The posting
As the global leader in high-speed connectivity, Ciena is committed to a people-first approach. Our teams enjoy a culture focused on prioritizing a flexible work environment that empowers individual growth, well-being, and belonging. We’re a technology company that leads with our humanity—driving our business priorities alongside meaningful social, community, and societal impact.
How You Will Contribute:
Ciena is looking for a commercially sharp, bilingual professional to join our Japan commercial team at a pivotal time, someone sales teams can rely on for a clear, objective view of every deal. Drawing on the experience of our established Japan team, you will quickly build deep knowledge of our customers, deals and ways of working, and take a leading role in how Ciena wins and runs business in Japan.
Reporting to the Director, Commercial & Planning, APJ, you will take growing ownership of the commercial side of Japan opportunities, from first bid to signed contract. Just as importantly, you will help explain Ciena’s commercial direction to the local team and give leadership an accurate, credible view of what is really happening in the Japan market. This is a high-visibility, long-term role in Ciena’s growing Japan business, designed to grow quickly into a broader senior advisory scope for the right person.
- Strengthen the bridge: Help translate and explain Ciena’s pricing strategy, commercial policies, approval governance and decisions to the Japan sales team, in Japanese and English, and represent Japan’s customer and market realities back to regional and global leadership.
- Provide clear, objective insight: Give leadership accurate, objective and timely insight on Japan deals, forecast, risks and customer dynamics, so decisions are made on facts.
- Own the commercial lifecycle: Drive commercial input on RFx responses, bid/no-bid decisions, pricing and proposals. Prepare P&L analysis and approval submissions in line with Ciena’s internal governance (OMP), making sure every deal is presented accurately and reflects the expected outcome.
- Negotiate with confidence: Support, and increasingly lead, commercial and contract negotiations with customer procurement and legal teams. Flag non-standard terms and conditions, assess risk, and make sure exposures are captured and mitigated.
- Connect across Ciena: Work with Sales, Finance, Legal, Services, Supply Chain and Product teams across APJ and globally to get deals approved, contracted and executed.
- Drive commercial discipline: Maintain commercial KPIs for Japan, analyse bid and pricing trends, and lead continuous improvement in how we win and run business.
The Must Haves:
- Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Business, Economics or a related field, or equivalent experience.
- 5+ years’ experience in commercial management, deal management, bid/pricing or commercial finance, ideally in B2B technology or telecommunications.
- Native or near-native Japanese and fluent business English (written and spoken), with the ability to explain complex commercial and financial topics clearly in both languages.
- A proven track record of building trust with sales teams and senior stakeholders: credible, approachable, and confident delivering difficult messages with tact.
- Strong financial acumen, including P&L, deal profitability and cost accounting principles, with advanced Excel skills.
- Experience reviewing commercial and contract terms and working with customer procurement teams.
- Sound understanding of Japanese business culture and how to work effectively between a Japan team and a multinational head office.
- Able to manage multiple priorities under tight deadlines and work across time zones in a global, matrixed organisation.
Assets:
- Experience working with Japanese telecommunications operators, cloud/data-centre providers, or large enterprise and system integrator customers.
- Knowledge of the optical networking or broader telecom equipment and services industry.
- Previous experience as a commercial or finance lead in the Japan entity of a multinational company.
- Understanding of US GAAP and revenue recognition principles.
- Experience coaching or mentoring colleagues.
- Familiarity with CRM, ERP and BI tools (e.g., Salesforce, Oracle, Power BI).
- Professional qualification such as an MBA, CPA or equivalent. .
At Ciena, we are committed to building and fostering an environment in which our employees feel respected, valued, and heard. Ciena values the diversity of its workforce and respects its employees as individuals. We do not tolerate any form of discrimination.
Ciena is an Equal Opportunity Employer, including disability and protected veteran status.
If contacted in relation to a job opportunity, please advise Ciena of any accommodation measures you may require.
