Sales Engineer

About StrongestLayer

StrongestLayer is an AI-native email security company that uses large language models to detect and neutralize email-borne threats. Unlike legacy secure email gateways, StrongestLayer deploys via API integration, sitting post-delivery alongside or in place of traditional gateway solutions to catch the sophisticated phishing, business email compromise, and social engineering attacks that rule-based and ML-based systems miss.

The Role

This is StrongestLayer’s first dedicated Sales Engineer hire. You will own the technical win across the entire pipeline from first discovery call through proof-of-concept to close. You will partner directly with Account Executives to translate StrongestLayer’s AI-driven detection capabilities into the prospect’s language: their threat landscape, their infrastructure constraints, their compliance obligations, and their budget reality.

Because you are the first SE, you are also building the function. You will define the demo playbook, design the POC methodology, create competitive battle cards, and establish the technical selling motion that future SEs will follow. This is a builder role, not an operator role.

Responsibilities****Technical Sales Execution

• Own the technical win

  across all active opportunities, from initial demo through POC completion and technical close.

• Deliver compelling product demonstrations

  tailored to each prospect’s environment, translating StrongestLayer’s LLM-based detection into the prospect’s own pain points (wire transfer fraud, credential phishing, BEC, user-reported incidents).

• Design and execute proof-of-concept engagements

  with clearly defined success criteria, timelines, and stakeholder alignment — ensuring POCs are qualified before they are offered.

• Handle technical objections

  around API-based vs. gateway deployment, data residency, integration with existing security stacks (M365, Google Workspace, SIEM/SOAR), and LLM-specific concerns.

Discovery & Qualification Partnership

• Partner with AEs on technical discovery,

  capturing infrastructure details, current email security stack, renewal timelines, and technical decision-making process.

• Identify and engage technical decision-makers

  (CISOs, Directors of IT Security, Security Architects) alongside the AE’s relationship with economic buyers.

• Assess technical fit early

  and flag deals where the prospect’s environment or requirements create POC risk.

Competitive Intelligence

• Serve as the team’s subject matter expert

  on competitive architectures — particularly Proofpoint, Mimecast, Abnormal Security, and Microsoft Defender.

• Develop and maintain competitive battle cards,

  displacement playbooks, and objection-handling guides grounded in real field experience.

• Debrief lost deals

  to extract competitive intelligence and feed product roadmap priorities.

Sales Engineering Infrastructure

• Build the demo environment and playbook

  from scratch, creating repeatable, vertical-specific demo flows for education, healthcare, financial services, and government.

• Define the POC methodology:

  scoping templates, success criteria frameworks, reporting cadences, and executive summary formats.

• Create technical enablement materials

  (architecture diagrams, integration guides, security whitepapers) for both internal use and prospect-facing delivery.

• Contribute to ROI and risk quantification tools

  that help AEs build financial justification for budget holders.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Serve as the voice of the field to Product and Engineering,

  channeling prospect feedback, feature requests, and competitive gaps into actionable input.

• Partner with Marketing

  on technical content, webinars, and event support.

• Support post-sale handoff

  to ensure smooth onboarding and long-term customer success.

Qualifications
Required

• 5+ years in a pre-sales or sales engineering role within cybersecurity, with at least 2 years focused on email security or messaging security.
• Direct experience with one or more of: Proofpoint, Mimecast, Abnormal Security, Microsoft Defender for Office 365, or comparable email security platforms.
• Demonstrated ability to run technical evaluations and proof-of-concept engagements from scoping through close.
• Strong understanding of email authentication protocols (SPF, DKIM, DMARC), email delivery architectures (gateway vs. API/journaling), and common threat vectors (BEC, credential phishing, supply chain compromise).
• Experience selling into at least two of the following verticals: financial services, healthcare, K-12 education, government, or legal.
• Comfort operating in an early-stage environment where you are building processes, not inheriting them.
• Excellent communication skills — ability to present to both technical practitioners and C-level executives.

Preferred

• Familiarity with API-based email security deployment models and cloud-native architectures (AWS, Azure).
• Experience with AI/ML-based detection technologies and ability to articulate how LLMs differ from rule-based or heuristic approaches.
• Working knowledge of risk quantification frameworks (FAIR methodology or similar) and ability to translate technical outcomes into financial impact.
• Experience navigating public sector procurement (NASPO, GSA Schedule, cooperative purchasing vehicles).
• Infrastructure-as-code fluency (Terraform, CloudFormation) is a plus.

Compensation & Benefits

Competitive base salary plus variable compensation tied to team revenue attainment. Equity participation as an early employee. Benefits include health, dental, and vision insurance; flexible PTO; remote-first work environment.

StrongestLayer is an equal opportunity employer. We evaluate candidates based on qualifications, merit, and business needs without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, veteran status, or any other protected characteristic.