Business Development Manager, Cisco Networking Academy

Job posting may be removed earlier if the position is filled or if a sufficient number of applications are received.

Location: Southern California preferred; West Coast

Business Development Manager, Cisco Networking Academy (NetAcad): Southern California

What You'll Do

Cisco Networking Academy (NetAcad) is a strategic global program within Cisco's Digital Impact Office. Through the Digital Impact Office, Cisco is the first organization to globally pair skilling with innovation, unlocking the full potential of digitization, from developing essential skills to deploying the technology needed to sustain innovation. By forging strategic partnerships and implementing innovative learning programs, Cisco through oanticipates the needs of tomorrow, ensuring our global community remains competitive and inclusive.

As a Business Development Manager based in Southern California, you will drive NetAcad business growth and expand the program's presence across a designated regional territory. Your primary objective will be to expand the Networking Academy Program, with a strong focus on increasing student participation as a key metric. In this regional role, you will execute business development strategy, cultivate new partnerships, pursue and grow accounts, and align NetAcad initiatives with local workforce, education, and public-sector priorities. This role requires strong partner-facing skills, a high degree of autonomy, and the ability to work effectively within Cisco's matrixed organization.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop, own, and execute the NetAcad business development strategy for the assigned territory, which will include but not limited to California.
• Expand the Cisco Networking Academy presence by recruiting new academy partners and deepening engagement with existing institutions.
• Build and manage strategic relationships with community colleges, universities, K-12 school districts, workforce development organizations, nonprofits, and public-sector stakeholders.
• Identify and pursue regional market opportunities aligned with workforce transformation, digital skills development, and economic growth initiatives.
• Lead activities related to LA28 (Los Angeles 2028 Olympics) focused on skilling, training, and expansion of the Networking Academy program in coordination with Cisco's involvement in the Games.
• Collaborate closely with Cisco's Sales, Public Sector, Partner, CSR, and Marketing teams to ensure coordinated regional execution.
• Lead partner engagement from initial discovery through onboarding and ongoing account management.
• Track and analyze key regional performance metrics (e.g., student participation, academy growth, learner reach, program adoption), providing regular reporting and actionable insights.
• Develop and implement a comprehensive regional event strategy aligned to growth objectives.
• Represent Cisco NetAcad at regional conferences, partner meetings, and industry events.
• Serve as the regional NetAcad subject-matter expert, clearly communicating program value, offerings, and impact to partners.
  

Who You Are

You are a results-driven business development professional who excels in partner-focused environments and works effectively within both direct and cross-functional teams. You are comfortable owning a regional territory, building relationships from the ground up, and translating strategy into measurable results. You are motivated by impact and growth and can balance autonomy with collaboration in a global organization.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent professional experience
• 7+ years of experience in business development, partner management, sales, or program leadership
• Demonstrated experience managing a regional territory or portfolio of partners/accounts
• Experience working with educational institutions, workforce organizations, public sector, or nonprofit partners
• Strong executive-level communication, presentation, and negotiation skills
• Ability to travel within the US as required
  

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with education technology (EdTech), workforce development, or digital skills programs
• Familiarity with networking, IT, cybersecurity, or cloud-related learning ecosystems
• Experience working with state or local government initiatives and public funding programs
• Experience operating in a matrixed, global organization
• MBA or equivalent advanced degree

At Cisco, we're revolutionizing how data and infrastructure connect and protect organizations in the AI era - and beyond. We've been innovating fearlessly for 40 years to create solutions that power how humans and technology work together across the physical and digital worlds. These solutions provide customers with unparalleled security, visibility, and insights across the entire digital footprint.

Fueled by the depth and breadth of our technology, we experiment and create meaningful solutions. Add to that our worldwide network of doers and experts, and you'll see that the opportunities to grow and build are limitless. We work as a team, collaborating with empathy to make really big things happen on a global scale. Because our solutions are everywhere, our impact is everywhere.

We are Cisco, and our power starts with you.

Individual pay is determined by the candidate's hiring location, market conditions, job-related skillset, experience, qualifications, education, certifications, and/or training. The full salary range for certain locations is listed below. For locations not listed below, the recruiter can share more details about compensation for the role in your location during the hiring process.

U.S. employees are offered benefits, subject to Cisco's plan eligibility rules, which include medical, dental and vision insurance, a 401(k) plan with a Cisco matching contribution, paid parental leave, short and long-term disability coverage, and basic life insurance. Please see the Cisco careers site to discover more benefits and perks. Employees may be eligible to receive grants of Cisco restricted stock units, which vest following continued employment with Cisco for defined periods of time.

U.S. employees are eligible for paid time away as described below, subject to Cisco's policies:

• 10 paid holidays per full calendar year, plus 1 floating holiday for non-exempt employees

• 1 paid day off for employee's birthday, paid year-end holiday shutdown, and 4 paid days off for personal wellness determined by Cisco

• Non-exempt employees** receive 16 days of paid vacation time per full calendar year, accrued at rate of 4.92 hours per pay period for full-time employees

• Exempt employees participate in Cisco's flexible vacation time off program, which has no defined limit on how much vacation time eligible employees may use (subject to availability and some business limitations)

• 80 hours of sick time off provided on hire date and each January 1st thereafter, and up to 80 hours ofunused sick timecarried forwardfrom one calendar yearto the next

• Additional paid time away may be requested to deal with critical or emergency issues for family members

• Optional 10 paid days per full calendar year to volunteer

For non-sales roles, employees are also eligible to earn annual bonuses subject to Cisco's policies.

Employees on sales plans earn performance-based incentive pay on top of their base salary, which is split between quota and non-quota components, subject to the applicable Cisco plan. For quota-based incentive pay, Cisco typically pays as follows:

• .75% of incentive target for each 1% of revenue attainment up to 50% of quota;

• 1.5% of incentive target for each 1% of attainment between 50% and 75%;

• 1% of incentive target for each 1% of attainment between 75% and 100%; and

• Once performance exceeds 100% attainment, incentive rates are at or above 1% for each 1% of attainment with no cap on incentive compensation.

For non-quota-based sales performance elements such as strategic sales objectives, Cisco may pay 0% up to 125% of target. Cisco sales plans do not have a minimum threshold of performance for sales incentive compensation to be paid.

The applicable full salary ranges for this position, by specific state, are listed below:

New York City Metro Area:

Non-Metro New York state & Washington state:

* For quota-based sales roles on Cisco's sales plan, the ranges provided in this posting include base pay and sales target incentive compensation combined.

** Employees in Illinois, whether exempt or non-exempt, will participate in a unique time off program to meet local requirements.