{"id":3783439,"url":"https://alion.io/job/black-box-sales-solutions-architect-av","title":"Sales Solutions Architect - AV","company":{"id":704481,"name":"Black Box","domain":"blackbox.com","url":"https://alion.io/company/blackbox-6","size_band":"1001-5000","is_staffing_agency":false,"employer_type":"services","is_intermediary":false,"listed_via":null,"ats_vendor":"Oracle","truth_index":{"grade":"B","score":77,"open_postings":41,"ghost_share":0,"stale_share":0.902,"repost_share":0,"time_to_fill_p50_days":48,"computed_at":"2026-11-14T05:58:10Z"}},"role":"Solutions","role_family":"Solutions","seniority":"staff","employment_type":null,"work_mode":"on_site","remote_scope":null,"remote_scope_basis":null,"remote_working_hours":null,"hiring_geo_confidence":"structured","locations":["Plano, United States"],"countries":["US"],"hiring_countries":[],"hiring_countries_total":0,"salary":null,"salary_estimate":null,"experience_years_min":5,"visa_sponsorship":false,"relocation_package":false,"has_equity":false,"technologies":[{"name":"AutoCAD","optional":false},{"name":"Microsoft Office","optional":false},{"name":"Microsoft Teams","optional":false},{"name":"Outlook","optional":false},{"name":"VLAN","optional":false},{"name":"Amazon ECS","optional":true}],"status":"live","first_seen_at":"2026-11-05T00:03:59Z","employer_posted_date":"2026-11-05","last_verified_at":"2026-11-14T20:46:28Z","board_verified":true,"closed_at":null,"days_open":10,"trust":{"level":"ok","repost_count":null,"flags":[],"days_open":10},"description":"Key Responsibilities\nPipeline & Opportunity Development\nWork alongside Account Managers to identify, qualify, and pursue AV opportunities across their customers, bringing technical credibility early in the sales cycle\n\nGenerate pipeline by spotting AV needs in active customer conversations, facility projects, refresh cycles, and adjacent Modern Workplace engagements\n\nCo-sell with manufacturer and alliance partners, including deal registration and joint pursuit planning on shared opportunities\n\nMaintain accurate opportunity, stage, and forecast data in Salesforce for every opportunity the role supports\n\nExpand AV opportunities into broader Modern Workplace solutions, such as Microsoft Teams Rooms into Teams voice, collaboration platforms, and managed AV services\n\nConsultative Solution Selling\nLead client discovery to understand business goals, user needs, space constraints, budget, and decision process, and document results in a needs analysis summary (program report) for client review before detailed design begins\n\nPerform site surveys and facility walkthroughs to assess existing infrastructure, identify coordination requirements, and validate design assumptions\n\nBuild business cases that tie the proposed solution to client outcomes, including ROI and total cost of ownership where appropriate\n\nPresent solutions to stakeholders at every level - from IT and facilities staff to C-suite and department leadership - translating technical concepts into clear business value\n\nPosition Black Box against competing integrators and approaches, and handle technical and commercial objections throughout the sales cycle\n\nOwn the close plan with the Account Manager and take part in commercial negotiation through contract award\n\nRepresent the company at pre-bid meetings, RFP walkthroughs, and industry events\n\nSolution Design & Technical Documentation\nAuthor detailed Statements of Functionality (SOFs) defining system capabilities, operational intent, and limitations - the primary technical document guiding project execution\n\nCreate conceptual signal flow / functional block diagrams to illustrate system architecture for client review and as a programming reference for control system and DSP teams\n\nDirect and quality-review Bills of Materials (BOMs) in D-Tools and infrastructure drawings (floor plans, reflected ceiling plans, and elevations) produced with engineering support, ensuring they match the agreed scope\n\nApply AVIXA standards to design decisions and documentation, including display image size (V202.01), image contrast ratio (V201.01), documentation (D401.01), and performance verification (D402.02), plus energy management (S601.01) and networked AV security practices (RP-C303.01) where in scope\n\nEngage client IT, network, and security stakeholders early to define networked AV requirements, such as VLAN and IP addressing, PoE budget, multicast, device credentials, and firmware/patch policy\n\nIdentify code and accessibility requirements that affect AV