Full-Time

Director – Sales

Federal AFN Operation

Posted on 10/3/2025

Cisco

Cisco

10,001+ employees

Networking hardware, security software, collaboration services

No salary listed

Washington, DC, USA

In Person

US Top Secret Clearance Required

Category
Sales & Account Management (1)
Required Skills
Sales
Requirements
  • 15+ years of experience in strategic sales and execution within the technology industry
  • 10+ years leading high-performing sales organizations
  • Expertise in Federal & Military Sales with 10+ years of experience leading complex sales teams within the Federal Government and military
  • Proven track record of leading sales organizations to exceed growth targets and capture significant market share and competitive advantage
  • Active Security Clearance is required for this position
Responsibilities
  • Drive the strategic growth and success of the Defense business by leading a high-performing sales organization across the Air Force, Navy, and Marines
  • Empower a team of Regional Managers and Account Executives to deliver tailored, critical solutions
  • Collaborate closely with cross-functional teams—including Engineering, Customer Experience, Product Specialists, and Executive Leadership
  • Shape and implement comprehensive sales strategies
  • Navigate complex sales processes and forge lasting partnerships with senior military and government leaders
  • Demonstrate deep understanding of federal funding mechanisms, market trends, and competitive landscapes
  • Accelerate business growth, expand Cisco’s influence, and deliver long-term value for customers and the company
Desired Qualifications
  • Master's Degree (e.g., MBA) or equivalent
  • Ability to strategically advance comprehensive vision by collaborating closely with senior leaders across various internal functions
  • Talent Development & Team Leadership: Inspirational leader who excels at motivating, developing, and retaining top sales talent
  • Defense Community Presence: Successfully represented organizations at prominent industry events
  • Balanced Strategic Focus: Excels at balancing immediate business demands with long-term strategic objectives
  • Thought Leadership & Influence: Visionary leader, skilled in providing thought leadership and strategic direction
  • Executive Presence & Mentorship: Strong executive presence, combining polished communication skills with political savvy
  • Effective Communication: Skilled in persuasive communication, presenting complex solutions in a compelling, simplified manner

Cisco designs and sells networking hardware, software, and services that help organizations connect, protect, and manage data. Its products include networking gear, security solutions, cloud services, and collaboration tools like Webex to support hybrid work. Cisco differentiates itself with a broad, integrated stack—routing and switching, security, cloud, and collaboration—that works together at scale. Its goal is to help customers securely connect people, devices, and applications, enabling reliable communication and digital transformation across enterprises of all sizes.

Company Size

10,001+

Company Stage

IPO

Headquarters

San Jose, California

Founded

1984

Simplify Jobs

Simplify's Take

What believers are saying

  • Networking revenues surged 21% YoY to $8.29 billion in Q2 FY2026 from AI infrastructure demand.
  • Six consecutive quarters of 20%+ networking orders driven by Wi-Fi 7 and campus upgrades.
  • JPMorgan raised price target to $96 citing AI growth in servers, switches, and optics.

What critics are saying

  • Arista erodes Cisco's share in high-performance Ethernet switches for AI data centers within 12 months.
  • HPE's Juniper acquisition undercuts Cisco's SASE offerings, accelerating defections in 6 months.
  • BWG Global downgrade reveals weakening demand for Cisco's legacy campus gear in 3 months.

What makes Cisco unique

  • Cisco's $28 billion Splunk acquisition integrates data analytics with ThousandEyes for $31.4 billion ARR.
  • Cisco open-sourced AI-BOM tool tracking 150 models to combat shadow AI security risks.
  • Cisco's Universal Quantum Switch connects incompatible quantum systems at room temperature with <4% degradation.

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Benefits

Paid Vacation

Hybrid Work Options

Flexible Work Hours

Professional Development Budget

Company News

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Apr 10th, 2026
Cisco acquires Galileo to strengthen Splunk's AI observability capabilities

Cisco is acquiring Galileo, an AI observability specialist, to strengthen Splunk's position in the AI monitoring market. The deal is expected to close in July 2026. Galileo provides tools to evaluate AI output quality, detect errors before they reach users, and improve AI agent behaviour in production. The platform monitors hallucinations, bias, security risks and cost metrics across the entire agent development lifecycle, offering real-time observability for multi-agent systems. The acquisition will integrate Galileo into Splunk Observability Cloud, expanding existing AI agent monitoring capabilities. Galileo offers over 20 evaluation metrics including hallucination detection and supports major AI platforms like OpenAI, Anthropic, Azure OpenAI and AWS Bedrock. Cisco and Galileo previously collaborated on Cisco's AGNTCY initiative. Both companies will operate independently until the deal closes.

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Cisco buys Galileo to strengthen Splunk’s agentic monitoring capabilities

Cisco buys Galileo to strengthen Splunk's agentic monitoring capabilities - SiliconANGLE

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Cisco joins Project Glasswing with Anthropic and Amazon to detect software vulnerabilities using AI

Cisco Systems has joined Project Glasswing alongside Anthropic, Amazon and other tech companies to detect software vulnerabilities using advanced AI models. The collaboration includes early access to Anthropic's Claude Mythos Preview and has already identified security flaws missed by existing tools. The initiative aligns with Cisco's strategy of integrating AI-driven security capabilities into its networking and collaboration products. For investors, the partnership positions Cisco to address software risks for large enterprise and government customers as AI reshapes cybersecurity. Cisco shares currently trade at $83.17, approximately 7% below the analyst target of $89.04. The company has raised $295 million to date, with recent 30-day returns of roughly 7%. Success depends on real-world effectiveness and maintaining customer trust in AI-based defences.

Yahoo Finance
Apr 6th, 2026
Cisco appoints former Deloitte executive Pete Shimer to board of directors

Cisco has appointed Pete Shimer to its board of directors, effective immediately. Shimer will serve on the board's Audit Committee. Shimer brings 40 years of executive leadership experience from Deloitte, where he held C-suite positions including chief operating officer, chief financial officer and interim chief executive officer. His expertise spans enterprise transformation, strategic planning and digital innovation. He currently serves on the boards of Alaska Airlines, Korn Ferry and Synopsys, and is executive chair of the Cancer Artificial Intelligence Alliance. Shimer holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Accounting from the University of Washington. Cisco chair and CEO Chuck Robbins said Shimer's experience leading global organisations and guiding digital transformation brings valuable insight as Cisco delivers infrastructure for AI innovation.

Yahoo Finance
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Cisco beats Q4 revenue estimates with $15.35B, stock falls 7.6% amid sector downturn

Applied Digital topped Q4 IT services and tech stocks, while the sector overall saw revenues beat analyst estimates by 5.3%. The 20 tracked companies reported strong results, though share prices averaged a 10.4% decline following earnings announcements. Cisco reported revenues of $15.35 billion, up 9.7% year on year, exceeding analyst expectations by 1.5%. The networking equipment maker delivered a strong quarter with revenue guidance surpassing forecasts. CEO Chuck Robbins highlighted the company's portfolio strength and its role in connecting and protecting customers. Despite positive results, Cisco's stock fell 7.6% post-earnings to $79.08. The IT services sector faces growth opportunities from cloud adoption and AI-driven automation, whilst navigating challenges including competition from cloud-native providers and supply chain constraints for networking hardware.

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