Rishi Nayak
Presales Manager | Bid Management | Solutioning & RFP Leadership
Pune
Summary
Presales Manager with 8+ years of customer-facing experience spanning business development, solution consulting, and bid management. Proven ability to lead presales initiatives, respond to RFPs/RFIs, craft compelling solutions, and drive opportunity closures across IT services, SaaS, digital engineering, and data security domains. Strong at collaborating with sales, delivery, finance, and legal teams to ensure solution alignment, commercial readiness, and smooth transition into delivery, while maintaining high customer satisfaction.
Overview
3
3
Languages
13
13
years of post-secondary education
10
10
years of professional experience
1
1
Certificate
Work History
Presales Consultant
Ciklum
04.2024 - Current
- Leads end-to-end presales and RFP responses for digital and product engineering engagements across global clients
- Owns opportunity qualification, requirements analysis, solution shaping, and bid strategy in collaboration with sales leadership
- Authors executive summaries, solution narratives, delivery approaches, assumptions, and value propositions aligned to evaluation criteria
- Works closely with engineering, architecture, and domain SMEs to define delivery models, timelines, and team structures
- Supports commercial structuring including effort estimation, pricing inputs, and phased delivery roadmaps
- Delivers client presentations, solution walkthroughs, and Q&A sessions during technical and executive evaluations
- Maintains reusable presales assets such as proposal templates, capability decks, and case studies
- Continuously improves win probability through structured bid governance and internal review cycles
Presales Lead
CyberFIT Solutions Pvt. Ltd.
04.2023 - 04.2024
- Owned the complete presales lifecycle for enterprise data security and secure data erasure solutions
- Conducted detailed discovery sessions to map customer requirements to product capabilities and deployment models
- Led RFP/RFI responses with emphasis on compliance, auditability, and enterprise security requirements
- Delivered product demonstrations and proof-of-value sessions tailored to customer environments
- Designed solution approaches including architecture overview, rollout strategy, and operational considerations
- Collaborated with product and engineering teams to address customer objections and refine solution positioning
- Supported pricing, licensing, and professional services scoping for enterprise and partner-led deals
- Acted as the primary presales contact through evaluation, clarification, and final selection stages
Inside Sales Manager / Presales Support
Helm360
09.2022 - 02.2023
- Supported presales and RFP activities for LegalTech implementation, migration, and managed services engagements
- Analyzed RFP requirements, prepared compliance matrices, and coordinated inputs from technical SMEs
- Assisted in solution shaping for legal technology platforms and related data services
- Authored proposal sections including service descriptions, delivery approach, assumptions, and risks
- Supported commercial discussions by aligning scope and effort expectations with delivery teams
- Conducted client calls and solution walkthroughs during evaluation phases
- Maintained CRM data and ensured presales documentation accuracy and traceability
- Partnered with sales teams on opportunity strategy and competitive positioning
Senior Manager – Business Development & Presales
Arride Technologies Private Limited
06.2017 - 09.2022
- Managed presales activities for SaaS-based eLearning and EdTech consulting engagements
- Led customer discovery sessions to understand business goals, learner needs, and platform expectations
- Translated requirements into structured proposals covering scope, solution approach, timelines, and commercials
- Responded to RFPs/RFIs for educational institutions and training providers
- Developed pitch decks and solution presentations for coaching institutes and education startups
- Coordinated with product and delivery teams to align proposed solutions with feasibility and scalability
- Balanced business development objectives with presales rigor to ensure qualified and focused pursuits
- Negotiated and closed long-term agreements with new clients
Technical Sales Executive
DATACODE
06.2016 - 06.2017
- Supported business development efforts for geoscience and data-centric software and services
- Acted as a bridge between prospects and technical teams to gather high-level requirements and expectations
- Assisted in presales activities including proposal inputs, capability presentations, and solution overviews
- Conducted product demonstrations and feature walkthroughs for geoscientific software solutions
- Coordinated participation in mining and exploration events to support lead generation and pipeline growth
- Maintained CRM data and tracked customer interactions and follow-ups
- Contributed to bid support by validating scope, timelines, and high-level feasibility with internal teams
Education
Bachelor of Engineering - Mining
R.C.E.R.T.
Chandrapur 06.2007 - 04.2016
Diploma - Mining & Mine Surveying
Government Polytechnic
Nagpur 04.2004 - 04.2007
High School Diploma -
St. Johns High School
Nagpur 04.2003 - 04.2004
Skills
Presales & Bid Management
RFP / RFI / RFQ Responses
Solution Architecture (High-Level)
Proposal & SoW Authoring
Win Themes & Value Propositions
Demos & Proof-of-Concepts
Commercial Scoping & Estimation
Customer & Opportunity Management
Client Discovery & Requirement Analysis
Stakeholder Communication
Trusted Advisor Engagement
Negotiation Support
Deal Closure
Presales-to-Delivery Handover
Collaboration & Tools
Cross-functional Coordination (Sales, Delivery, Legal, Finance)
CRM: Salesforce, Zoho CRM
Presentations & Documentation
Analytical & Structured Thinking
Timeline
Presales Consultant
Ciklum
04.2024 - Current
Presales Lead
CyberFIT Solutions Pvt. Ltd.
04.2023 - 04.2024
Inside Sales Manager / Presales Support
Helm360
09.2022 - 02.2023
Digital Marketing
05-2019
Senior Manager – Business Development & Presales
Arride Technologies Private Limited
06.2017 - 09.2022
Technical Sales Executive
DATACODE
06.2016 - 06.2017
Bachelor of Engineering - Mining
R.C.E.R.T.
06.2007 - 04.2016
Diploma - Mining & Mine Surveying
Government Polytechnic
04.2004 - 04.2007
High School Diploma -
St. Johns High School
04.2003 - 04.2004
Languages
English
Bilingual or Proficient (C2)
Hindi
Bilingual or Proficient (C2)
Marathi
Upper intermediate (B2)
Certification
Digital Marketing