Principal Software Engineer

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

The Common Hardware Group (CHG) creates innovative hardware platforms central to the AI era, powering Cisco’s core Switching, Routing, and Wireless products for organizations globally. Our innovations in silicon, optics, and hardware platforms—like Silicon One—are shaping the technology industry! We're a worldwide team of creative experts, bringing our unique backgrounds and ambitious ideas to push boundaries and help each other grow. Because full product development—from design, to qualification, to production—is within our team, we’re able to think differently, experiment more, and work quickly. Join us to power the future of the digital world!

As a Principal Software Engineer for the Silicon One Customer Engineering team, you will lead and mentor a multifaceted group of software engineers and collaborate closely with our customers and Silicon One Engineering teams in the USA and Europe. You will be at the forefront of leading, supporting and delivering sophisticated software development kits that are integral to Cisco's networking solutions to Silicon One Customers.

Key responsibilities:

• Supervise the day-to-day activities of the team. Ensure that Silicon One Software support goals are met and align with the company’s strategic direction.
• Responsible for reviewing the regression backlog, ensuring timely execution of projects, and highlighting and calling out roadblocks as needed.
• Work closely with Cisco Silicon Customers to understand their needs and deliver features and functionality that improve their success.
• Ensure that all resources vital for your team’s success are available and effectively used. This includes planning, staffing, budgeting, and handling job allocations.
• Participate in planning with senior management and other team leads to improve processes and address technical challenges.

You will collaborate with the Customers, Partners, Silicon One software and hardware teams to synchronize development, test and support activities and align on product roadmaps and features as well as manage and mentor local team in North America. You will engage with various internal teams within Cisco to gather requirements, deliver solutions, and support the integration of SAI and SDK functionalities, including working very closely with the rest of our Core ASIC Group (CAG). In addition, you’ll collaborate with leaders across different functions within the organization to drive projects forward and ensure alignment with broader business objectives.

Your interactions will also include Hardware Engineering, Product Management/Marketing, Product Operations, Global Supplier Management (GSM), External Vendors/Suppliers, Manufacturing Operations, and EMS/JDM partners.

You are an adept leader with a strong background in leading software development teams and projects, ideally with experience in NOS-networking, ASIC, SDKs and networking technologies. You also possess a comprehensive understanding of software development, networking protocols, and hardware integration. You're an outstanding communicator, capable of breaking down sophisticated technical issues for a variety of audiences, and your strong problem-solving skill allow you to approach issues creatively and effectively. You are a collaborative teammate, and your forward-thinking management style is marked by outstanding organizational abilities, leadership, accountability, and transparency.

• Bachelor’s degree in CS/EE or a related technical field with 12+ years of software development and management experience, OR a Master’s degree with 10+ years of related experience.
• 5+ years of experience in a formal people management or team lead role for software engineering teams.
• 8+ years of professional experience developing software using C, C++, Python, or Java.
• 5+ years of experience designing or implementing networking protocols (e.g., TCP/IP, Ethernet) in a production environment.
• 5+ years of experience applying Agile development methodologies and project management tools such as JIRA or Confluence.
• 5+ years of experience managing the software release lifecycle for external customer deliverables, including the resolution of technical escalations.

• Experience with SONiC, SAI or another Network OS.
• Experience with NPU/ASIC software architecture, design, and development, including the application of SDKs in networking systems.
• Prior work with large-scale software systems and distributed computing.
• Experience leading projects that involve complex system integration and customization.
• Experience in working with hardware teams, quality assurance, and customer support to deliver end-to-end solutions.

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.