Head of Technical Sales

Job description

About Shelf:

There is no AI Strategy without a Data Strategy. Getting GenAI to work is mission critical for most companies but 90% of AI projects haven’t deployed. Why? Poor data quality - it is the #1 obstacle companies have in getting GenAI projects into production.

We’ve helped some of the best brands like Amazon, Mayo Clinic, AmFam, and Nespresso solve their data issues and deploy their AI strategy with Day 1 ROI.

Simply put, Shelf unlocks AI readiness. We provide the core infrastructure that enables GenAI to be deployed at scale. We help companies deliver more accurate GenAI answers by eliminating bad data in documents and files before they go into an LLM and create bad answers.

Shelf is partnered withMicrosoft, Salesforce, Snowflake, Databricks, OpenAI, and other big tech players who are bringing GenAI to the enterprise.

Our mission is to empower humanity with better answers everywhere.

Job Description:

The Head of Technical Sales will serve as Shelf’s technical expert in strategic customer engagements, bridging the gap between our cutting-edge AI platform and enterprise technical decision-makers. This role combines strong technical expertise with excellent communication skills to articulate complex technical concepts and design solutions that address enterprise data quality and GenAI deployment challenges.

What makes this role special is having a strategic influence on both our product direction and go-to-market strategy. Unlike traditional solutions roles, you’ll have direct access to our executive team and significant autonomy to shape how we engage with enterprise customers. This is a rare opportunity to join at a pivotal growth stage where your expertise will directly impact our trajectory from Series C to IPO.

As a key technical resource, you’ll partner with our sales team to engage with Enterprise Architects, Data Science Leaders, IT executives, and technical evaluators. You’ll demonstrate how Shelf’s platform solves critical data quality issues that prevent GenAI initiatives from reaching production, while building trust and credibility with technical stakeholders.

This is a hands-on technical role reporting to the CRO and directly liaising with the CTO, focused on solution design and technical advisory rather than team management. You’ll work closely with sales, product, and engineering teams to ensure customer requirements are understood and addressed while representing our platform’s capabilities effectively.

The ideal candidate has solid technical experience with enterprise data and AI systems, combined with the ability to translate technical concepts into business value.

This role offers exceptional growth potential for ambitious technologists who envision shaping the future of enterprise AI adoption.

If you’re ready to take your technical leadership to the next level and make a transformative impact, we invite you to apply for this exciting opportunity.

What We’re Looking For:

• Strategic Vision with entrepreneurial mindset - someone who thinks like an owner and sees beyond individual deals to market opportunities
• B2B Enterprise Software Background with deep expertise in AI, data platforms, and enterprise architecture
• Technical Excellence combined with exceptional communication skills - someone who can whiteboard complex architectures - and explain them to non-technical stakeholders
• Customer-Obsessed Problem Solver who thrives on understanding customer challenges and architecting innovative solutions
• High Energy & Initiative - willing to do whatever it takes to ensure customer success and drive technical wins
• Collaborative Mindset with ability to work seamlessly across sales, product, and engineering teams
• Hands-On Approach - comfortable diving deep into technical details while maintaining strategic perspective
• Continuous Learner who stays ahead of rapidly evolving AI and data technology landscape
• Results-Driven with track record of directly influencing revenue through technical leadership

Key Responsibilities

Technical Sales Leadership

• Lead the sales team as the technical expert in customer meetings and demonstrations
• Lead technical discovery sessions to understand customer data architecture, GenAI initiatives, and integration requirements
• Design and present technical solutions that demonstrate how Shelf addresses specific customer challenges
• Lead the sales team throughout complex enterprise sales cycles with technical expertise

Architect Solutions & Consult on Implementations

• Create architecture designs leveraging Shelf’s platform to meet customer-specific requirements
• Deliver technical presentations and product demonstrations tailored to customer use cases
• Guide customers through technical evaluations and proof-of-concepts
• Provide hands-on support during POCs to ensure successful outcomes

Customer Engagement

• Build relationships with technical stakeholders including IT leaders, architects, and data scientists
• Translate technical capabilities into business value for both technical and business audiences
• Conduct technical workshops to explore customer requirements and potential solutions
• Act as liaison between customers and Shelf’s product/engineering teams for technical feedback

