Growing Your SE Career in the Age of AI: Six Career-Building Takeaways

Reprise recently teamed up with Better Career to host an all-star panel of presales leaders for a conversation on what it takes to grow a Solutions Engineering (SE) career in today’s AI-driven world. We’ve pulled out the biggest takeaways worth acting on.

1. Soft Skills Still Reign Supreme, but Tech Skills Are Your Multiplier

Reprise surveyed more than 400 SEs and found that communication skills came in as the most important for SE success, with 90% saying they’re critical. But when asked which skill would most accelerate their career growth, SEs said technical skills.

The takeaway? Technical acumen doesn’t always get you in the door — but it can get you promoted. Start with a strong soft skill foundation, then layer in targeted tech knowledge that aligns with the companies or roles you’re pursuing (think: APIs, cloud, AI, and security fundamentals).

“Don’t chase random certifications. Define what kind of SE you want to be — then upskill accordingly.” – Mattie Stremic, Better Career

2. Become a Fast Learner

With technology evolving at breakneck speed, your ability to rapidly self-educate is now a career differentiator. The best SEs don’t just know tools — they build personal systems for ramping on new tools quickly and effectively.

Pro tip: Combine side projects with real platforms to deepen hands-on learning. Employers care less about whether you’ve “heard of” a tech and more about whether you can apply it now.

“It’s not enough to say ‘I’m willing to learn.’ You have to prove you can ramp fast.” – Yuji Hagashi, Better Career

3. Build a Technical Foundation You Can Expand From

Think of your technical knowledge as the foundation of a house. You can decorate it any way you want, but without a solid foundation (like basic networking, data, or security literacy), your growth will be shaky.

“My foundation was in network engineering. From there, I built the skills to sit in boardrooms.” – Chris Mabry, Reprise

4. Audit Your Time and Fight for Higher-Value Work

SEs spend too much time in internal meetings and doing manual demo work. Not only does that burn time and energy, it robs you of visibility and promotable wins.

The fix:

• Track your time and identify low-value work
• Automate with AI where you can
• Advocate for tools or platforms that free up your calendar
• Create internal councils or working groups to scale knowledge

“Customizing demos won’t get you promoted. Owning processes and solving inefficiencies might.” – Mattie Stremic

5. AI Is the Career Accelerator, Not the Job Threat

Nearly all SEs agree: AI is going to reshape how they work. The good news? It’s an opportunity to get smarter and faster, not just be replaced.

Here’s how the panelists are using AI:

• Practice interviews and storytelling with AI coaching tools like Yoodli AI
• Summarize and search sales calls with tools like Fathom AI, which help eliminate reliance on AE notes
• Customize LLMs (e.g., ChatGPT, Gemini) to research accounts, prep demos, or build smarter workflows

“Use AI to get back to what SEs do best: solving problems and building human connection.” – Chris Mabry

6. Want a Promotion? Solve Problems Beyond Your Job Description

If you’re trying to get promoted, stop thinking only about excelling in your core responsibilities. The panel made this clear: the fastest way to stand out is to own something nobody else is fixing.

Examples:

• Roll out a new tool that saves your team hours a week
• Create enablement sessions that reduce dependency on SEs
• Prototype an internal AI use case

“Find the boring problem no one wants. Then fix it.” – Chris Mabry

Final Words: Don’t Go It Alone

Your SE career doesn’t need to be a solo effort. Whether you’re actively job searching or just trying to grow faster in your current role, lean on community, mentorship, and peer tools.

“Don’t sleep on the hard work you’re already putting in. Go the extra 5% … and don’t do this by yourself. There’s plenty of us out here who want to help.” – Chris Mabry

Want to learn more? Check out the full session recording here.