Sales Engineers and Solutions Consultants who turn a promising demo into a signed deal — the technical credibility that closes complex, high-value sales.
In complex and enterprise SaaS, the Sales Engineer or Solutions Consultant often decides the deal. They partner with the AE to run technical discovery, tailor the demo, own the proof-of-concept, and answer the questions a buyer's technical team uses to say yes or no. Great pre-sales makes the product real for the buyer; weak pre-sales loses deals the AE thought were won.
It's an under-hired role at early stage — founders tend to do it themselves until it stops scaling. The rare, valuable profile pairs genuine technical depth with commercial instinct: someone who can go deep with an architect and still keep the deal moving. Most candidates lean too far one way, and hiring a pure engineer with no commercial feel is as costly as hiring a smooth presenter who can't go deep.
Twenty years and 2,000+ placements have taught us the traits that separate a hire who performs from one who churns. Here's what we test for.
They can genuinely go deep with a buyer's engineers, not just narrate a demo.
They keep the deal moving and know when technical detail serves the sale.
They make the product real and relevant to the buyer's world.
They diagnose the technical requirement before configuring a solution.
They run proofs-of-concept that de-risk the deal and close technical doubt.
Deep but can't read a deal — brilliant answers that don't move the sale forward.
Using pre-sales as a button-clicker instead of a deal partner wastes the role.
Losing enterprise deals on technical credibility before you've hired the person who wins them.
Illustrative UK ranges for SaaS companies from Seed to Series C. Actual packages vary by stage, location, vertical and deal size — we benchmark your specific role against live market data.
These are general guide ranges, not a quote — we give you a precise, benchmarked figure for your specific role. Packages can run well above these in high-value verticals such as fintech and legaltech, where deals are large and multi-year. We charge our fee on base salary and guaranteed earnings — never on inflated OTE or commission.
When technical evaluation is part of every serious deal and it's either stalling your AEs or eating the founder's time. In complex SaaS that's often earlier than teams expect.
The AE owns the commercial relationship and the close; the SE owns the technical sale — discovery, demos, POCs and technical objections. In complex deals they work as a pair.
You need both, and the best have both — that's the rare profile. Hiring a pure engineer with no commercial feel, or a presenter who can't go deep, both cost you deals. We screen for the balance.
A feasibility read on day one and a first shortlist of relevant pre-sales people within five working days.
Typically £70k–£100k base with £100k–£150k OTE; senior or principal Sales Engineers command more. The valuable profile pairs genuine technical depth with commercial instinct.
Largely interchangeable titles — both own the technical sale alongside the AE: discovery, tailored demos, proofs-of-concept and technical objections. Some companies split pre-sales and post-sales solutions work.
When technical evaluation is part of every serious deal and it's either stalling your AEs or eating the founder's time. In complex or enterprise SaaS that's often earlier than teams expect.
Tell us what you need and we'll come back with a feasibility read and a shortlist plan — usually same day.
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