Technical Specialist at Microsoft

Technical Specialist

The Microsoft Technology Center (MTC) is a state-of-the-art facility that combines experience and expertise to help enterprise and strategic customers solve their business challenges through innovative
cross workload technologies. We accelerate our customers’ digital transformation by capitalizing on the changing needs of our customers and the new business opportunities of tomorrow. The MTC in
Johannesburg is looking for individuals that can help customers move to agile, cloud-based solutions powered by Azure.

Responsibilities
As an MTC Technical Architect, you will:Inspire CxOs and Technical and Business Decision Makers on what they could achieve by using the right set of innovative technology

• You will lead technical briefings, workshops, architecture design sessions, proofs, and pilots to explain, demonstrate, and prove to our largest customers the capabilities of Microsoft's products and services, and how we can make their businesses more successful.
• You will lead to clear technical, competitive and security blockers to accelerate Azure Infrastructure sales and customer usage.
• Explain complex or abstract technical concepts of the platform in a business value context with proven whiteboard capabilities.
• You will help win over the technical decision at customers for sales opportunities and usage scenarios, through tailoring your message, bringing ideas to customers, engaging with them to show our technology differentiation, and guiding them in decision making.
• You will work with partners and others at Microsoft, as well as use our core tools, social connection tools, and AI driven data to extend your reach and the reach of your team, focusing on satisfying important customer needs and influence strategic deals through the delivery of high-impact MTC experiences
• Explain, demonstrate, and prove in-depth what Microsoft’s products and services can do and how to enable and manage them for our strategic and enterprise customers.
• Help address outstanding technical issues and to drive the customer’s solution and the sales opportunity toward a successful conclusion.
• Influence technical decision within opportunities to accelerate the win of complex solutions on our Platform integrated in the environment of the customer
• Translate the customer’s business requirements into differentiating solutions based on Microsoft offerings.
• Create customer journeys considering customer requirements and customer industry.
• Establish and maintain strong relationships with virtual account team members and other MTC’s, serving as the subject-matter expert (SME) within these teams and assigned geography. You will stay sharp and share your knowledge.
• We encourage all employees to continuously maintain and enhance their technical, sales, and competitive readiness.
• Your knowledge will be enhanced and shared by participating in internal Microsoft technical communities and in the broader industry through events, blogs, whitepapers, and articles for your domain.
• You will be recognized for exceeding standards of technical and competitive readiness and sharing your knowledge both within Microsoft and among our partners and customers.
• You will be a Subject Matter Expert for Azure Infrastructure.

Technical Solution Leader

• Infrastructure architect. The expertise and ability to integrate complex elements and customerrequirements into innovative technical architectures space integrating with the customer’sarchitecture
• Cloud Trust. High-level expertise in sophisticated identity, authentication, security, privacy, and compliance requirements, and experience integrating them into cloud and hybrid solutions
• Technical breadth. Enterprise customer level experience with cloud, hybrid infrastructures and adjacent technologies, architecture designs, migrations, and industry standards. Maintain technical excellence with emerging technologies, including competitive technologies.
• Technical depth. Domain authority, having enterprise customer level technical experience with design, configuration and implementation of infrastructure as well as competitive product knowledge
• Community Builder. Understand capabilities of, strategically be able to work with, influence cohesively, build and grow, Microsoft (or similar) customers, members of the Microsoft (or similar) sales, services, and marketing organizations, internal and external communities and Microsoft (or similar) partners
• Excellent Communicator. Strong listening, negotiation, organizational, presentation, deep technical product demo, writing, and verbal communication skills
• Market Maker. Strong leadership to influence key technical decision makers, influencers, industry decision makers and or boards
• Consultative Technical Selling and Challenger mindset. Validated experience in consultative technical selling approach, including bringing innovative ideas to customers problems and being customer focused to ensure customer satisfaction.
• Performer. Highly driven passionate person who consistently exceeds goals and expectations
• Growth Mindset. Experience and passion for learning (technical and soft skills); implementing practices from others; trying, failing and learning from that; sharing practices and knowledge for others’ benefit
• Teaming. Ability to collaborate with extended, diverse internal and external teams. Thrive in challenging environments while encouraging inclusiveness within teams. Inspire others through your passion for customers and technology.

Qualifications

• Experience. 8+ years of related experience in technical pre-sales and/or technical consulting roles preferred and/ or technical consutant roles including ability to design Tech Architectures.
• Proven experience engaging with senior level executives
• Be a proven self-starter who takes ownership of opportunities; works independently, manages multiple simultaneous projects, and deals well with ambiguity and last-minute changes
• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or related field preferred.
• Certification in one or more of the following technologies required (two or more certifications preferred): Azure and/or AWS, plus Linux, Windows, Vmware
• Certification in information security preferred

Microsoft is an equal opportunity employer. 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 any other characteristic protected by applicable laws, regulations and ordinances.