Destinus

Senior Technical Sales Engineer

Destinus

full-time

Posted on:

Location Type: Hybrid

Location: Valkenburg • Netherlands

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Job Level

Senior

About the role

  • Own the technical response strategy and architecture for major RFI/RFP/RFQ submissions across all product lines.
  • Lead development of technical solution narratives, compliance matrices, technical volumes, and SoW/SoT annexes.
  • Coordinate inputs from Engineering, Operations, Finance, Program Management, Legal, and Export Control into coherent, compliant proposals.
  • Support pricing strategy with cost-informed technical trade-offs, clear assumptions, and sensitivity analysis.
  • Prepare technical briefing materials and position papers for use by BD and Product Heads in customer engagements.
  • Own and continuously improve the central bid toolchain - ROM pricing models, BoM templates, standard SoW/SoT blocks, service/ILS options, integration reference architectures.
  • Maintain a central library of validated performance claims and technical evidence (test data, combat data, TRL status) that Product Heads and BD must use in customer engagements and proposals.
  • Ensure naming, specifications, and technical claims are consistent across all product families and validated with Product and Engineering.
  • Develop and maintain standard proposal templates, compliance checklists, and bid process playbooks to improve speed and repeatability.
  • Chair internal technical bid reviews (gate 0/1/2) for major pursuits to de-risk commitments before submission.
  • Ensure proposed solutions align with product baselines, TRL status, industrial capacity, export constraints, and delivery timelines.
  • Validate that technical content matches what Product and Engineering can deliver, preventing over-commitment or under-pricing.
  • Drive continuous improvement through post-bid reviews and lessons learned across pursuits.
  • Take content from Product Heads (market doctrine, roadmap, TRL, pricing logic, service concepts, integration options) and operationalize it into standard, reusable bid assets.
  • Build and maintain product-line proposal annexes, performance evidence packs, and standard integration options for each major system and variant.
  • Support Product Heads in developing ROM pricing ranges, service/ILS packages, and partnership structures for use in early customer shaping and qualification.
  • Ensure periodic client reports (TRL, certification, performance updates) produced by Product Heads are supported by consistent, bid-ready materials for follow-on proposals.
  • Partner with Engineering and Operations to ensure feasibility and compliance of proposed solutions.
  • Provide structured market and customer feedback to Product and R&D teams based on tender requirements, competitive gaps, and recurring objections.
  • Work with Legal and Export Control to ensure all technical content, demonstrations, and data sharing comply with applicable regulations (ITAR, EU dual-use, national restrictions).
  • Coordinate with Finance on cost baselines, pricing assumptions, and margin guidance for complex bids.
  • Mentor Sales Engineers on proposal quality, technical storytelling, solution discipline, and compliance best practices.
  • Act as escalation point and design authority for complex technical questions during pursuits.
  • Train Product Heads, BD teams, and junior SEs on use of central bid tools, validated claims, and baseline pricing logic.
  • Foster a culture of technical rigor, accountability, and continuous improvement within the broader Commercial organization.
  • Own the technical competitive landscape for Destinus systems - build and maintain battle cards, competitive comparisons, and technical differentiation messaging.
  • Monitor evolving defence doctrines, procurement frameworks (NATO, EU, national MoDs), and emerging threats to inform solution positioning.
  • Arm BD and Product Heads with clear, factual technical differentiation for use in customer engagements.

Requirements

  • Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Systems Engineering, Computer Science, or related technical field; master’s degree preferred.
  • 10+ years of experience in defence, aerospace, or national security sectors, ideally including unmanned systems, missiles, guided weapons, or air defence systems.
  • Proven track record supporting and winning complex government RFP/RFQ/RFI captures, with direct responsibility for technical volumes and solution architecture.
  • Deep understanding of defence procurement processes, compliance frameworks, and relevant standards (NATO STANAGs, MIL-STD, EU regulations).
  • Experience working across multiple product lines and coordinating inputs from engineering, operations, finance, and legal functions.
  • Strong analytical and systems-level thinking: ability to assess technical feasibility, cost trade-offs, and risk.
  • Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English; additional European languages (German, Spanish, French, Dutch) a strong advantage.
  • Regular travel to other Destinus locations for internal coordination and bid preparation (up to 30%)
Applicant Tracking System Keywords

Tip: use these terms in your resume and cover letter to boost ATS matches.

Hard Skills & Tools
technical solution narrativescompliance matricestechnical volumessensitivity analysispricing strategybid process playbooksperformance claimsintegration reference architecturesproposal templatestechnical storytelling
Soft Skills
analytical thinkingsystems-level thinkingwritten communicationverbal communicationmentoringcollaborationcontinuous improvementleadershipproblem-solvingaccountability
Certifications
Bachelor's degree in EngineeringBachelor's degree in Systems EngineeringBachelor's degree in Computer ScienceMaster's degree in related technical field