Principal Sales Engineer, Federal Civilian

About the role

AppGate secures the most valuable assets of federal agencies with its high-performance Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA) solution. AppGate ZTNA is the only direct-routed ZTNA solution that enforces least-privilege access across distributed, hybrid and multi-cloud environments, helping agencies meet mandates such as the CISA Zero Trust Maturity Model, OMB Memorandum M-22-09 and Trusted Internet Connections (TIC) 3.0. AppGate is already operational across multiple U.S. military branches, including the Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force and Space Force, and supports a growing number of federal civilian agencies.

About The Role

This is a senior, principal-level pre-sales role leading the technical engagement across AppGate's federal civilian accounts. You will work directly with agency stakeholders to understand their requirements and design Zero Trust solutions that fit their mission, security and compliance needs. Much of that work means aligning AppGate to the frameworks agencies are measured against, such as the CISA Zero Trust Maturity Model (ZTMM), TIC 3.0, Continuous Diagnostics and Mitigation (CDM), OMB M-22-09 and FedRAMP. The role is built as a path to a Field CTO position for the federal civilian business.

Key Responsibilities

• Technical engagement and solution design
  Lead the technical engagement on assigned federal civilian opportunities, from discovery through proof of concept and close.
  Run discovery and requirements sessions, and document the technical and business needs behind each agency's solution.

• Serve as technical lead on RFP and proposal responses
  Prepare and deliver technical presentations and product demonstrations for customers.

• Support account teams on strategic and tactical account planning, and position AppGate against other approaches in the market

• Technical leadership and strategy
  Act as the team's technical authority on Zero Trust, mapping AppGate ZTNA to the CISA Zero Trust Maturity Model, TIC 3.0 and CDM
  Mentor sales engineers and set the technical standards, demo environments and proof-of-concept playbooks the team works from
  Advises agency CIOs, CISOs and program leaders on their Zero Trust modernization roadmaps
  Works with AppGate product and engineering teams to bring federal civilian requirements, including FedRAMP, into the roadmap

• Train internal teams, customers and partners on AppGate products, and carry the voice of the customer back to product and development

• Represent AppGate at conferences, briefings and industry events as the role grows into a Field CTO

Required Qualifications

• Federal civilian domain
  Knowledge of the mandates and frameworks agencies are measured against, including the CISA Zero Trust Maturity Model, TIC 3.0, CDM, OMB M-22-09, Executive Order 14028, FISMA and NIST SP 800-207 and 800-53

• Familiarity with federal procurement vehicles and bid processes, such as GSA Multiple Award Schedule, NASA SEWP, NITAAC CIO-SP3 and CIO-SP4 and CDM DEFEND

• Understanding of FedRAMP authorization, High Value Asset protection and the EINSTEIN national cybersecurity program

• Technical Skills
  Hands-on experience designing, deploying or selling solutions on major public cloud platforms such as AWS, Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud and IBM Cloud
  Network security experience across firewalls, next-generation firewalls, network access control and VPNs, including the move from legacy VPN to ZTNA and SASE
  Authentication and identity, including Active Directory, LDAP, RADIUS, Kerberos and SAML, along with federal identity standards such as PIV cards, derived credentials and ICAM
  Cryptography standards such as AES, PKI and RSA, including FIPS 140-2 and 140-3 validated cryptography
  Common virtualization platforms such as VMware vSphere, Microsoft Hyper-V, Citrix and Red Hat
  Scripting experience, including RESTful APIs and JavaScript
  Familiarity with IT service management frameworks such as ITIL or ITSM

• Experience and Education
  Ten or more years in pre-sales engineering or solutions architecture, with significant time supporting federal civilian customers
  Strong written and verbal communication skills, and the ability to build rapport with both engineers and executives
  Proficiency with Salesforce or a similar CRM and with Microsoft Office, including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook and Visio
  A bachelor's degree in engineering, information technology or a related field, or equivalent experience

• Preferred Qualifications
  Ability to obtain and maintain a federal Public Trust or Secret clearance, including agency suitability requirements such as DHS Entrance on Duty
  Direct experience with one or more target agencies, such as the IRS, Treasury, the State Department, CBP or FEMABroader experience across the Department of Homeland Security, including CISA, TSA, USCIS, ICE, the Coast Guard or the Secret Service
  Experience with HHS and its agencies (CMS, NIH, CDC and FDA), the VA, or large departments such as Agriculture, Interior, Energy, Transportation or Commerce
  State, local and education (SLED) experience is a plus, including StateRAMP, the CJIS Security Policy, MS-ISAC, whole-of-state strategies and the State and Local Cybersecurity Grant Program
  Existing relationships with agency technical decision-makers and with systems integrators and channel partners
  Relevant certifications, such as CISSP, an AWS or Azure cloud credential, or a recognized Zero Trust certification
  A track record of thought leadership, such as conference speaking, published technical content or standards work

Compensation

Base salary range: $200,000 - $250,000
Bonus / commission: 50% variable
Travel: 50% travel