Senior and leading · Presales and solutions · also called Director of Solutions Engineering, VP Presales

Head of Presales or Solutions

Leads the solutions team and sets its standards for demos, proofs of concept, security reviews and AI claims.

No credential gets anyone a job or a salary, and ASTRA does not promise either. An ASTRA credential attests that the holder passed an examination; it does not certify performance in a job. External programmes and certifications are listed because people in these roles commonly hold them. ASTRA is not affiliated with their issuers and does not endorse them; names are trademarks of their owners. Details change, so check the issuer's site before you buy. Last reviewed 12 October 2026.

What you do

• Hire and develop solutions engineers
• Set proof-of-concept and evaluation standards
• Own the security-review and questionnaire process
• Decide how AI capabilities are described in proposals

What you need to be able to show

• Architecture leadership across cloud, data and AI
• Assurance evidence and its limits
• Governance of claims
• Capacity planning for the team

Where ASTRA fits

Credentials people in this role commonly hold

• AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate · Amazon Web Services · Paid exam
  Designing workloads on AWS. Technical; common in presales and solutions roles.
• Microsoft Certified: Azure Solutions Architect Expert · Microsoft · Paid exam
  Designing solutions on Azure. Technical; presales and architecture roles.
• Google Cloud Professional Cloud Architect · Google Cloud · Paid exam
  Designing solutions on Google Cloud. Technical; presales and architecture roles.
• CompTIA Security+ · CompTIA · Paid exam
  Core security concepts, threats, controls and operations. Technical; vendor-neutral.
• Sales leadership and management programmes · Business schools, vendors' partner executive programmes, employers · Cost varies
  Forecasting, coaching, hiring and territory design. Track record matters more than any certificate at this stage.