Principal Engineer - Cisco IQ Services and Applications

Posted 4 Days Ago
Be an Early Applicant
Hiring Remotely in North Carolina, USA
Remote
223K-417K Annually
Expert/Leader
Cloud • Information Technology • Internet of Things • Professional Services • Software
The Role
Lead architecture and technical vision for Cisco IQ Services, designing scalable backend systems that integrate agentic AI and LLM-driven workflows. Define standards for prompt engineering, model orchestration, and MCP integrations; mentor engineering leaders; influence multi-year roadmaps; and ensure production-grade infrastructure using IaC and cloud-agnostic distributed architectures.
Summary Generated by Built In
The application window is expected to close on: 09/21/2026

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

Overview

At Cisco, we are redefining how our customers experience technology through the power of Cisco IQ Services and Applications. Our mission is to transform CX delivery by building intelligent, scalable platforms that anticipate needs rather than just reacting to them. As a member of our global, diverse, and AI-spec driven team, you will operate at the absolute frontier of innovation. We are deeply committed to leveraging the latest advancements in AI to build robust solutions that solve complex technical challenges for our enterprise customers, fostering a culture of curiosity, collaboration, and rapid iteration. 

Your Impact 

In this role, you will act as the primary technical authority, shaping the overarching vision and future of our digital services. You will define the architectural strategy for the Cisco IQ Services framework, championing an Agentic AI-first approach to complex workflows including automated network testing, seamless migrations, and post-quantum assessments. By establishing the standards for LLM-driven workflows, MCP integrations, and advanced prompt orchestration, you will drive the evolution of the intelligent backend systems that power our next generation of products.

Core Responsibilities
  • Define and Architect the high-level strategy for scalable backend systems, ensuring the seamless integration of agentic AI into our core service delivery.  
  • Provide Technical Leadership across the organization, setting the vision and mentoring engineering leaders to ensure architectural consistency and long-term technical excellence.  
  • Influence and Align stakeholders across the business to define multi-year technical roadmaps, ensuring that architectural standards align with global innovation goals.  
  • Establish Standards for complex prompt engineering and model interactions, ensuring the reliability, security, and high-fidelity of AI-driven outputs at scale.  
Minimum Qualifications
  • Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related technical field, or equivalent practical experience. 
  • 12+ years of experience in back-end software architecture and core software development using Python, Rust, or similar high-performance languages. 
  • Proven track record of architecting and deploying large-scale, AI-spec driven applications and complex agentic workflows. 
  • Demonstrated mastery of infrastructure-as-code and architectural automation, specifically Terraform and Ansible. 
  • Extensive experience in leading large-scale technical initiatives and influencing cross-functional engineering organizations through the full software development lifecycle. 
Preferred Qualifications 
  •  Deep domain expertise in networking protocols, large-scale infrastructure management, and system-level design. 
  • Advanced experience in fine-tuning Large Language Models (LLMs) and deploying domain-specific AI architectures into production environments. 
  • Expert-level proficiency in designing and managing cloud-agnostic, distributed architectures across AWS, GCP, and private cloud environments. 
  • Recognized thought leader in the industry, with a history of open-source contributions or research showcasing complex, production-grade software architecture. 
  • Exceptional communication and executive presence, with the proven ability to influence cross-functional stakeholders and translate high-level technical vision into actionable, long-term business outcomes. 
Why Cisco? 

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 $223,100.00 to $301,100.00 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:

$250,600.00 - $416,900.00

Non-Metro New York state & Washington state:

$241,400.00 - $371,000.00

* 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

  • Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or related field, or equivalent experience.
  • 12+ years of back-end software architecture and core software development experience using Python, Rust, or similar high-performance languages.
  • Proven track record of architecting and deploying large-scale, AI-spec driven applications and complex agentic workflows.
  • Demonstrated mastery of infrastructure-as-code and architectural automation, specifically Terraform and Ansible.
  • Extensive experience leading large-scale technical initiatives and influencing cross-functional engineering organizations through the full SDLC.
  • Deep domain expertise in networking protocols, large-scale infrastructure management, and system-level design.
  • Advanced experience fine-tuning LLMs and deploying domain-specific AI architectures into production.
  • Expert-level proficiency designing and managing cloud-agnostic distributed architectures across AWS, GCP, and private cloud environments.
  • History of open-source contributions or research demonstrating complex, production-grade software architecture.
  • Exceptional communication and executive presence; ability to influence cross-functional stakeholders and translate vision into outcomes.

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.

  • 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.
  • 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.
  • 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.

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The Company
HQ: San Jose, CA
77,500 Employees
Year Founded: 1984

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.

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