Software Engineering Technical Leader

Job posting may be removed earlier if the position is filled or if a sufficient number of applications are received.

Meet the team:

Our team architects and builds high-performance cloud security data planes that power Cisco Secure Access and other next-generation security services, leveraging technologies such as VPP to deliver secure, scalable, and low-latency packet processing. We foster a culture of technical leadership, engineering excellence, rigorous testing, and open-source innovation to solve some of the most challenging problems in cloud networking and security.

Your Impact:

Leads the design and evolution of cloud security data plane architecture built on VPP across Cisco. Drives performance, scalability, and reliability of distributed systems that enforce security policy at scale, while contributing to the VPP open-source ecosystem and advancing AI-driven engineering and operations practices.

Key Responsibilities

• Architect and lead development of large-scale cloud security data plane systems using VPP

• Define and drive performance benchmarks (throughput, latency, scale, resiliency) for security workloads

• Design systems for secure traffic processing, inspection, and policy enforcement across distributed environments

• Lead cross-team initiatives spanning data plane, control plane, and cloud infrastructure

• Drive meaningful contributions to VPP open-source (features, optimizations, upstream alignment)

• Apply and promote AI/AIOps practices for observability, anomaly detection, and operational efficiency in security systems

• Mentor engineers and guide design and implementation best practices

• Lead root cause analysis for complex production issues and drive systemic improvements

• Influence technical roadmap and align internal architecture with upstream VPP direction

Minimum Qualifications:

• BS/CS Degree

• Expertience in packet processing, networking, distributed systems, and cloud security data planes

• 6+yrs C/C++ Development experience

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience with VPP/DPDK and equivalent technologies

• Experience to design, code, and deliver complex systems and critical components in production environments

At Cisco, we’re revolutionizing how data and infrastructure connect and protect organizations in the AI era – and beyond. We’ve been innovating fearlessly for 40 years to create solutions that power how humans and technology work together across the physical and digital worlds. These solutions provide customers with unparalleled security, visibility, and insights across the entire digital footprint.

Fueled by the depth and breadth of our technology, we experiment and create meaningful solutions. Add to that our worldwide network of doers and experts, and you’ll see that the opportunities to grow and build are limitless. We work as a team, collaborating with empathy to make really big things happen on a global scale. Because our solutions are everywhere, our impact is everywhere. 

We are Cisco, and our power starts with you. 

Individual pay is determined by the candidate's hiring location, market conditions, job-related skillset, experience, qualifications, education, certifications, and/or training. The full salary range for certain locations is listed below. For locations not listed below, the recruiter can share more details about compensation for the role in your location during the hiring process.

U.S. employees are offered benefits, subject to Cisco’s plan eligibility rules, which include medical, dental and vision insurance, a 401(k) plan with a Cisco matching contribution, paid parental leave, short and long-term disability coverage, and basic life insurance. Please see the Cisco careers site to discover more benefits and perks.  Employees may be eligible to receive grants of Cisco restricted stock units, which vest following continued employment with Cisco for defined periods of time.

U.S. employees are eligible for paid time away as described below, subject to Cisco’s policies:

• 10 paid holidays per full calendar year, plus 1 floating holiday for non-exempt employees

• 1 paid day off for employee’s birthday, paid year-end holiday shutdown, and 4 paid days off for personal wellness determined by Cisco

• Non-exempt employees** receive 16 days of paid vacation time per full calendar year, accrued at rate of 4.92 hours per pay period for full-time employees

• Exempt employees participate in Cisco’s flexible vacation time off program, which has no defined limit on how much vacation time eligible employees may use (subject to availability and some business limitations)

• 80 hours of sick time off provided on hire date and each January 1st thereafter, and up to 80 hours of unused sick time carried forward from one calendar year to the next

• Additional paid time away may be requested to deal with critical or emergency issues for family members

• Optional 10 paid days per full calendar year to volunteer

For non-sales roles, employees are also eligible to earn annual bonuses subject to Cisco’s policies.

Employees on sales plans earn performance-based incentive pay on top of their base salary, which is split between quota and non-quota components, subject to the applicable Cisco plan. For quota-based incentive pay, Cisco typically pays as follows:

• .75% of incentive target for each 1% of revenue attainment up to 50% of quota;

• 1.5% of incentive target for each 1% of attainment between 50% and 75%;

• 1% of incentive target for each 1% of attainment between 75% and 100%; and

• Once performance exceeds 100% attainment, incentive rates are at or above 1% for each 1% of attainment with no cap on incentive compensation.

For non-quota-based sales performance elements such as strategic sales objectives, Cisco may pay 0% up to 125% of target. Cisco sales plans do not have a minimum threshold of performance for sales incentive compensation to be paid.

The applicable full salary ranges for this position, by specific state, are listed below:

New York City Metro Area:

Non-Metro New York state & Washington state:

* For quota-based sales roles on Cisco’s sales plan, the ranges provided in this posting include base pay and sales target incentive compensation combined.

** Employees in Illinois, whether exempt or non-exempt, will participate in a unique time off program to meet local requirements.