Meraki Unboxed

In this Meraki Unboxed podcast, we’re getting schooled. Tune in to learn about the E-Rate program, a vital federal resource helping K-12 schools secure funding for internet connectivity. Join our host Sammy and guests Cedric Lockhart and Janell Tennyson as they discuss sales leadership strategies, Cisco’s competitive edge, the significance of the five-year funding cycle, and common misconceptions about E-Rate funding. Class is now in session!HostSammy Brenner, Virtual Sales Leader, Cisco MerakiGuestsCedric Lockhart, Senior Director, Cisco Networking Sales for Public SectorCedric Lockhart has a passion for connecting with people and developing winning teams. While serving as Captain in the U.S. Marine Corps, he learned that the best leaders focus on the people, set a positive tone, develop plans that overachieve the objectives, and think BIG! He has carried those same core beliefs into his sales leadership career. Cedric currently leads the $3.5B Public Sector Networking Business. During his 15-year Cisco-career, Cedric has held a number of sales and sales leadership roles, including leading the Cisco Meraki Americas business, Enterprise and Service Provider business for Cisco AppDynamics, Mid-Atlantic Regional Leader for Enterprise, and other roles in corporate tech sales.Janell Tennyson, Sales Business Development, E-Rate LeadJanell Tennyson is E-Rate Lead for the Cisco Public Funding Team. Janell is an experienced grant writer with over 16 years working in the telecommunications industry. In her current role, she is responsible for overseeing the entire E-Rate process and educating the field, partners, and customers to better understand and effectively utilize and maintain compliance with E-Rate rules and regulations.

Recap the highlights of Cisco Live 2025 San Diego in this episode of Meraki Unboxed. From exciting product announcements to the growing impact of AI on the Cisco portfolio, we explore how innovation and customer focus took center stage. Tune in for insights into the event’s dynamic culture, networking opportunities, and what’s next for Cisco and its partners.HostSammy Brenner, Virtual Sales Leader, Cisco MerakiGuestsRachel Greene, Inside Sales Director, Cisco MerakiMike Yin is the Global Solution Engineering Director of Secure Network at Cisco. He is an experienced and successful technical sales leader with a proven track record in both startups and established companies. Having joined Meraki in 2012, Mike held sales engineering leadership positions in the biggest growth markets and propelled the business to over 60x revenue growth. Then, as the global SE leader, Mike helped establish Meraki as the primary platform for Cisco Networking and transformed the industry through cloud and simplicity. Mike is passionate about building a team culture that thrives on a sense of purpose in helping customers achieve their own mission. The team paved the way for many best practices such as demo mastery, API and ecosystem, and MEDDPICC adoption. This has not only resulted in astronomical revenue growth, but also a sustained world-class renewal rate. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Catch up from Cisco Live:: https://cisco.com/Announced at Cisco Live: https://www.cisco.com/?socialshare=video-livestream Powering the future of secure AI infrastructure: https://newsroom.cisco.com/c/r/newsroom/en/us/a/y2025/m06/cisco-powers-secure-infrastructure-for-the-ai-era.html Unveiling secure network architecture to accelerate workplace AI transformation: https://newsroom.cisco.com/c/r/newsroom/en/us/a/y2025/m06/cisco-unveils-secure-network-architecture-to-accelerate-workplace-ai-transformation.html Transforming security for agentic AI era, further fusing security into the network: https://newsroom.cisco.com/c/r/newsroom/en/us/a/y2025/m06/cisco-transforms-security-for-the-agentic-ai-era-further-fusing-security-into-the-network.html Powering AI-ready data centers, from hyperscale to enterprise: https://newsroom.cisco.com/c/r/newsroom/en/us/a/y2025/m06/cisco-powers-ai-ready-data-centers-from-hyperscale-to-enterprise.html Cisco 8000 Secure Routers: https://www.cisco.com/site/us/en/products/networking/sdwan-routers/cisco-8000-secure-routers/index.html Cisco C9350 Series Smart Switches: https://www.cisco.com/site/us/en/products/networking/switches/c9350-series-smart-switches/index.html Cisco C9610 Series Smart Switches: https://www.cisco.com/site/us/en/products/networking/switches/c9610-series-smart-switches/index.html Blogs:Cisco New Family of Cisco Smart Switches From AgenticOps to Assurance Meet the Cisco Deep Network Model Redefining Branch Networking Wi-Fi for the AI EnterpriseExpanding the Edge of Possibility

