Sales Manager - Cloud Providers & Strategic Partnerships

Adtran is seeking a highly motivated and results-driven Sales Executive to lead efforts in expanding existing and winning new customers in the hyperscale and cloud sector. The Sales Director will drive sales of Optical Networking and synchronization equipment to meet the demands of this high-growth industry.

Responsibilities:

• Lead the sales efforts necessary to grow existing hyperscale customers and acquire new accounts within hyperscale and cloud services sector
• Identify and pursue new sales opportunities in emerging areas, with a focus on companies scaling optical bandwidth due market demands and AI-driven networking infrastructure build outs
• Build and nurture long-term relationships with key decision-makers, including CTOs, network architects, and other technical stakeholders, ensuring a deep understanding of their needs and challenges
• Develop and execute a tailored sales strategy to position our optical networking equipment and services as critical enablers for the client’s growth and technology infrastructure needs
• Leverage the market movement away from large hyperscale players to differentiate our offering
• Partner with internal Product and Business Development teams to present customized networking solutions that meet the specific business objectives and technical requirements of this market segment
• Drive complex negotiations, manage sales cycles, and close deals that result in new business for the company
• Work closely with the marketing, product, and technical teams to ensure a unified approach and the delivery of best-in-class solutions and services
• Accurately forecast sales activities and opportunities within Salesforce.com

Requirements:

• Minimum of 8+ years of experience in sales or business development, with a proven track record in selling Optical networking equipment
• An understanding of L2 and L3 product applications plus understanding of data centers
• A good understanding of the hyperscale, cloud services, and data center markets
• A broad understanding of AI compute, edge computing, and disaggregated data center designs
• Strong ability to identify, pursue, and close new business opportunities, with experience navigating long sales cycles and managing complex sales processes
• A solid understanding of optical networking solutions, AI-driven compute infrastructures, and edge networking technologies is essential to effectively communicate the value of our offerings
• Excellent communication, interpersonal, and networking skills to effectively engage with senior executives and technical leaders within target accounts
• Strong track record of meeting or exceeding sales targets and KPIs
• Highly proactive with the ability to work independently in a remote environment while managing nationwide accounts