Senior Sales Engineer

Job Description

At Zendesk, we are redefining the boundaries of Customer Experience (CX) and Employee Services (ES) through autonomous, Agentic AI and deep platform extensibility. As we build out the next generation of our global field organization, we are looking for builders, technical problem solvers, and curious minds who want to shape the future of enterprise automation.

We are seeking a Senior Sales Engineer (SE) to join our specialized engineering presales team. In this role, you will get your hands dirty writing code, configuring complex API integrations, and building production-ready proof-of-concepts (POCs) that bring our advanced AI capabilities to life. This is a role designed for an engineer who loves solving complex puzzles, working closely with modern web tech stacks, and translating technical possibilities into functional solutions for our customers.

What You’ll Be Doing:

• Develop Proof-of-Concepts (POCs): Own the technical execution and delivery of customized product demonstrations, technical sandboxes, and tailored prototypes that prove the power of Zendesk’s platform and AI capabilities.

• Build and Maintain API Integrations: Use your coding and scripting skills to connect Zendesk to complex client tech stacks, leveraging REST APIs, webhooks, middleware platforms, and modern cloud infrastructure.

• Own Technical Validation: Partner with account teams to confidently handle deep-dive technical validations, Security/Architecture questionnaires, and developer-to-developer technical reviews.

• Scale Internal Tooling: Collaborate with senior specialists to build, maintain, and document reusable code snippets, demo accelerators, and automation templates that elevate the speed of the entire field team.

• Continuous Technical Learning: Stay on the cutting edge of modern software trends, actively developing your skills in Large Language Models (LLMs), prompt engineering, and autonomous agent frameworks.

What You Bring (Required Qualifications):

• Education: Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Business Analytics, Economics, Statistics, or a related highly quantitative, technical discipline.

• Experience: 2 to 4 years of professional experience in a technical client-facing role (e.g., Solution Engineer, Sales Engineer, Technical Support Engineer, Implementation Consultant) or as a hands-on Software Developer looking to pivot into a strategic field role.

• Core Technical Skills: Hands-on experience or academic proficiency with modern programming languages and web technologies (e.g., JavaScript, Python, Node.js) and working with REST/SOAP APIs.

• Technical Curiosity: A strong foundational interest in AI technologies, including prompt engineering, LLMs, and autonomous software workflows.

• Travel Commitment: Ability and willingness to travel between 20% and 30% annually for on-site technical workshops, team collaboration, and client validation sessions.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Familiarity with enterprise software infrastructure, cloud ecosystems (AWS, GCP, or Azure), or modern contact center architectures.

• Experience presenting technical or architectural concepts clearly to both technical and non-technical audiences.

• A portfolio of personal projects, GitHub contributions, or technical blogs that demonstrates your passion for building.

Who You Are:

• A Continuous Learner: You love dissecting new technologies and frameworks; you don't wait for a training module to learn how something works under the hood.

• An Execution-Focused Builder: You thrive when given a complex technical problem, a blank IDE, and a deadline to build a working prototype.

• A Strong Communicator: You can sit across from a customer's developer, understand their stack, and explain technical solutions in a highly collaborative, approachable way.

#LI-MY1

The US annualized OTE (On Target Earnings) range for this position is $188,000.00-$282,000.00 with a pay mix of 80/20 (base/commission). This position may also be eligible for bonus, benefits, or related incentives. While this range reflects the minimum and maximum value for new hire salaries for the position across all US locations, the offer for the successful candidate for this position will be based on job related capabilities, applicable experience, and other factors such as work location. Please note that the compensation details listed in US role postings reflect the base salary only (or OTE for commissions based roles), and do not include bonus, benefits, or related incentives.

The intelligent heart of customer experience

Zendesk software was built to bring a sense of calm to the chaotic world of customer service. Today we power billions of conversations with brands you know and love.

Zendesk believes in offering our people a fulfilling and inclusive experience. Our hybrid way of working, enables us to purposefully come together in person, at one of our many Zendesk offices around the world, to connect, collaborate and learn whilst also giving our people the flexibility to work remotely for part of the week.

As part of our commitment to fairness and transparency, we inform all applicants that artificial intelligence (AI) or automated decision systems may be used to screen or evaluate applications for this position, in accordance with Company guidelines and applicable law.

Zendesk is an equal opportunity employer, and we’re proud of our ongoing efforts to foster global diversity, equity, & inclusion in the workplace. Individuals seeking employment and employees at Zendesk are considered without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, age, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, marital status, medical condition, ancestry, disability, military or veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law. We are an AA/EEO/Veterans/Disabled employer. If you are based in the United States and would like more information about your EEO rights under the law, please click here.

Zendesk endeavors to make reasonable accommodations for applicants with disabilities and disabled veterans pursuant to applicable federal and state law. If you are an individual with a disability and require a reasonable accommodation to submit this application, complete any pre-employment testing, or otherwise participate in the employee selection process, please send an e-mail to [email protected] with your specific accommodation request.