scope, such as assistive listening systems under the 2010 ADA Standards, and work from architectural and engineering drawing sets to flag coordination requirements early\n\nPricing, Proposals & Margin Ownership\nOwn the labor hours and material estimates applied to each opportunity, with Delivery consulted on labor assumptions and Finance-approved labor rates applied\n\nBuild pricing and fixed-bid quotes that are technically accurate, commercially competitive, and within approved margin guardrails\n\nComplete pre-approval review with Practice and Delivery leadership before release, including independent design peer review on large or complex opportunities\n\nProduce Scopes of Work (SOWs) that clearly delineate project scope for both internal teams and client-facing agreements\n\nLead formal RFP and RFQ responses, including technical narratives, product submittals, and compliance documentation\n\nLead value-engineering discussions when scope or budget constraints require design changes, protecting both client outcomes and deal margin\n\nConfirm availability, lead times, lifecycle/end-of-life status, and warranty terms for specified equipment, and propose alternates where supply or support risk exists\n\nAt contract award, transfer the opportunity to Delivery with complete documentation (SOF, BOM, SOW, labor assumptions, and open items)\n\nPartner & Market Engagement\nBuild co-sell relationships with manufacturer sales and channel teams to source opportunities and strengthen Black Box’s position on shared pursuits\n\nHelp Account Managers recognize AV opportunities and position Black Box AV and managed services in their accounts\n\nMaintain AVIXA and manufacturer certifications in good standing and stay current with emerging AV, UC, and AV-over-IP technologies and trends across target verticals\n\nContribute to internal design standards, templates, and documentation best practices\n\nHow Success Is Measured\nPerformance is measured on commercial and technical results together:\nContribution to the team bookings and gross margin target\n\nPipeline generated\n\nWin rate on supported opportunities\n\nManaged services attach on AV opportunities\n\nDesign accuracy, measured by change orders caused by design errors\n\nQualifications\nExperience\n5+ years of commercial AV system design and integration, including complex, multi-space, and multi-site projects with networked AV and UC integration\n\n3+ years in a customer-facing solution sales or pre-sales role, with demonstrated contribution to revenue or quota attainment\n\nTrack record of leading opportunities from discovery to close alongside Account Managers or sales teams\n\nDemonstrated experience working across one or more of the following verticals: Enterprise, Healthcare, Finance, Higher Education, or State/Local Government\n\nFamiliarity with commercial construction processes, drawing sets, and coordination with GCs and MEP trades\n\nSales & Commercial Skills\nWorking command of a consultative sales methodology, from discovery and qualification through close\n\nAbility to build business cases and translate technical solutions into financial and operational value for executive buyers\n\nComfortable negotiating scope, pricing, and terms while protecting margin\n\nExperience co-selling with manufacturer partners, including deal registration\n\nDisciplined use of Salesforce for opportunity, pipeline, and forecast management\n\nStrong executive presence in presentations, workshops, and pre-bid meetings\n\nTechnical Knowledge\nIn-depth understanding of AV signal flow, system architecture, and the integration of audio, video, control, and unified communications technologies, plus fundamentals of room acoustics, speech intelligibility, and loudspeaker coverage\n\nStrong working knowledge of IP networking fundamentals as they apply to AV systems: VLANs, subnetting, IGMP, QoS, PoE, and AV-over-IP transport protocols; awareness of networked AV security practices (device hardening, credential management, network segmentation)\n\nProficiency with audio DSP platforms, control systems, video conferencing ecosystems, and matrix switching/distribution - see Certifications section for specific platform expectations\n\nExperience with Microsoft Teams Rooms (MTR), Zoom Rooms, and Cisco (Webex/RoomOS) ecosystems, including room kit hardware from Logitech, Poly, Lenovo, Yealink, and Cisco\n\nWorking knowledge of the AVIXA standards used in design and verification (V202.01, V201.01, D401.01, D402.02) and of codes that affect AV scope, such as ADA assistive