Cool jobs that use both technical and marketing skills!

I've blogged before that many of our groups really value marketers with strong technical backgrounds/understanding. So here are some hot jobs that I think people with both marketing and technical skills would find super interesting. These positions sit in our Platform Strategy and Partner Group. This group is responsible for the strategy around our Global ISV and SI relationships as well as other elements of our server ecosystem (if there’s anyone out there from PSPG reading this that can articulate this a little better, feel free to jump in here). Here are some remarks posted on our corporate site from Sanjay Parthasarathy, who runs this organization. I’ve supported this group in the past, but right now am putting these out here on behalf of friend and fellow-recruiter Eric.

 Let me know if you feel like you are a good fit for one of these roles (or if you know of someone that could be a fit). I’d be happy to get your info over to Eric! And Eric, if you want to post a comment with any more details on the group or the job specs, go for it!

TECHNICAL DIPLOMACY-Platform Strategy & Partner Group - Redmond, WA
As a key executive responsible for managing the relationship with Microsoft’s largest competitors, the successful candidate will diplomatically work with strategic competitive accounts to ensure compatibly and interoperability of our products. With the ability to remain productive and focused in a fast paced, highly collaborative and empowered environment, this executive will be a proven business leader who can identify and develop complex business opportunities that transform relationships within our industry, using creative thinking to design and mental focus to execute innovate competitive partnering strategies.
Primary Responsibilities
· Identify, develop and maintain diplomatic relationships with key competitive accounts to ensure competitive applications provide world class support for Microsoft platforms and can also quickly adopt new Microsoft platform technologies at the earliest practical stage.
· Represent Microsoft’s interest’s at the most senior executive levels in the market. Become a role model to your peers at Microsoft and in the industry by demonstrating vision, leadership, integrity and superior business and personal ethics.
· Understand key market trends and developments, identifying strategic implications for the company and industry. Present information, analysis and recommendations to all levels, including executive management, within the company.
· Provide leadership and manage virtual teams of internal and external business & technical team members.
· Develop business models and technical requirements in conjunction with the competitive accounts and relevant teams at Microsoft.
· Work with legal and operations teams to develop, review and execute legal instruments including term sheets, letters of intent, memorandums of understanding, master contracts, service and license agreements.
· Work closely with the product teams to drive technical issues and requirements, enabling competitive accounts to optimize their products for Microsoft platforms.
· Manage key relationships and contacts to maintain the highest level of satisfaction of our common customers.
Experience and Qualifications:
Required:
· Senior & seasoned executive, with over fifteen years industry experience, with minimum of five years in executive roles.
· Proven business and market development experience with a broad understanding of marketing, sales, services, research and engineering disciplines.
· Prior P&L responsibilities including driving strategy, market analysis, offering and budgetary oversight.
· Deep analytical skills enabling comprehension and development of complex technical, business, and legal issues, topics, and plans.
· Become a leader and role model that is comfortable working as an individual contributor and / or as a member of a team, across diverse internal and external organizations.
· Methodical approach with polished organizational skills to manage multiple opportunities and projects concurrently.
· Knowledge of market trends, industry participants, new technologies & business models.
· Desire and ability to understand and relate product technology, strategy and direction.
· Candidate must be motivated and motivating, passionate, charismatic, creative, flexible, have unquestionable ethics and integrity, and willing to take calculated risks.
· Excellent oral/written communication and listening skills.
· Moderate (>20% of work year) domestic and international travel.
· Four year college degree.
Preferred
· Exposure to contract development, and business law.
· Experience of complex negotiations and account / relationship management.
· Grounded with a technical background and general understanding of our industry

Technical Evangelist-Platform Strategy & Partner Group - Redmond, WA

Work with the largest and best known ISVs and Enterprises world-wide to help evangelize .NET technologies and especially Visual Studio 2005. You will work with a wide variety of Microsoft .NET technologies and partners to enable partners to build and deploy solutions and services based on .NET.

We are looking for someone who is passionate about .NET who can influence developers and executives alike and can establish and promote thought leadership both inside and outside the company, while driving cross-group collaboration by influencing decision makers. In order to achieve these goals, your skills must include strong business acumen, as well as strong written and verbal communication skills. You will also be responsible to leverage and support the WW subsidiaries to scale the evangelism efforts and to successfully support the programmatic offerings for enterprises and ISV partners to drive results.

As you engage with a select number of key partners, you will also be responsible for developing and preparing the messaging and collateral that supports your assigned technologies. The collateral will consist of demos, PowerPoint decks (both business and technical), as well as concise messaging in the form of an “elevator pitch”.

You will also be in charge of developer labs, where you’re organizational and program-management skills bring together partners with the product team. In addition, you will gather product feedback and work with product team leadership to make certain what Microsoft builds reflects real-world needs and input.

Requirements/Qualifications
The ideal candidate will be expected to demonstrate following competencies:

Technology Expertise:
.NET Fx, Windows Server, 64bit, C++/C#, Security a must
Anticipates competitor evolution and broad technology trends, applies deep technology knowledge in structured and unstructured customer interactions and comes across as indispensable expert. Demonstrated hands-on experience with one or more Microsoft languages is required. Desirable additional experience includes 8-10 years in software development, or work experience that provides you with an understanding of the needs of software developers and the developer marketplace. Background in computer languages is a plus.

Business Expertise
Able to translate technical details into a business value proposition, and deliver that proposition in business language to business decision makers. A business degree is highly desirable with excellent written and verbal communications skills. The ability to travel to meet customers partners as well as participate in technical workshops and forums is required.

Pioneer
Engages others to accomplish challenging assignments against seemingly impossible odds while always seeking the next big challenge. Will display a dogged and determined spirit. Should be able to effortlessly adjust leadership style to meet the demands and requirements of different groups successfully.

Passion
Will be required to give inspiring, persuasive and passionate presentations to large and small audiences to create excitement around the Microsoft .NET Platform. Demonstrates an acute ability to balance an impressive “stage presence” with the need to carefully listen and personalize the message to connect with individuals from various backgrounds and perspectives.

Conversion
Develops and uses a wide variety of subtle strategies to influence or persuade executives both internally and externally. Has the demonstrable ability to help executives/BDMs see direct quantifiable links between their strategies and metrics (e.g., ROI, expense reduction, growth) and MSFT solutions