Director, Software Engineering | C++, Go, Python, SONiC, People Leadership | 15+ years, Bangalore

Cisco Systems, Inc.; Bengaluru; On-site; INR 6,000,000 - 12,000,000; Full time

Job summary

Cisco Systems, Inc. in Bengaluru, India invites a Director of Software Engineering and Site Lead to head an engineering organization focused on SONiC development across platform enablement, manageability, control plane, and DevOps.

The role partners with US teams to grow talent, shape the future of open networking, and build a diverse, high-performing team in a fast-paced environment.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in computer science, computer engineering, electrical engineering, or related field; 15+ years of software engineering experience.
• 5+ years managing engineering managers or leading multiple software teams.
• 5+ years delivering production software on Linux using C++, Python, Go, or similar.
• 3+ years delivering software across multiple engineering components (planning, execution, release, operations).
• Experience leading software delivery across multiple components and partnering with cross-functional teams.

Responsibilities

• Lead engineering teams and managers to deliver SONiC capabilities across platform enablement, manageability, control plane, and DevOps.
• Serve as the India site lead, setting vision, culture, priorities, and collaboration with US counterparts and global teams.
• Own hiring, workforce planning, performance management, and succession planning while building a diverse, high-performing organization.
• Develop engineering managers and technical talent through coaching, career growth, knowledge sharing, and opportunities to lead complex initiatives.
• Drive engineering excellence, customer impact, and engagement with SONiC open-source and networking communities.

Skills

Engineering leadership

Distributed systems

Linux development

C++ / Python

Talent development

Education

Bachelor's degree in CS/Engineering

Master's degree (Preferred)

Job description

Meet the Team

The Cisco Distributed System Engineering (DSE) group is at the forefront of developing products that power the largest networks in the world. The networking industry is going through a massive transformation to build the next generation infrastructure to meet the needs of AI/ML workloads and continuously increasing internet users and applications. We are uniquely positioned to capture that market transition.

This team builds products by harnessing the potential of open-source technologies while pushing the boundaries on Systems and Silicon Architecture. They are developers and leaders who are passionate about tackling complex technology, building large-scale distributed systems, and comfortable working with open-source communities and technologies. You will be part of a fast-paced work environment and responsible for end-to-end product development and production support.

Your Impact

As the Director of Software Engineering and Site Lead in India, you will lead a high-performing engineering organization responsible for SONiC development across platform enablement, manageability, control plane, and DevOps. You will partner closely with US-based engineering teams, grow technical talent, and help shape the future of open networking at a scale.

• Lead engineering teams and managers deliver reliable SONiC capabilities across platform enablement, manageability, control plane, and DevOps.

• Serve as the India team site lead, establishing vision, culture, organizational priorities, and strong collaboration with US counterparts and global engineering teams.

• Own hiring, workforce planning, performance management, succession planning, and retention while building a diverse, inclusive, and high-performing organization.

• Develop engineering managers and technical talent through coaching, career growth, knowledge sharing, and opportunities to lead complex technical initiatives.

• Drive engineering excellence, innovation, customer impact, and active engagement with the SONiC open-source and networking communities.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in computer science, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or a related technical field, plus 15+ years of professional software engineering experience.

• 5+ years of experience managing engineering managers or leading multiple software engineering teams.

• 5+ years of experience developing or operating network operating systems, distributed systems, cloud infrastructure, or control-plane/data-plane software.

• 3+ years of experience delivering production software on Linux using C++, Python, Go, or equivalent systems programming languages.

• Experience leading software delivery across multiple engineering components, including planning, execution, release, and operational support.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master's degree in computer science, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or related technical field.

• Experience with networking, SONiC, open networking, network operating systems, or cloud-scale infrastructure.

• Experience across platform enablement, hardware abstraction, manageability, control plane, automation, and DevOps.

• Experience leading geographically distributed engineering organizations of 50 or more employees.

• Contributions to open-source projects, industry standards, technical communities, patents, publications, or conference presentations.

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.