Head of Cloud Presales

MUST HAVES:

• AWS, Azure and/or GCP enterprise level presales
• Presales team management
• Proven ability to lead OCM

As a senior leader in CDW’s Digital Velocity (DV) Cloud practice, the Head of Cloud Presales engages with Portfolio, Professional Services, and Cross Practice stakeholders to drive and lead successful development of solutions to achieve our customer’s stated objectives. The Head of Cloud Presales is responsible for ensuring the entire Cloud Presales organization is successfully able to position, scope, and support delivery across a broad portfolio of digital transformation services engagements that help customers meet business velocity objectives leveraging regional solutions team consisting of Cloud Native and public cloud focused solution architects.

Solution areas include, but are not limited to, cloud native solutions, public cloud solutions, DevOps/SRE patterns and practices, Infrastructure as Code (IaC), and Continuous Integration/Continuous Delivery (CI/CD). Additionally, the Head of Cloud Presales is responsible for the day-to-day management of their team of Cloud Presales Managers. This includes leadership in driving towards finance, operations, growth, scale, coworker performance management, and internal and external client quarterly and yearly targets.

Key Areas of Responsibility

• Manage all Cloud & Cloud Native presales functions for CDW within Digital Velocity. This includes overseeing and mentoring a national team of Cloud Presales Managers, each managing a regional cloud solution architecture team
• Oversee the support, process, and enablement needs of Cloud Native and Cloud Focused Solution Architects, dedicated to providing strategic, transformative solutions for our customers focusing on cloud and cloud native technologies
• Partner with leaders across the Cloud & Cloud Native business unit including professional services, portfolio & strategy, and practice operations in order to align the presales organization to priority solutions for sales positioning, enablement motions, consultancy delivery, and process improvement.
• Be a proactive stakeholder in the definition of Digital Velocity’s Cloud & Cloud Native go-to-market across consumption resale, professional services, and managed services offerings.
• Define and prioritize initiatives across the Cloud presales regions in collaboration with the OCTO FCTO and Cloud Portfolio team to achieve quarterly and annual revenue goals
• Oversee the performance and delivery of team’s overall practice initiatives
• Attain revenue and gross profit growth targets within presales organization
• Provide leadership and support for business development, portfolio, and professional services teams within practice
• Accelerate the professional and technical development of coworkers through coaching and training, ensuring laser focus on achieving high client satisfaction
• Manage their team to provide the right level of skill and size to meet client demand while balancing utilization and profitability
• Ensure the entire DV Cloud Presales team builds and maintains strong relationships with key stakeholders within CDW including regional sales leadership, DV OCTO FCTO, BDMs, and other presales managers across the DV landscape
• Lead and manage team to finance, operations, client, and coworker targets
• Collaborate with chief architecture practice to develop strategy and services vision for assigned technology portfolios
• Stay informed on economic, competitive, and industry changes affecting practice and make recommendations as appropriate, adjusting skills among engineering teams across services
• Oversee regular cadences with Cloud Presales Managers on staffing plans and pipeline
• Performance manage Cloud Presales Managers on the revenue, gross profit, delivery, and technical development goals of themselves and their teams
• Client Responsibilities: Mentor Cloud Presales Managers to support the BDMs in client satisfaction/loyalty with CDW clients; proactively resolve business unit wide process or engagement issues, as necessary
• In partnership with the Head of Cloud Professional Services, act as the executive escalation point for resolution of issues pertaining to the business unit in presales or professional services delivery
• Define, influence and align to DV wide process and frameworks for the validation and approval of complex or cross-practice proposals for services engagements, and provide feedback to sales, professional services, portfolio, and operations stakeholders on improvement opportunities
• Ensure Cloud Presales Managers in each region align with and support appropriate BD, field sales, and
• In partnership with the GM of Cloud, establish role definitions and associated KPIs for the entire Cloud Presales practice
• In partnership with the GM of Cloud and the Digital Velocity BD stakeholders, establish SLAs and engagement processes for presales support
• In partnership with the GM of Cloud and the Head of Cloud Professional Services, establish delivery frameworks for presales delivered consulting delivery
• Faciliate alignment of presales managers and presales individuals with the Manager of Cloud Consulting Services
• Create individual technical and professional development plans with each team member
• Oversee framework for professional services delivery performance feedback to be executed by Cloud Presales Managers within their teams
• Attract, recruit, and retain the talent and skills needed to scale and grow the practice
• Monitor and resolve coworker satisfaction; ensure best practices are incorporated in the delivery of all presales’ organizational responsibilities
• Collaborate with Cloud & Cloud Native business unit leaders on new hires, development plans, internal projects, coworker compensation, and bonuses
• Understand and align with the Cloud Portfolio and Professional services teams to ensure overall practice strategy is implemented throughout project lifecycle
• Review team financials and project performance to ensure profitability of projects

Education and/or Skill-Set Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Business Management or related field or equivalent experience
• Seven years of related consulting or IT technical selling and/or services delivery experience
• Four years of managerial experience overseeing technical sales and/or services delivery teams in a Cloud and/or Cloud Native function

Required Qualifications

• Previous consulting management experience
• Ability to lead teams and scale virtual, geographically diverse teams
• Effective oral and written communication skills
• Ability to identify and creatively resolve client, project, and people issues
• Proven negotiation skills
• Knowledge of and experience with Google Cloud, AWS, Microsoft Azure, cloud native patterns, app modernization, automation solutions, etc.
• Ability to lead and manage to ensure attainment of critical results
• Ability to act as a trusted advisor in a strategic opportunity
• Ability to travel up to 10%
• Ability to articulate complex technical solutions into executive-level conversations

Preferred Qualifications

• 4 – 8 years management and/or solution architecture experience
• Strong project and risk management skills
• Strong IT background in cloud technologies and DevOps solutions
• Strong presentation skills