Director Strategic Alliances-Bay Area OR Seattle, WA; Hybrid

Strategic Alliances Manager

Location:

San Jose/ Bay Area or Seattle, WA (Hybrid)

Travel: minimal travel to be expected

The Strategic Alliances team is part of Cisco's Corporate Strategy organization, and defines the company's global strategy for our most critical partnerships.

You will operate as a key strategic bridge to our Alliance Partners, to understand their priorities and capabilities and align them with Cisco's alliance strategy.

You will work with teams across Cisco including product leaders, sales leaders, CTOs, systems architects and marketing professionals to ensure that our global go-to-market and technical integration efforts are synchronized to drive mutual growth.

• Global Strategic Leadership:
  Define and execute the multi-year global alliance strategy for our most significant cloud partners. Serve as the primary architect for joint initiatives that span multiple geographies and business units.
• Cross-Company Influence:
  Drive complex initiatives by influencing senior leaders across Cisco's product, engineering, and sales teams. You will be the catalyst for alignment, ensuring that internal stakeholders prioritize the partnership's objectives.
• Complex Initiative Management:
  Incubate and manage high-stakes, cross-functional programs that require deep collaboration to ensure successful product integration and market adoption.
• Executive Presence:
  Act as a primary point of contact for executives at both Cisco and our partner. Navigate the "coo petition" landscape to secure long-term commitments and strategic alignment.
• Strategic Insight:
  Provide actionable intelligence to Cisco's leadership team regarding the partner's strategic direction, competitive positioning, and emerging technology trends, directly shaping Cisco's executive-level decision-making.

• BA/BS degree with 10+ years of experience in business development, product management, or high-level partner management, specifically within the global cloud or networking ecosystem.
• Proven track record of managing large-scale, complex technology partnerships with significant strategic impact.
• Deep technical fluency in cloud-native architectures, including hybrid/multi-cloud, containerization, SaaS, and the security requirements of large-scale cloud environments.
• Expert-level communication and influence skills, with a demonstrated ability to align diverse, global stakeholders and senior executives toward a unified vision without direct line authority.
• Strong grasp of the strategic and competitive dynamics of the cloud industry, with the ability to translate technical concepts into high-level business strategy.

• MBA or advanced degree preferred.
• Management Consulting
• Extensive experience working with U.S.
  
  -headquartered hyperscale cloud providers.
• Demonstrated ability to navigate the organizational complexities of a large-scale multinational technology conglomerate.
• Advanced proficiency in data-driven decision-making and the ability to articulate innovative thought leadership to both technical and business audiences.