We’re back with another Meraki Unboxed episode where we unpack Cisco Meraki MV solutions and their role in blending physical security with IT networks. We’ll chat about how cloud-managed security and AI are making workspaces safe and introduce you to the new MV53X bullet and MV84X multi-imager cameras. Plus, find out how our new Cross-Camera Tracking feature is revolutionizing surveillance without using facial recognition. And sprinkled throughout the discussion are deployment strategies, industry use cases, and the scoop on upcoming physical security events. Listen now!Products MV53X PDP MV84X Datasheet (coming April 2025) Other Activations Build Physical Security Superpowers with Smart Bullet Cameras and Multi-Imagers Blog Meraki MV ISC West InvitationUpcoming April 10 WebinarHostTanner Yehlik, Technical Marketing Engineer, Cisco MerakiGuestsShashank Nalla is Product Manager of the Cisco Meraki smart camera portfolio, where he drives the development of cloud-managed AI-enabled smart camera solutions. With expertise in product strategy, hardware development, and cross-functional collaboration, he delivers innovative products that streamline modern physical security solutions. Prior to Meraki, Shashank worked at Osram, where he contributed to the development of advanced lighting and sensor products. His experience spans multiple industries, equipping him with a deep understanding of technology and customer needs to deliver impactful solutions.George Bentinck is Vice President of Product Management – IoT and Edge Intelligence at Cisco Meraki. He leads the strategic direction and growth of AI-enabled products, including MV smart cameras and MT smart sensors. Since joining Cisco through the 2012 Meraki acquisition, George has been instrumental in developing new product categories and expanding into new markets. With a background in sales engineering at Avaya and Nortel, George holds a Bachelor's degree in internet engineering from the University of Exeter. He lives in San Francisco and enjoys designing sensor systems for optimizing race car performance in his spare time.

Tune in to this Meraki Unboxed episode as we flip the script on cloud-managed switching. Discover the impact of the new Cisco Meraki MS150 access switch and its role in the Cisco portfolio—enabling exciting use cases with scalability and security. We’ll also discuss the latest developments in cloud-native IOS XE, the evolving capabilities of Catalyst 9000 Series Switches, and other trends and announcements on the horizon. Meraki MS150: https://meraki.cisco.com/product/switches/access-switches/ms150/ Cloud-Native IOS XE Documentation: https://documentation.meraki.com/MS/Cloud-Native_IOS_XE/Cloud-Native_IOS_XE_Overview Switching Community: https://community.meraki.com/t5/Switching/bd-p/switchingHostTanner Yehlik, Technical Marketing Engineer, Cisco MerakiGuestsNico Darrow, Senior Technical Marketing Engineer, Cisco MerakiKorey Rebello, Leader of Product Management, Cisco

The holiday season offers a wonderful opportunity for reflection, gratitude, and community giving. In this episode, we discover how Merakians are embodying these values through initiatives like Meraki Gives and the annual Movember fundraising event.HostSammy Brenner, Virtual Sales Leader, Cisco MerakiGuestsRacha Tfaili, Strategic Sales Manager, Service Provider, Cisco Lorenzo Garcia-Garth, Solutions Engineering Leader, CiscoDonations through Racha's Movember Page: https://us.movember.com/donate/details?memberId=15342078#amount For Information about the Movember Foundation and its mission: https://us.movember.com/?home

It’s almost October, which is Cybersecurity Awareness Month! In this special Cybersecurity Awareness Month episode of Meraki Unboxed, security experts discuss the evolution of cybersecurity, current trends, and key integration technologies. Tune in to learn about the importance of strong cybersecurity measures, the role of AI in threat mitigation, and best practices for lifecycle management. HostTanner Yehlik, Technical Marketing Engineer, Cisco Meraki GuestsChris Pacheco, Technical Marketing Engineer, Cisco Meraki Chris Weber, Product Manager, Cisco Meraki Check out the Meraki Security Hub to learn more about MX security and the power behind the platform: https://meraki.cisco.com/security-hub/ Want to hear more about cybersecurity? Tune into the Beers with Talos podcast, with new episodes every other Thursday. https://talosintelligence.com/podcasts/shows/beers_with_talos

