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Ciena is seeking a highly skilled Competitive Intelligence Specialist to join our team. The successful candidate will focus on Automation Software and Network Management, providing insightful analysis on competitors, customers, industry trends, market conditions, technologies, and vendor-specific product and service offerings.

This role, Advisor, Competitive Intelligence, will lead Ciena's competitive efforts on network automation software. It involves competitive intelligence gathering, analysis, distribution, and content management for business decision making. Successful candidates will possess deep technical knowledge of software automation concepts, products, and architectures including (but not limited to) the following:

• Multi-domain Service Orchestration, Service Assurance (including the impact of machine learning (ML)), Artificial Intelligence (AI), Network Inventory, Domain Controllers, Software Defined Networking (SDN), network and service lifecycle management, Operations Support Systems (OSS), Business Support Systems (BSS), etc.
• Additional knowledge is also highly valued in the areas of Optical Networking, OTN Switching, and Routing & Switching - i.e. the infrastructure that requires software automation.
• Work experience in any of the following roles will be valued: Software Engineering, Sales Engineering, Product Line Management (PLM), Product Marketing, Service Provider Network Planning, Industry Analyst.
• This is both an industry- and technology-focused marketing role. It serves a cross-functional internal audience, that includes: sales, sales engineering, marketing, product line management (PLM), strategy teams, CTO teams, and executive leadership. The role will require collaboration and active participation across organizational boundaries company-wide and the ability to build strong professional networks.

Responsibilities will include:

• Conducting comprehensive competitive analysis of software automation and network management systems, identifying key market players, their strategies, strengths, weaknesses, and competitive threats.
• Providing timely, effective, and readily consumable competitive intelligence content that can be easily disseminated, packaged, and distributed to key stakeholders through a variety of means such as reports, presentations, webinars, and other means
• Monitoring competitor activities, including product launches, marketing campaigns, partnerships, and M&A activities, and assessing their potential impact on Ciena's business
• Responding to inquiries for competitive analysis from Ciena's sales force, marketing, product line management, CTO, R&D and other key internal constituents based on a thorough knowledge of the competition and the industry
• Coordinating and organizing and disseminating large amounts of information with the ability to filter/arrange/assemble it in a coherent way
• Ensuring alignment between Ciena's product/technology-related value propositions and the competitive messaging generated to counter competitive threats
• Supporting key marketing launches and initiatives within Ciena, with competitive analysis aimed at making Ciena's messaging clear, differentiated, and effective
• Creating and delivering customized competitive intelligence products and tools as needed
• Staying abreast of technological advancements and emerging industry trends in this space, including representing Ciena at key industry and internal events

Required Skills:

• Excellent communications skills - written and verbal - to clearly articulate analysis
• Strong investigative skills to track down critical information
• Strong analytical skills with the ability to analyze, translate, and condense large data sets into actionable insights
• Strong technical knowledge in networking technologies
• Solid understanding of network equipment markets and their value chain, including typical network operator requirements
• Excellent project management and organizational skills
• Ability to build strong internal relationships and work collaboratively and effectively with cross-functional teams and internal customers on a global level
• Ability to translate complex technical concepts into concise competitive messaging suitable for execs, marketing programs teams, account managers, and sales engineers

Job Location:

The preference is for this position to be located remotely in North America (USA or Canada), although remote international locations may also be considered.

Required Experience:

• Bachelor's degree required, preferably in a technical discipline such as Electrical/Computer/Software Engineering
• Minimum of 10 years' experience in a technical, sales, business development, analyst, PLM, software development, or marketing role, preferably in telecom networking with a supplier or network operator
• MBA or similar business degree is a plus

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