Job posting may be removed earlier if the position is filled or if a sufficient number of applications are received.
Digital experiences rely on a vast ecosystem of internal infrastructure, ISPs, cloud providers, SaaS applications and many other external services that are critically dependent on the Internet. Our customers are reliant on an exponentially increasing set of tools to improve their digital posture and solve problems in real time. But with so many tools, the problem solving process is confusing and inconsistent. While the business is losing money and productivity with system downtime, teams are spending critical man hours solving a problem while looking across a huge set of tools.
At Cisco Networking and ThousandEyes, we have a unique advantage. By tapping into the broad ecosystem and the totality of networking data at our fingertips, we can provide our customers with the appropriate context to solve their problems and drastically reduce their mean time to resolution. We can greatly expand Cisco’s revenue by meaningfully differentiating our customers digital experience when purchasing Cisco hardware.
Cisco Networking and ThousandEyes is seeking a dynamic Director of Product to help us evolve our AI/ML strategy and vision for the future. As a leader in Cisco’s biggest business unit ($34B+), you will work to build an AI/ML platform and feature set that leverages our unique and comprehensive data set in both the owned and unowned network. You’ll lead a talented team of product managers while working closely with the rest of the Cisco Networking product team and the broader assurance, collaboration, and security teams to drive better customer outcomes.
As Director of Product, you’ll take ownership of the overall Cisco Networking AI/ML strategy and roadmap, build native AI/ML functionality into the set of Networking products, shape our data platform strategy, and work to make our customers' lives easier. You will interface with cross-functional teams to solve existing challenges in new, innovative ways, and contribute to building the product teams responsible for driving our next phase of growth.
Define Product Vision & Strategy: Shape and communicate a clear product vision for our AI-drive intelligence that aligns with Cisco Networking’s long-term goals.
Own Product Roadmap: Create a compelling product roadmap that addresses customer needs, market trends, and emerging technologies.
Team Leadership: Build, lead, and mentor a team of product managers, fostering a culture of innovation, collaboration, and customer-centricity.
Cross-functional Collaboration: Collaborate with engineering, design, go-to-market teams, and Cisco business units to bring products from concept to market.
Customer-Centric Product Development: Engage with customers to understand pain points and future needs, ensuring that products deliver exceptional business value.
AI-Driven Development: Identify novel ways for our team to leverage and use AI/ML to help solve real customer problems and build these capabilities into the product.
Data Platform Development: Help guide our platform first approach, ensuring we build a scalable, extensible, and robust data platform that empowers all teams at Cisco Networking to build native AI/ML capabilities into the product.
Interface to Cisco’s Central AI Team: Be the face of Cisco Networking as we collaborate and build with the Central AI team.
15+ years of product management experience, with a proven track record of leading enterprise/SaaS software products.
3+ years of experience leading a high performing team in a fast-paced environment.
3+ years of experience building AI/ML products at scale that leverage cutting edge technologies (large language models, natural language processing, neural networks, etc.)
Bachelor’s degree in computer science or engineering or equivalent technical experience, higher level degree (MBA, MS, etc.) a bonus but not required.
Strong understanding of networking, cloud-based services, and/or application monitoring.
Excellent communication and leadership skills, with the ability to influence stakeholders at all levels.
Demonstrated success in partnering with large enterprise teams and navigating matrixed organizations.
A strong sense of ownership and accountability
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.
Message to applicants applying to work in the U.S. and/or Canada:The starting salary range posted for this position is $233,900.00 to $330,400.00 and reflects the projected salary range for new hires in this position in U.S. and/or Canada locations, not including incentive compensation*, equity, or benefits.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:
$233,900.00 - $380,000.00Non-Metro New York state & Washington state:
$220,900.00 - $344,300.00* 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.
Skills Required
- 10+ years of product management experience leading enterprise or SaaS software products
- 3+ years leading a high-performing team in a fast-paced environment
- 3+ years building AI/ML products at scale using technologies such as large language models, natural language processing, or neural networks
- Bachelor’s degree in computer science, engineering, or equivalent technical experience
- Strong understanding of networking, cloud-based services, and/or application monitoring
- Excellent communication and leadership skills with the ability to influence stakeholders at all levels
- Demonstrated success partnering with large enterprise teams and navigating matrixed organizations
- Strong sense of ownership and accountability
- MBA, MS, or other higher-level degree
Cisco Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Cisco and has not been reviewed or approved by Cisco.
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Healthcare Strength — Health coverage is described as robust with multiple plan options and access to onsite/virtual LifeConnections Health Centers on major campuses. Company materials also highlight mental-health resources and comprehensive preventive care, supporting strong core medical benefits.
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Leave & Time Off Breadth — Time away includes company‑wide recharge days, a paid birthday, a year‑end shutdown, and paid Critical Time Off for emergencies. Paid volunteer days further expand opportunities to step away and recharge.
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Parental & Family Support — Policies include a global minimum for paid parental leave for primary caregivers, caregiving concierge services, and on‑site children’s learning centers in select locations. In the U.S., family‑building support is consolidated under Carrot with a defined lifetime maximum, indicating structured assistance across fertility, preservation, adoption, and surrogacy.
Cisco Insights
What We Do
Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO) enables people to make powerful connections--whether in business, education, philanthropy, or creativity. Cisco hardware, software, and service offerings are used to create the Internet solutions that make networks possible--providing easy access to information anywhere, at any time. Cisco was founded in 1984 by a small group of computer scientists from Stanford University. Since the company's inception, Cisco engineers have been leaders in the development of Internet Protocol (IP)-based networking technologies. Today, with more than 71,000 employees worldwide, this tradition of innovation continues with industry-leading products and solutions in the company's core development areas of routing and switching, as well as in advanced technologies such as home networking, IP telephony, optical networking, security, storage area networking, and wireless technology. In addition to its products, Cisco provides a broad range of service offerings, including technical support and advanced services. Cisco sells its products and services, both directly through its own sales force as well as through its channel partners, to large enterprises, commercial businesses, service providers, and consumers.