listening requirements and NEC requirements for low-voltage and plenum-rated cabling\n\nSoftware Tools\nRequired: Salesforce for opportunity and pipeline management; D-Tools System Integrator (SI) for BOM and project documentation; AutoCAD for reviewing and marking up infrastructure drawings; Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, Outlook, Teams, OneNote); Adobe Acrobat / Bluebeam for PDF markup and document management. Prior hands-on experience with Salesforce, D-Tools, and AutoCAD is strongly preferred; specific workflows can be learned on the job\n\nPreferred: AFMG EASE, EASE Evac/EASE Address, or EASE Focus for acoustic modeling and coverage simulation; manufacturer design and configuration software (e.g., Q-SYS Designer, Biamp Tesira, Shure Designer); Microsoft Visio; Autodesk Revit or equivalent BIM platform for coordination on BIM-required projects\n\nCertifications\nAVIXA CTS is required at hire, or within 6 months for otherwise strong candidates. Other required certifications are expected within 12 months of hire; most are free, self-paced online programs. Preferred certifications should be pursued in coordination with the Practice Leader.\nPlatform / Technology Required (within 12 months of hire)Preferred AVIXACTS (Certified Technology Specialist) - at hire or within 6 monthsCTS-D (Certified Technology Specialist - Design)Dante / AoIPDante Level 1 CertificationDante Level 2 or Level 3 Certification Q-SYSQ-SYS Level 1 CertificationQ-SYS Level 2 (Control 101 is a Level 2 prerequisite) Extron-Extron AV Associate (EAVA); Network AV Specialist (NAVS)Biamp-Tesira 101: Core Concepts; TesiraFORTE Certification; Biamp Designer role-path training Shure-Collaboration & Conferencing Certification Level 1 (CCLevel1) and Level 2 (CCLevel2) Crestron-DigitalMedia Certified Designer (DMC-D-4K) Collaboration Platforms-Manufacturer sales and solution accreditations (e.g., Microsoft Teams Rooms, Cisco Webex/RoomOS, and Zoom partner programs)Nice to have: Q-SYS Control 101/201, Extron Control Specialist (ECS), and Crestron DM NVX certifications. Programming is not a core function of this role, but this background strengthens design credibility.\nProfessional Competencies\nCommercial acumen - understands how deals are priced, structured, and won, and makes design decisions with margin in mind\n\nOwnership - treats the team’s bookings and margin target as their own and drives opportunities through to close\n\nExcellent written and verbal communication and strong executive presence; presents clearly to both technical practitioners and executive stakeholders\n\nResilience and strong organization to manage multiple concurrent opportunities through long sales cycles\n\nConsultative mindset - approaches client engagements as a trusted advisor, not a transactional vendor\n\nCollaborates effectively across Account Managers, Delivery, Engineering Support, and partners, with the professional maturity and emotional intelligence to manage client and internal expectations\n\nEducation\nNo single degree path defines the ideal Senior AV Solutions Architect, and we evaluate academic background in the context of the whole candidate. The following programs of study provide a particularly strong foundation:\nAudio Production, Music Technology, or Sound Engineering: Practical grounding in acoustics, signal flow, gain structure, and DSP.\n\nBroadcast Technology, Media Systems, or Telecommunications: Signal-chain intuition and hands-on routing, switching, and distribution experience.\n\nElectronics Technology or Systems Engineering Technology: Low-voltage systems, circuit behavior, and technical documentation.\n\nCommunications Technology, AV Systems, or IT/Network Administration: Networked AV, AV-over-IP, unified communications, and endpoint management.\n\nBusiness, Marketing, or Sales: A strong foundation for the commercial side of the role when paired with solid AV technical credentials.\n\nAn Associate’s or Bachelor’s degree in any of the above areas, or a closely related field, is preferred. Equivalent combinations of industry certifications, manufacturer training, and hands-on sales and design experience are given serious weight. We are looking for people who understand how sound and signal behave in a room - and how to turn that into a solution a customer wants to buy.\nWork Environment & Physical Requirements\nThis position involves a combination of client-facing selling, office-based design and proposal work, and periodic site visits. 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