Azure Solution Architect- AD level

About the job

Deal Shaper – Azure Cloud & Azure Infrastructure Solutions Architect

Join a team of passionate thought leaders in a dynamic and collaborative environment Cognizant Microsoft Business Group's Pre-sales team is hiring now and we're looking for our next Azure Cloud Pre-Sales Architect to join us. The role has an immediate start and would be on a permanent contract.

The Microsoft Business Group is a cloud-first, full-service Microsoft partner committed to delivering innovative technology solutions that solve human challenges. We are compelled by our core values to drive transformational results for clients across all company sizes, geographies and industries. The Cognizant Microsoft Business Group team delivers full lifecycle solutions—from project inception and planning, through deployment to ongoing support and maintenance.

We are committed to diversity, inclusion and belonging and welcome applicants from all backgrounds.

What impact will you have in this role?

The ideal candidate will be an ambitious and enthusiastic consultant who will nurture needs and deliver Azure Cloud solutions for existing and prospective clients. Working with the Business Analysts, sales professionals' practice and client teams to design, build, oversee, and implement solutions using Microsoft Azure. You should be experienced in articulating architectural designs in written form, with the ability to explain complex concepts in clear concise form that can be understood by Business stakeholders.

As a Deal Shaper, you will lead and manage opportunities with the help of an established team of Pre-Sales architects & consultants focused on creating compelling prepositions of our services and solutions to clients and new logo prospects. You will own the region's largest & strategic pursuits. This includes working in multi team's environment and own solution, capability, and gaining customer's confidence on partnerships. While in pursuits you will work with vertical leaders and will be supported by well-defined functions like pre-sales, finance, legal, sales etc.

Responsibilities: Contributes to pre-sales & business development activities (e.g., maps customer problems to offerings/ capabilities)

• Assist sales team in consultative selling approach and strategic positioning of Cognizant's value proposition
• Lead core business development and pre-sales activities and own the narrative to the customer
• Partner with customers to explore options and better define their needs
• Identify customer problems and map it back to offerings and capabilities
• Support initial portion of engagement as part of Day 1 team & then transition to delivery
• Enable sales growth in the region through identified pursuits and accounts. Key performance criteria being total contract value (TCV), revenues and margin.
• Design compelling, innovative and competitive client propositions for technology outsourcing and specifically in Azure Cloud, Azure Infrastructure, Security, and related Copilots
• Lead identified pursuit lifecycle fully, and the assigned teams during the early stage bid process, ensuring leadership across qualification, solution, presentations, reviews & sign-off, and ultimately to deal closure.
• Outline the pursuit sales and solution strategy to provide direction for solution contributors and subject matter experts (e.g. through developing a solution blueprint and transformation storyboard)
• Lead customer meetings, presentations and negotiations during the deal life cycle
• Review the design and development of end-to-end technical solutions covering service offerings including hybrid cloud, Azure public cloud, DevOps, server migrations, app modernization, datacenter, networks and cross-functional services
• Build tight working relationship with offshore pre-sales, delivery and professional services teams
• Contribute to written RFI and RFP responses and face-to-face customer interactions including solution presentations
• Review internal & external cost inputs (including against industry benchmarks) to ensure solution is optimized from financial perspective
• Contribute to drafting or review of customer SoWs
• Provide thought leadership in solutions approaches, educate sales teams on solution offerings, bid process and changes in the market.
• Collaborate with technology partners to support the reskilling solution teams on the latest market trends.
• Be seen as a senior practice leader for the Azure Cloud, Azure Infrastructure unit overall, contribute to offering development, go to market strategy and solutions, operational and sales excellence and thought leadership

Skills & Experience

• Minimum 10 years' experience selling digital services.
• Minimum 8 years' experience selling similar Service Offerings – Azure Cloud, Infrastructure services.
• Must have deep knowledge of complexities of large deals and have "quarterbacked" multiple deals involving multiple solution towers in excess of USD 10M.
• Must possess demonstrable ability to handle intricacies of large deals from pricing models to solutioning to closing the deal.
• Demonstrated yearly quota achievement in complex selling environments utilizing a solution-selling model.
• Industry Certifications in Azure Cloud, Azure Infrastructure & Security domains