In this episode of Meraki Unboxed, we explore the role of Cisco Enterprise Agreements in driving growth. We also delve into the evolution and expansion of Cisco Secure Connect and our guest shares valuable leadership strategies, customer feedback, and future plans for success. HostSammy Brenner, Virtual Sales Leader, Cisco Meraki GuestCliff Petersen, Sales Director, Software Acceleration and Secure Connect, Cisco Meraki Learn more about Cisco Enterprise Agreement and Cisco Secure Connect: https://www.cisco.com/site/us/en/buy/enterprise-agreement/index.html https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/products/plus-as-a-service/secure-connect.html

In this episode, we welcome Aleta Howell, Global Director, DEI Business & Recruiting Strategy at Cisco. Join us as we delve into Cisco’s collaboration with OneTen, a company that is disrupting traditional hiring practices to unlock career opportunities for diverse talent across the U.S. Discover Cisco’s success with the program, strategies for inclusive hiring and integration, and ways to engage with the mission. HostSammy Brenner, Virtual Sales Leader, Cisco Meraki GuestAleta Howell, Global Director, DEI Business & Recruiting Strategy, Cisco Learn more about the OneTen program: https://oneten.org/

In this episode, we sit down with Brink Sanders, Vice President of Global Networking Experience Sales at Cisco and Jen Kirkpatrick, Vice President of Global Sales at Cisco Meraki, to dive into the world of networking. Listen in as we learn all about Cisco Networking Experiences (NX). We discuss what NX is, how it merges the power of Cisco and Cisco Meraki, and our strategy to implement significant networking transformation. Our leaders also shed light on the challenges they’ve encountered along the way and learnings from change. Learn more about our Networking Experiences platform, product and services, capabilities at: Networking resources page: https://go2.cisco.com/NX_resources Cisco Networking Insider webinars: https://go2.cisco.com/NX_webinars+demos

In this episode, we dive into the exciting world of automation with the new Ansible collection for the Meraki dashboard API. Developed in collaboration with open source leader Red Hat, this automation platform opens up a world of possibilities for network admins and those interested in automation. We are joined by experts from Red Hat and Cisco Meraki to discuss the benefits of Ansible, the partnership between the two companies, and the use cases and future plans for this powerful tool. Tune in to learn more about this game-changing collaboration and the future of automation in the Meraki ecosystem.Host Tanner Yehlik—Technical Marketing Engineer, Cisco Meraki GuestsDafné Mendoza—Principal Product Manager, Network Automation, Red HatOren Brigg—Product Manager, Developer Platform and Ecosystem, Cisco MerakiLearn moreDevNet Learning Lab - Using Ansible with Cisco MerakiMeraki Marketplace - Red Hat Ansible Automation Platform

In this episode, we talk with Bernie Mehl, CEO of Meraki Marketplace partner Kisi, a cloud-based access control company. An expert in managing space growth using innovative and scalable technologies, Bernie has helped hundreds of organizations understand the operational, financial, and cultural impact that security and technology can have within facilities and IT management departments. Request a demo today. Host Tanner Yehlik—Technical Marketing Engineer, Meraki Product Management, Cisco Guest Bernie Mehl – CEO and Co-Founder, Kisi

In this episode, we discuss networking in harsh environments with guest Brock Richards, Senior Solution Architect at Nutrien—the world’s largest provider of crop inputs, services, and solutions—and Meraki Technical Marketing Engineer Leader Brennan Martin. Listen as they share the unique networking solutions they built for temperature-challenged environments and their future plans for the new MS130 and MS130R switches. Read the announcement Host Tanner Yehlik, Technical Marketing Engineer, Meraki Product Management, Cisco Guests Brennan Martin, Technical Marketing Engineer Leader, Meraki MS, Cisco Brock Richards, Senior Solution Architect, Nutrien