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.
What will you do at Ciena?
Reporting to the Senior Director of the Photonic Component development group, you will play a key technical leadership role in identifying, evaluating, developing, and maturing advanced photonic technologies for Ciena’s future generations of optical products.
You will be responsible for maintaining a strong understanding of emerging technologies and industry trends in areas such as high-speed photodetectors, optical transmitters and modulators, semiconductor lasers, integrated photonics, and advanced optical integration technologies. You help identify the technologies that can provide meaningful improvements in performance, power consumption, integration, cost, reliability, and scalability.
Working closely with internal photonic design, system architecture, product development, and manufacturing teams, as well as external technology partners, research organizations, universities, and suppliers, you will coordinate technology investigations from early technical assessment through proof-of-concept and technology demonstration.
This role provides the opportunity to work at the forefront of optical communications technology and directly influence the technologies enabling Ciena’s future products.
Roles and Responsibilities
Identify, monitor, and assess emerging technologies and industry trends relevant to Ciena’s current and future optical products, with particular focus on high-speed photodetectors, optical transmitters and modulators, semiconductor lasers, integrated photonics, and advanced photonic integration technologies.
Maintain a strong understanding of technology developments across the optical communications ecosystem, including suppliers, start-ups, universities, research institutes, foundries, and industry competitors.
Evaluate new technologies against Ciena’s future product requirements, including optical and electrical performance, bandwidth, power consumption, thermal performance, integration density, reliability, manufacturability, cost, and scalability.
Define and lead advanced technology development activities aimed at demonstrating the feasibility and performance of new photonic technologies.
Establish technical evaluation plans, proof-of-concept activities, experiments, prototypes, and technology demonstrators required to characterize and validate emerging technologies.
Analyze experimental results and technology performance to identify technical limitations, development gaps, risks, and opportunities for further optimization.
Monitor the competitive and technology landscape and communicate significant developments that could influence Ciena’s product or technology strategy.
Collaborate with the advanced technology team members, product development team, test team and laboratory teams to ensure coordinated development all the way through an effective transition to productization.
Required Qualifications / Profile
Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Physics, Photonics, Optics, or a related technical discipline, with a minimum of 12 years of experience in photonic technology development, optical communications, or a technology-oriented product development environment. A Master’s degree or Ph.D. is an asset.
Strong knowledge of photonic components and technologies used in high-speed optical communication systems.
Experience and/or strong technical knowledge in several of the following areas is highly desirable: high-speed photodetectors, semiconductor lasers, optical modulators and transmitters, silicon photonics, III-V photonics, heterogeneous photonic integration, optical packaging, and high-speed optoelectronic components.
Demonstrated ability to evaluate emerging technologies, identify their advantages and limitations, and assess their potential applicability to future products.
Experience developing and executing technology evaluation plans, proof-of-concept demonstrations, experimental programs, and technology development projects.
Ability to operate effectively across internal R&D organizations and with external technology partners, suppliers, universities, and research organizations.
Rigorous, structured, and analytical approach with a strong sense of initiative and problem-solving capability.
Ability to synthesize complex technical information and communicate clear conclusions, recommendations, and technology strategies to both technical and management audiences.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills
Pay Range: The annual salary range for this position is$137,900 - $220,300 USD.
Pay ranges at Ciena are designed to accommodate variations in knowledge, skills, experience, market conditions, and locations, reflecting our diverse products, industries, and lines of business. Please note that the pay range information provided in this posting pertains specifically to the primary location, which is the top location listed in case multiple locations are available.
Non-Sales employees may be eligible for a discretionary incentive bonus, while Sales employees may be eligible for a sales commission. In addition to competitive compensation, Ciena offers a comprehensive benefits package, including medical, dental, and vision plans, participation in 401(K) (USA) & DCPP (Canada) with company matching, Employee Stock Purchase Program (ESPP), Employee Assistance Program (EAP), company-paid holidays, paid sick leave, and vacation time. We also comply with all applicable laws regarding Paid Family Leave and other leaves of absence.
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.
Skills Required
- Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Physics, Photonics, or a related technical discipline
- Minimum 12 years of experience in photonic technology development, optical communications, or technology-oriented product development
- Strong knowledge of photonic components and technologies used in high-speed optical communication systems
- Ability to evaluate emerging technologies, identify advantages and limitations, and assess applicability to future products
- Experience developing and executing technology evaluation plans, proof-of-concept demonstrations, experimental programs, and technology development projects
- Ability to collaborate across internal R&D organizations and with external technology partners, suppliers, universities, and research organizations
- Rigorous, structured, analytical, proactive, and capable of solving complex technical problems
- Ability to synthesize complex technical information and communicate conclusions, recommendations, and technology strategies to technical and management audiences
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills
- Strong technical knowledge or experience in high-speed photodetectors, semiconductor lasers, optical modulators and transmitters, silicon photonics, III-V photonics, heterogeneous photonic integration, optical packaging, or high-speed optoelectronic components
- Master's degree or Ph.D.
Ciena Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Ciena and has not been reviewed or approved by Ciena.
-
Fair & Transparent Compensation — Pay is often characterized as competitive or above-market in certain roles and regions, with references to market-aligned salary ranges and transparency around pay bands.
-
Healthcare Strength — Health coverage is frequently framed as comprehensive, including medical, dental, and vision, with indications that coverage can extend to dependents and is viewed as a meaningful component of total rewards.
-
Leave & Time Off Breadth — Time-off offerings are described as flexible and generous, including Flex/uncapped PTO in many cases and additional paid time for volunteering.
Ciena Insights
What We Do
Ciena (NYSE: CIEN) is a global leader in networking systems, services, and software. We build the world’s most adaptive networks to enable our customers to deliver richer, more connected experiences for all users. At our core, Ciena is a company rooted in people. We prioritize deep, collaborative relationships within our teams and alongside our customers, partners, and communities around the world. For three-plus decades, we’ve brought our humanity to our relentless pursuit of innovation. We continue to lead the evolution of networking with a strong track record of industry firsts. As end-user expectations skyrocket, our customers and their networks must transform. Ciena powers this transformation by driving next-generation solutions built for maximum openness and agility—today and into the future. Corporate/Brand Values: • Customer First • Integrity • Velocity • Innovation • Outstanding People We're the perfect size for you to make an impact. W Only Ciena has the depth of expertise and the culture of collaboration and partnership required to help our partners evolve. We do this by strategically integrating hardware, services, and software in an open environment to ensure our clients’ networks are ‘fit for flexibility’ today and into the f
Why Work With Us
We are known for our industry-firsts, including the first coherent optical solution, converged packet-optical platform, and intelligence automation platform. Our commitment extends beyond innovation, logging in over 35,000 volunteer hours and $2 million to worthy causes in 2023. We're the perfect size and culture for you to make a difference.
Gallery
