Software Engineering Technical Leader

The application window is expected to close on: 08/04/2026 Job posting may be removed earlier if the position is filled or if a sufficient number of applications are received . Meet the Team: The Cisco Distributed System Engineering (DSE) group owns the development of products that power the world’s largest networks, driving the industry’s transformation to support the growing demands of AI/ML workloads and increasing internet usage. By using open-source technologies and advancing Systems and Silicon Architecture, the team builds large-scale distributed systems, collaborates with open-source communities, and delivers end-to-end product development and production support in a fast-paced environment.

As a Networking Engineer, you'll join an agile team engaged in the design, development and testing data-center features set in Cisco 8000 Platform using SONiC network operating system. In this role you’ll have chance to define, develop and learn about many feature sets such as L2/L3 forwarding, ACLs, QoS, Mirroring, etc.  Building and delivering data plane and control plane software  Developing ‘forwarding’ and ‘services’ data plane feature sets  Coding in C++ and Python to produce clean, maintainable code  Minimum Qualifications Bachelors + 12 years of related experience, or Masters + 8 years of related experience, or PhD + 5 years of related experience.   Experience in developing, maintaining, and enhancing the FBoss Test Portal or similar testing portals, including specific contributions to test automation frameworks, portal feature implementations, or performance improvements.  Experience with the Switch Abstraction Interface (SAI), such as integrating or debugging SAI components within network switch environments.   Experience with Python, C, C++, GO or similar programming language, demonstrated through the creation of automation scripts, test cases, or tooling relevant to FBoss and network infrastructure testing.

Experience with C++ Knowledge of Linux Kernel Knowledge of Networking protocols such as TCP/IP, BGP, VxLAN, EVPN, ACLs Experience using debugging tools such as GDB, PDB  Understanding of tools such as GIT, Jira, Jenkins and CI/CD pipeline tools  Practical experience working with the Silicon One SDK, including development, testing, or deployment of network solutions leveraging this SDK. 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 $177,600.00 to $257,400.00 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.