Lead Sales Engineer

SSL is hiring its founding Sales Engineer to build the technical presales function from the ground up. This is a high-ownership role for a technologist who can stand alone in front of enterprise prospects today and grow into leading the SE team tomorrow. You will own the technical side of the deal cycle — demonstrations, proof-of-concept evaluations, RFP/RFI responses, and solution design across SSL 's certificate and PKI portfolio — while establishing the playbooks, demo environments, and POC frameworks that future hires will run on. You will work shoulder-to-shoulder with Sales, Product, Engineering, and founders, and your technical judgment will directly shape how SSL wins against larger, PE-backed competitors. As the function scales, you will have the opportunity to step into a player-coach and then leadership role over the SE team you helped define.What you will doOwn technical presales end to end as the first dedicated SE, partnering directly with sales reps and leadership to advance and close enterprise opportunitiesServe as the authoritative technical voice on SSL's solutions: TLS/SSL, code signing, document signing, S/MIME, hosted and private PKI, and cloud signing (eSigner)Design and deliver compelling product demonstrations tailored to each prospect's environment and objectivesArchitect and run proof-of-concept evaluations, including ACME and API-based certificate automation, and own technical closeLead the functional and technical elements of RFP/RFI responses, and build reusable response assets the team can scale withTranslate customer requirements and compliance drivers into solution designs, and act as the trusted technical advisor through the sales cycleEstablish the SE function's foundation: demo infrastructure, POC playbooks, discovery frameworks, and technical enablement for the broader sales teamCapture structured product feedback from the field and partner with Product Management to influence the roadmapAs the team grows, help recruit, mentor, and lead additional Sales Engineers — setting the technical bar and operating model for the functionTravel as needed to customer sites and industry forums/conferences to support departmental objectivesWhat you will have5–7+ years in sales engineering, solutions architecture, or a senior technical role within cybersecurity, PKI, or a related domainDemonstrated ability to own technical presales autonomously and carry enterprise deals without an established support structureDeep, hands-on knowledge of public key infrastructure, X.509 certificates, TLS, and the full certificate lifecycleFamiliarity with the CA/Browser Forum baseline requirements and the public-trust ecosystem (root programs, audits, compliance) — a strong differentiatorBachelor's degree or higher in computer science, cybersecurity, or a related field, or equivalent practical experienceStrong command of IT environments across Windows, Linux, and macOS, including web servers (Apache, Nginx, IIS) and certificate deploymentWorking knowledge of cloud platforms (AWS, Azure, GCP) and experience with APIs and automation protocols such as ACMEExcellent written and verbal communication, with the executive presence to lead technical conversations from practitioner to C-levelA builder's mindset: comfortable with ambiguity, biased toward creating structure where none existsLeadership potential — interest and aptitude for mentoring and eventually leading a growing SE teamCustomer-first orientation with strong ownership and accountability