Director - Solution Engineering

About Zeta

Zeta is a leading global next-generation banking technology firm providing modern, extensible, and compliant platforms that empower financial institutions and fintechs to launch comprehensive banking products like cards, loans, and deposits. Their cloud-native, fully API-driven infrastructure supports various capabilities including processing, issuing, lending, core banking, fraud detection, loyalty programs, digital banking, and AI-driven agentic solutions.

With over 1700 personnel worldwide—70% in tech roles across the US, Middle East, and Asia—Zeta boasts one of the largest expert banking technology teams. Their customers have issued over 30 million cards on Zeta's platform, with forecasts expecting this to double. Valued most recently at $2 billion, their investors include Softbank, Mastercard, and Optum.

Role Overview

This leadership role entails direct, hands-on responsibility for Zeta's sales engineering function within the US banking solutions sector. The Director will guide technical discovery processes within banks with complex legacy systems, architect tailored solutions, and defend designs through reviews by enterprise architecture, security, and procurement teams. Staying involved until deal closure is key.

Key Responsibilities

• Acquire deep, practical knowledge of Zeta's full platform stack including credit/debit/prepaid processing, core banking, deposits, lending, payments, fraud prevention, loyalty, digital banking, and cutting-edge AI features.
• Gain expertise comparable to Product and Engineering teams, utilizing APIs, modules, low-code extensions, events, data models, and functional features firsthand as a customer would.
• Master deployment environments, security, data residency, system resilience, and address infrastructure concerns raised by client teams.
• Conduct in-depth technical discovery within large banking estates to identify the true problems needing solutions beyond the initial descriptions.
• Design integrated solutions involving multiple Zeta platforms, define scope, and sequence project phases effectively.
• Craft on-the-spot solution demonstrations during client interactions, ready to present live.
• Develop target and integration architectures ensuring coexistence and strategic migration with clients’ existing core, ledger, data, and channel systems.
• Create reusable reference architectures to expedite future deals.
• Maintain and enhance demo environments that reflect actual bank workflows, beyond just feature showpieces.
• Design and execute proofs of concept, competitive bake-offs, and tabletop exercises aligned with customer-defined criteria.
• Lead responses to technical RFPs/RFIs, security questionnaires, penetration testing reviews, audit reports, resilience planning, and vendor assessments.
• Create clear architecture diagrams and visuals to facilitate stakeholder understanding.
• Manage interactions through enterprise architecture boards, security reviews, and procurement processes.
• Act as the key technical liaison with banking service providers, assisting in evaluation, integration, and launch phases.
• Empower partner sales engineers and solution consultants to independently position and demonstrate Zeta’s offerings, ensuring ongoing support as products evolve.
• Continuously analyze competitors including incumbent providers, modernized legacy systems, in-house solutions, and integrators; positioning Zeta strategically by understanding buyer perspectives.
• Collaborate with marketing teams to produce thought leadership content such as articles, whitepapers, videos, case studies, webinars, and participate in industry events and analyst engagements.
• Feed market feedback and competitive insights into product development, influencing the roadmap based on actual client requirements and objections.

Performance Metrics

• Develop and own a comprehensive library of reference architectures and reusable solutions for common banking challenges.
• Ensure solutions survive rigorous enterprise architecture and security evaluations, maintaining reusable objection responses.
• Influence product direction by contributing feedback linked to concrete deals.
• Increase the number of qualified institutions entering technical evaluations, expanding Zeta’s presence in competitive RFPs and shortlists.
• Win technical proofs of concept and competitive evaluations.
• Contribute directly to closing significant contracts, including at least one seven-figure Annual Recurring Revenue deal, while maintaining a prioritized technically-qualified sales pipeline.

Qualifications and Experience

• Over 12 years of combined technical and commercial experience encompassing software development, engineering, product management, pre-sales, and customer success roles—ideally within banking technology firms.
• Proven success selling technology to US banks or credit unions, with demonstrated ability to navigate enterprise architecture, security, and procurement approval processes.
• Broad knowledge of banking technology stacks including core banking, deposits, payments, cards, lending, and digital channels, with in-depth hands-on expertise in at least two areas.
• Experience in core or platform migrations and coexistence strategies within active banking environments is highly advantageous.
• Essential: degree in computer science or engineering.

Skills

• Architectural design of cloud-native banking platforms with strong command over APIs, event-driven systems, and data models.
• Judicious target state architecture design and phased migration planning.
• Ability to design coexistence and integration solutions managing parallel systems and phased decommissioning.
• Agile on-the-fly solution formulation during client discussions.
• Sales cycle management aptitude understanding long evaluation timelines and shifting sponsors.
• Effective communication tailored to both technical and non-technical audiences.
• Public speaking confidence for customer presentations, conferences, and analyst briefings.
• Self-driven leadership and ownership in formative, rapidly evolving environments.

Equal Opportunity

Zeta is committed to equal employment opportunities and cultivating diversity and inclusion within the workforce. Applicants from all backgrounds, cultures, and communities are encouraged to apply. The company may use AI-assisted tools during hiring to support recruitment decisions, but final judgments rest with human evaluators. Candidates may inquire about data processing practices upon request.