Principal Systems Engineer - Channel

About the Role

We are looking for a high-impact Partner Systems Engineer to accelerate the technical success, enablement, and growth of Fortinet s strategic channel ecosystem in India. This role is pivotal in shaping partner technical readiness, strengthening Fortinet adoption, and driving commercial success through deep technical expertise, solution evangelism, and collaborative go-to-market engagement.

If you re passionate about cybersecurity, love working closely with partners, and thrive at the intersection of technology and business, we d love to speak with you.

Key Responsibilities

Partner Development & Technical Ownership

• Collaborate closely with Channel Account Managers to drive the technical enablement, development, and readiness of assigned Fortinet channel partners.


• Align with partner sales leadership to support their commercial goals through strong technical strategy and enablement programs.

Technical Evangelism & Trusted Advisory

• Serve as a trusted technical advisor to partners guiding them on architecture design, solution positioning, and competitive differentiation.


• Demonstrate and articulate the business value of Fortinet s Security Fabric and portfolio to partner teams and customers.

Enablement, Training & Certification

• Deliver ongoing training, workshops, and capability-building sessions to elevate partner technical maturity.


• Guide partners through Fortinet NSE certification tracks, ensuring readiness across sales, pre-sales, and delivery teams.


• Keep partners informed of new products, solutions, services, releases, and promotions.

Pre-Sales Excellence

• Provide technical, consultative, and architectural support to help partners position and sell solutions across:
  
  
  
  • Network Security: NGFW, IPS/IDS, WAF, DNS security
  
  
  • SD-WAN & SASE
  
  
  • Cloud Security: CNAP, CWPP, WAAS
  
  
  • SecOps: EDR/XDR, SOAR, SIEM, SOC, Threat Management
  
  


• Lead high-quality technical presentations, solution showcases, demos, and Proof of Concepts (POCs)

Partner Insights & Market Intelligence

• Stay current on partner business models, managed services capabilities (MSSPs), and evolving market trends.


• Assess partner technical competency, track progression, and provide actionable feedback to strengthen partner performance.

Function: Channel Pre-Sales / Systems Engineering

Experience: 6-12+ years (Pre-Sales, Channel SE, or Partner Engineering

Requirements

• Strong hands-on expertise in networking & cybersecurity technologies.


• 6-12+ years of technical pre-sales experience supporting commercial customers and channel partners.


• Deep experience across solutions like NGFW, IPS/IDS, SD-WAN, SASE, EDR/XDR, SOAR, SIEM, Cloud Security, Threat Management, and SOC workflows.


• Experience working with partners and MSSPs, including mapping their managed service portfolios and improving Fortinet adoption.


• Passion for enabling partners and driving technical outcomes through strong relationships and consistent engagement.


• Excellent communication, presentation, and stakeholder management skills.


• Fortinet NSE certifications (or equivalent vendor certs) are a plus.