other key C-level stakeholders in Public Sector, Financial Services and other Critical Infrastructure industries.
Experience with competitive Security solutions (e.g. Palo Alto, Cisco, CrowdStrike, Splunk, Qradar, Wiz, Google Chronicle etc.) is a plus
This position will be open for a minimum of 5 days, with applications accepted on an ongoing basis until the position is filled.
Microsoft is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, citizenship, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, immigration status, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran or military status, race, ethnicity, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by applicable local laws, regulations and ordinances. If you need assistance with religious accommodations and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during the application process, read more about **requesting accommodations.**