Palo Alto Networks | Hiring | Systems Engineer Federal | BigDataKB.com | 08-04-22

Our Mission

At Palo Alto Networks® everything starts and ends with our mission:

Being the cybersecurity partner of choice, protecting our digital way of life.

We have the vision of a world where each day is safer and more secure than the one before. These aren’t easy goals to accomplish – but we’re not here for easy. We’re here for better. We are a company built on the foundation of challenging and disrupting the way things are done, and we’re looking for innovators who are as committed to shaping the future of cybersecurity as we are.

We’re changing the nature of work. Palo Alto Networks is evolving to meet the needs of our employees now and in the future through FLEXWORK, our approach to how we work. From benefits to learning, location to leadership, we’ve rethought and recreated every aspect of the employee experience at Palo Alto Networks. And because it FLEXes around each individual employee based on their individual choices, employees are empowered to push boundaries and help us all evolve, together.

Your Career

The Federal Systems Engineer, is a client-focused, technical sales professional who develops trusted advisor relationships with clients to help them achieve desired business outcomes. The SE works in a consultative fashion with clients, sales executives, specialist organizations, internal support teams, and channel partners. You will play a key role in navigating complex accounts in order to generate and deliver winning proposals, contract bids, statements of work, and RFI/RFP responses. It is business critical to meet and exceed sales quotas by building and implementing strategic account plans targeting enterprise-wide deployments of the Palo Alto Networks Next-Generation Security Platform. The SE is viewed as an expert in information security with focused expertise in one or more security domains or technologies, and possesses the business acumen necessary to apply this knowledge achieving client desired outcomes.

Your Impact

• Establish yourself as a trusted advisor to prospects and clients working with your sales executives, specialist teams, and the local channel partners within your territory
• Identify and document specific problems with prospective and current clients which can be solved through the deployment of integrated solutions
• Architect and propose validated solutions which address the identified cybersecurity problems in each environment
• Demonstrate a client-first attitude to ensure ongoing , client satisfaction, support, and adoption
• Apply continuous self-improvement and learning to maintain technical leadership of applicable technologies (Endpoint EDR/XDR, SOAR, Cloud Security Posture Management, Cloud Workload Protection Platform, Threat Intelligence, Advanced Threat Mitigation, etc.)
• Understand and effectively differentiate against our top competitors
• Act as the client advocate internally for any issues and/or product capabilities that require technical assistance and follow up with the client until the issue is resolved

Your Experience

• 4+ years of experience as a successful pre-sales SE, systems integrator, or equivalent experience
• BS in Engineering, Computer Science or equivalent
• Clearance preferred
• Working knowledge of Palo Alto Networks products, with a focus on Strata product lines, supplemented with Prisma and/or Cortex product lines, and comparative technologies
• Ability to achieve and maintain required Palo Alto Networks certifications; additional industry certifications (SANS, CISSP, CCIE, etc) are a plus
• Must be able to successfully pass a background check and/or security clearance, if required by a client (note: position does not currently have a specific clearance requirement identified by a DD-254).
• Regional and occasional overnight travel is required (typically < 50%)
• Pre-sales experience and results in information security and/or cloud computing addressing the needs of US federal, state, local and/or tribal governments
• Strong leadership and self motivation skills with the ability to work autonomously, part of a small team, and/or matrixed in a large organization with multiple team members
• Exceptional written and oral communication skills; role requires the ability to understand desired client business outcomes, formulate a solution, and successfully influence a buying decision
• Strong working knowledge of the cyber threat landscape; attack lifecycle/kill chain, advanced threats, hacking Tools, Tactics, and Procedures, Indicators of Compromise, strengths and limitations of traditional security technologies, forensics/Incident Response, security orchestration and automation, etc.
• Strong analytical skills to evaluate complex multivariate problems and find a systematic approach to gain a quick resolution, often under duress
• Mature and effective time-management skills
• Familiarity working with Channel partners and understanding of a channel-centric market approach
• Excellent knowledge and experience in a variety of IT technologies and security solutions. SE responsibilities and client interests vary; as such, the successful candidate must demonstrate success in two or more security domains and technology areas, and be able to develop a working knowledge of others:

  • Design, deployment, and/or operation or traditional security technology, firewalls, anti-virus, intrusion detection/prevention (IDS/IPS), and associated routing & switching/networking skills (required)

  • Endpoint Protection Platform (EPP), Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR), Extended Detection & Response (XDR)

  • Cloud services, virtualization technologies, Cloud Workload Protection Platform (CWPP), Cloud Security Posture Management (CSPM), Cloud Access Security Broker (CASB)

  • Security operations; Incident Response; Security Orchestration, Automation and Response (SOAR)

  • Threat Intelligence, cyber professional services

  • Governance, Risk Management, and Compliance (GRC) topics relevant to government

Additional Information

The Team

As part of our Systems Engineering team, you’ll support the sales team with technical expertise and guidance when establishing trust with key clients. You won’t find someone at Palo Alto Networks that isn’t committed to your success – with everyone pitching in to assist when it comes to solutions selling, learning, and development. As a member of our systems engineer team, you are driven by a solutions-focused sales environment and find fulfillment in working with clients to resolve incredible complex cyberthreats.

Our Commitment

We’re trailblazers that dream big, take risks, and challenge cybersecurity’s status quo. It’s simple: we can’t accomplish our mission without diverse teams innovating, together.

We are committed to providing reasonable accommodations for all qualified individuals with a disability. If you require assistance or accommodation due to a disability or special need, please contact us at [email protected].

Palo Alto Networks is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity in our workplace, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran status, race, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or other legally protected characteristics.

Disclosure required by sb19-085 (8-5-20) of the minimum compensation (includes on-target earnings = base + on target incentives for sales roles) for this role to be located in the state of Colorado. If hired in Colorado, this position starts at $175,000/yr. Depending on the position offered, restricted stock units and incentive or bonus pay may be provided as part of this compensation package. Additional benefits may be found here.

Covid-19 Vaccination Information for Palo Alto Networks Jobs

• Vaccine requirements and disclosure obligations vary by country.
• Unless applicable law requires otherwise, you must be vaccinated for COVID or qualify for a reasonable accommodation if:
  • The job requires accessing a company worksite
  • The job requires in-person customer contact and the customer has implemented such requirements
  • You choose to access a Palo Alto Networks worksite
• If you have questions about the vaccine requirements of this particular position based on your location or job requirements, please inquire with the recruiter.

Covid-19 Vaccination Information for Palo Alto Networks Jobs

• Vaccine requirements and disclosure obligations vary by country.
• Unless applicable law requires otherwise, you must be vaccinated for COVID or qualify for a reasonable accommodation if:
  • The job requires accessing a company worksite
  • The job requires in-person customer contact and the customer has implemented such requirements
  • You choose to access a Palo Alto Networks worksite
• If you have questions about the vaccine requirements of this particular position based on your location or job requirements, please inquire with the recruiter.