Qualifications

• 7-10+ years of experience in technical pre-sales, enterprise architecture, solutions engineering, or similar roles
• Hands-on experience with enterprise data platforms and cloud architectures
• Deep understanding of AI technologies and their applications in enterprise solutions
• Experience working with enterprise customers on technical solutions
• Strong presentation and communication skills
• Ability to explain complex technical concepts to various audiences
• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or related field
• Experience with platforms like Snowflake, Databricks, AWS/Azure/GCP is a plus

Success Metrics

To be successful in this role, you should aim to achieve the following within the first 12 months:

• Enable CTO and senior engineering team to focus on product by handling 80%+ of technical customer interactions until contract negotiation stage
• Support technical wins in 15+ enterprise accounts, contributing to $3M+ in new ARR
• Create a POV playbook that consistently demonstrates measurable value within 30-day engagements
• Develop 5+ reusable demo environments and solution templates that accelerate future sales cycles
• Build trusted technical relationships with 20+ senior technical stakeholders in target accounts

What We Offer:

• Competitive starting salary: $225K base + variable
• Generous equity grant in the form of company stock options
• Open PTO
• Comprehensive health and wellness packages

Location:

Remote with flexibility to meet onsite in Stamford, CT as needed

Why Shelf:

• GenAI will be at least a $18 Trillion market by 2032 and Shelf is a core infrastructure that enables GenAI to be deployed at scale
• We are blazing the path for the future of Artificial Intelligence globally.
• Our Leadership Team has deep AI domain expertise and enterprise SaaS background to execute this plan
• We love our customers and our customers love us. Ask a Shelf customer why, and they’ll tell you it’s because of our innovative capabilities, rock-solid reliability, they truly enjoy working with our people, but most of all – it’s the improvements they see in their business KPIs.
• We have raised over $60 million in funding and our investors include; Insight Partners, Tiger Global, Base10, and others
• We have high velocity growth powered by the most innovative product in our category
• We now have over 100 employees in multiple U.S. states and European countries, and we have ambitious hiring goals over the next few quarters.

Our Values:

Quality - We’re united by our focus on world‑class Quality. Quality in all things – starting with everything that leaves your desk. Everything you touch – every email, report, campaign, and piece of code – should be outstanding. Your work product should blow people away. Having people look at what you’ve done and say, “Wow.” That’s the standard here. Remember that how you do anything is how you do everything. Focus on craftsmanship—your ability to make things better.

Momentum- for us means that you should know that the things you’re responsible for are moving forward. When you look around and see something that’s stalled, get it moving again. We pride ourselves on “ball movement.” When your boss or team leaves you with something, they should return to see measurable progress. Small, continuous movement is our recipe for success. Constantly look for how to make the work around you move forward. We want you to initiate solutions, ideas, and progress. Don’t wait for it to come to you—reach out and create movement. All the time.

Accountability - We expect every team member to feel that they are accountable for more than anyone might normally expect. Each of us should feel real responsibility for things even at the edge of our control. We consistently share and align on expectations, give each other open and respectful feedback, and use those two drivers to ensure that every agreement we make with one another is clear and complete.

Hard Work - We’re here to do something difficult together. We care intensely about the mission and we expect that from our teammates. That care means that we work hard here. Hard work comes with long hours, extra effort…and real opportunity at Shelf. Your passion for creating and sustaining output is a part of our DNA. Support each other, cheer each other on, drive the mission forward. Great teams sustain intense effort together to win.

Learning Agility - We’re innovating in one of the fastest‑moving spaces in history at a time of accelerating global change. That’s incredibly exciting and requires each of us to commit fully to learning each and every day so that we can be the best at what we do. None of us know everything. All of us can learn anything. Staying open and constantly curious is a key success driver at Shelf. It also requires humility. We prize people who are consistently humble and open to making mistakes and growing from them. Recognize also that learning itself is a skill…we need you to be really good at it. Keep dialing in your own understanding about how you learn best and push yourself to keep growing.

Adapt and Thrive - Overcoming challenges lives deep in our DNA. We have a proud history of understanding and living the reality that obstacles are our opportunities…they’re the key to our success. Change is a constant in our business and fighting change is counterproductive. We need you to be good at being uncomfortable and understand that discomfort is the key to growth. Cultivate your own ability to adapt and know that struggling well is something you’ll share with every team you’re on at Shelf. Our company stories are about thriving through real difficulty…together.

Win Together - We win or lose as a team. Always. Everything you do here is connected to the rest of the organization. Part of our shared team environment demands full honesty…real candor and directness with one another. We expect you to constantly be thinking about how to support your teammates and the company, always acting in service to our shared mission and what’s best for the organization as a whole.