AE to SE/SC transition

Has anyone here made the jump from AE to Sales Engineer/Solutions Consultant? What is the best way to start learning the necessary skills?

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Grant_Horun
Politicker
1
Account Executive
This is an interesting one. Usually see it the other way around where an SE/SC wants to become an AE because it allows them to sell the product easier. All in All, If you have the soft skills to know your way around it, then using internal resources to master the product should suffice in moving you toward that role. 
softwarebro
Politicker
0
Sales Director
If you trust your management team you should speak with them and create an action plan. I’ve seen this transition take place multiple times. I would imagine the learning curve is high. Good luck!
hugh_janus
0
Account Executive
Thanks @softwarebro !
ChunkyButters
Tycoon
0
AE
I considered it at a previous company. I was running all the demos for my team (including my Director), and leading most of the technical conversations. I really only needed to pull in engineers when it got into the nitty gritty of integrations, data migrations, etc.

I approached my CEO and Director about it and they were supportive. My CEO was an SE and thought I would do well, and explained everything that would be required. He gave me some homework and had me dedicate time to learning APIs, basic coding understanding, data migration requirements, and sat with the engineers on some technical calls. 

I thought it was going to be a good fit, and was dedicated to it, but we had some organizational changes that stopped the transition. The learning curve was steep, but if your technical, show interest, and have a record of success your organization should be supportive in at least laying out what is needed from the SE. Then you can decide how much of a fit it is.
hugh_janus
0
Account Executive
Thanks @ChunkyButters, can you recommend any specific online resources for learning APIs, basic coding, etc or were these all internal resources?
ChunkyButters
Tycoon
0
AE
I used a lot of our own internal resources. Especially with APIs, integrations, and data migrations they can be product specific. If you can look into SQL, database queries, general API code, and some free resources you can come to a meeting prepared. 

If your company has a knowledge base, onboarding team, or integration team you can try to get resources from them or sit in on meetings with them.
CuriousFox
WR Officer
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