Customer Solutions Design Specialist (Cisco) (New Bailey, Manchester, United Kingdom)

Embark on a Leadership Journey in Advanced Network and Voice Solutions at BT

Are you a seasoned technical professional with a passion for leading impactful projects and shaping the future of complex voice, network, wireless, and security solutions? This role presents an exceptional opportunity to join a dynamic team at BT, a company at the forefront of technological innovation and connectivity. If you thrive on translating high-level designs into tangible, robust solutions and possess a natural talent for guiding technical teams, this position could be your next significant career advancement.

Why This Opportunity Matters:

This role is integral to BT's mission of delivering cutting-edge solutions across a diverse range of leading vendors, including Cisco, Fortinet, Juniper, Aruba, and Microsoft. You'll be instrumental in leveraging advanced technologies such as SD-WAN, SD-A, ISE, ACI, Webex, MS Teams, and Next-Gen Firewalls. The core of this position involves taking complex designs from inception through to meticulous implementation and testing, ensuring seamless handover to support teams. You won't just be an implementer; you'll be a crucial leader, mentoring Technical Designers and driving projects to successful completion with an unwavering focus on customer satisfaction.

What You'll Be Doing - Key Responsibilities:

• Solution Design & Translation: Expertly capture detailed customer technical requirements and transform them into comprehensive solution designs, adhering to established methodologies.
• Technical Leadership: Act as a primary point of contact (SPOC), managing and directing the technical aspects of delivery, and determining optimal customer solutions.
• Product & Service Evolution: Oversee the review and validation of both new developments and existing products/services, ensuring full integration and considering their impact on the broader product roadmap.
• Capability Enhancement: Drive continuous improvement in design and delivery capabilities for end-to-end technical solutions.
• Customer Engagement & Delivery: Manage customer solution design engagements, including the creation of statements of work and the coordination of third-party deliverables.
• Strategic Influence: Foster strong senior-level customer relationships by providing specialist service design expertise and influencing their strategic and operational decisions.
• Process Optimization: Champion consistency in architecture and technical processes to reduce costs and boost productivity.
• Migration & Implementation: Lead customer migration planning and execution, ensuring smooth transitions.
• Issue Resolution: Tackle complex solution and service issues, spearheading root cause analysis, troubleshooting, and escalation processes.
• Risk Management: Proactively identify potential risks and implement effective controls and mitigations, ensuring compliance with industry and company policies.
• Thought Leadership: Deliver expertise in complex bids and contribute to the strategic approach for customer solution design.

What We're Looking For - Essential Skills & Experience:

This role demands a blend of technical mastery and strong interpersonal skills. Candidates should possess:

• Exceptional Stakeholder Management: The ability to lead, motivate, and guide teams, especially through challenging projects.
• Collaborative Spirit: A proactive team player who actively supports colleagues and shares knowledge to benefit current and future projects.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Proven ability to work effectively with Pre-Sales, Project Management, and Support teams.
• Post-Sale Acumen: A solid understanding of post-sale customer requirements, providing technical support and accountability throughout the implementation lifecycle, with demonstrable experience in Low-Level Design (LLD).
• Customer Relationship Building: The capability to develop trusted customer relationships and deliver an outstanding customer experience.
• Risk Ownership: Taking ownership and accountability for deployment risks and implementing relevant mitigations from initial handover through implementation.
• Expertise in Key Technologies (Essential):
• Cisco Catalyst (DNAC): Proven ability to configure, deploy, and troubleshoot both wired and wireless solutions. Experience with endpoint profiling is desirable.
• Cisco ISE: In-depth knowledge of ISE versions 2.7 and 3.2, with strong configuration and troubleshooting capabilities.
• Wi-Fi Deployments: Detailed knowledge of Wi-Fi deployments using Ekahau for predictive and APOS assessments.
• Configuration Deployment: Proven ability to deploy configurations based on designs.
• Low-Level Design (LLD): Essential experience in developing detailed low-level designs.
• Firewall Experience (Desirable): Experience in firewall design, implementation, and configuration is a plus.

Key Considerations for Your Career Path:

• Hybrid Working: This role embraces a "3 together, 2 wherever" working model. You will be required to attend your nearest BT office three days a week, with two flexible working days. Please ensure you are able to meet this office attendance requirement.
• UK-Wide Location: While the role is UK-wide, the mandatory office attendance means proximity to a BT office is crucial.
• Technical Growth: This is an ideal position for individuals looking to deepen their expertise in a wide array of leading vendor technologies and advanced networking concepts.
• Leadership Development: You'll gain invaluable experience in leading technical teams, mentoring colleagues, and driving complex projects to successful conclusions.
• Customer Impact: Play a direct role in shaping and delivering solutions that are critical to BT's customers, influencing their operational success.
• Career Progression: BT offers world-class training and development opportunities, fostering continuous learning and career advancement within a leading global telecommunications company.

Discover the BT Difference - Benefits & Culture:

At BT, we are dedicated to connecting people and building the future. Beyond an attractive salary and competitive benefits package, you'll join an ambitious organisation that values:

• Financial Well-being: Attractive salary, 10% on-target annual bonus, BT Pension scheme (minimum 5% employee contribution, 10% BT contribution), and X4 Salary Life Assurance.
• Work-Life Balance: 25 days annual leave (increasing with service), generous Equal Family Leave (18 weeks at full pay), and 2 weeks paid carer’s leave.
• Health & Wellness: Enhanced women’s health support, 24/7 private virtual GP appointments for UK colleagues.
• Flexible Benefits: A huge range including Cycle to Work, Healthcare, Season Ticket Loans, and Electric Vehicle Salary Sacrifice schemes.
• Personal Development: World-class training and development opportunities, with the option to join BT Shares Saving schemes.
• Employee Perks: Discounted broadband, mobile, TV packages, and access to hundreds of retail discounts.
• Inclusive Culture: BT is committed to building a diverse, inclusive, and authentic workplace where everyone can thrive. If you don't meet every single requirement but are excited about the role, please still apply – your unique skills and experiences could be exactly what we need.

This is more than just a job; it's an opportunity to be part of a transformative journey, shaping the technological landscape and driving innovation at one of the UK's most significant infrastructure companies. We encourage candidates who are passionate about technology, leadership, and making a real impact to apply.