Job Title:

ACS Cloud Service Solution Architect

Background:

Advanced Customer Services (ACS) is a business unit within Oracle’s Customer Service organisation that establishes long-term service relationships with Oracle's largest customers.  ACS Service Solution Architects are focused on supporting ACS’s continued growth in leading edge, large scale and complex services for Oracle Cloud and on-premises engagements, primarily cloud related.

Role Profile:

ACS Service Solution Architects have a proven track record in successful delivery of IT services for mission critical environments in major organisations.  In addition to a specialisation in the area of Cloud, they possess extensive, broad-based expertise across large scale project-based IT design- deploy-migrate-manage type services engagements and also expertise in the area of mission critical production operations and support.  They have proven experience in industry standard project management and service management best practices. 

Each individual Cloud Service Solution Architect has deep expertise in specific services & technology areas, and acts as the subject-matter lead in those areas within the team.  This particular opportunity requires an individual with a proven track record of success in architecting and winning complex, ground-breaking managed services based engagements.

All ACS Cloud Service Solution Architects have extremely strong customer facing presentation and interaction skills, are capable of engaging at senior management and C-level, articulating service and technology solutions in terms of business value and risk.

SCOPE:

• Location: Lagos, Nigeria. Supporting Sales in Nigeria and Ghana, and also in Benin, Kenya and Ethiopia when necessary.
• Customer facing
• Has no direct reports, but often leads and/or guides the activities of virtual teams to build service solution propositions for customers
• Works with multiple customers across all sectors/countries in the ACS region, in collaboration with Oracle ACS and cross line of business (xLoB) Sales teams
• Works on services related opportunities across the entire lifecycle of all Oracle Cloud and on-premises products, covering Oracle services requirements across design, deployment, migration, operations/management and support
• Works with ACS Sales and xLoB teams to:
  • Identify, build and win cloud related leading edge/large scale services opportunities
  • Build and articulate compelling ACS service solutions that address identified customer business needs
  • Ensure the risks and costs associated with each ACS service proposition are fully understood and addressed
  • Provide subject matter expert input into contract drafting and negotiation
• Assist ACS in achievement of its growth targets
• Works xLoB in individual opportunities and specific initiatives

 RESPONSBILITIES:

• To identify, foster and define Oracle ACS services solutions for specific customer opportunities and assist in the sale alongside the sales representative and broader ACS team
• Work with the customer, ACS management and the xLoB account sales teams to:
  • Understand the customer’s business and IT strategic requirements and identify ACS opportunities to assist the customer achieve its strategic goals
  • Assess customer business and technical needs, and define ACS service requirements
  • Build and lead virtual teams associated with these large scale opportunities
• Effectively communicate with customer to CxO level
• Build customer confidence and commitment through achieving a trusted advisor relationship
• Work proactively to build relationships with other Oracle lines of business and collaborate (internally and externally) to ensure effective service solution development and design
• Drive compelling proposals, presentations, and other customer and internal communications and discussions during opportunities
• Effectively articulate the details of the service components in a proposed customer solution
• Co-ordinate and drive service solution costing & pricing associated with specific opportunities and ensure that service solutions proposed are appropriately shaped to meet the commercial and contracting requirement of Oracle and the customer
• Apply consultative selling techniques
• Use strong understanding of the services competitive marketplace to anticipate and plan for competitive threats
• Transfer knowledge to other groups such as; account teams, delivery and across ACS presales
• Produce appropriate and timely opportunity status reporting information

REQUIRED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE:

This is a senior role.  ACS Service Solution Architects typically have 10-15+ years of experience in relevant IT services, across a wide range of technologies and customer sectors.

A typical experience profile for this role would include most of the following:

• A track record in developing successful propositions for the provision of transformational and operational services for mission critical environments in major organisations.  
• Extensive, broad-based expertise across large scale project-based IT design/deploy/migrate type services engagements and also in the area of mission critical production operations and support.  They have proven experience in industry standard project delivery and service management best practice.  
• Significant direct experience in services roles with external IT services providers
• Broad understanding of typical enterprise applications, IT infrastructures, public and on-premises cloud, including but not limited to Oracle technologies
• Significant customer facing presentation and interaction experience in consulting and trusted advisor roles with C-level executives in relation to IT services articulating service and technology solutions in terms of business value and risk.
• Extensive industry knowledge and expertise in cloud adoption and cloud services
• Experience in IT project and programme management, including major IT transformation, migration and solution deployment projects
• IT service management, including managed services/outsourcing
• Construction of TCO analyses and pricing for complex service offers
• Sales and complex deal negotiation
• Architecting, implementing and delivering complex service solutions for large scale, mission critical IT environments
• Consulting and trusted-advisor roles to C-level within major customer organisations in relation to IT services
• Proven ability to construct and deliver compelling presentations and propositions to C-level and large audiences
• Full capability to engage effectively in English language.