Software Engineer- Embedded Developer- C/C++

Cisco; Bengaluru; On-site; INR 2,400,000 - 4,000,000; Full time

Job summary

Cisco's IIOT team in Bengaluru is seeking a senior software engineer to drive the design and development of next‑generation control plane and data plane software for industrial networking platforms.

You will apply AI assist technologies to translate complex requirements into robust, scalable solutions, lead major features, mentor teams, and help protect Cisco's global infrastructure with secure, high‑performing software.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in CS/EE or related field.
• Experience with control plane or data plane software and data structures.
• Strong Linux kernel, OS internals, and driver experience.
• Proficient in C/C++ coding.
• Experience in networking product software/firmware.
• Knowledge of architecture and system design.
• Experience with IXIA/Sniffer is a plus.
• Technical leadership in high-performance teams.
• Hands-on with Gen AI assistant technologies and NLP tools.

Responsibilities

• Design and develop IIoT hardware platforms, ensuring integration between hardware and software layers.
• Design and development of control plane and data plane software for Cisco IIOT Switching, Routing products.
• Design and develop low-level software components, including BSP, device drivers and kernel modules.
• Analyse requirements and problem statements to come with right software designs and solutions. To be able to write details Design documents and Functional Specifications.
• To Code and Unit Test Software components and modules. It is required to have strong white- box testing and automating skills. Triage, debug, and root cause simulation, software bring-up, and customer failures
• Work with local and remote teams to review Product Requirements Document, to collaborate on SW Functional and Design Specifications, Unit and Integration test plans. Also responsible for reviewing test strategy and test plans for Functional and System Test teams.
• To be able to innovate and come up with new ideas that can lead to filing patents and creating IP value for the company

Skills

C/C++ programming

Linux kernel knowledge

Networking software

Problem solving

Gen AI / NLP basics

Technical leadership

Debugging & verification

L2/L3 protocols familiarity

CCNA/CCNP/CCIE desirable

Education

Bachelor's degree in CS/EE or related

Master’s degree in CS/EE or related

Tools

IXIA

Sniffer

Job description

Meet the Team

Join the Cisco IIOT team in product development for Industrial IOT switching and routing products that transforms industrial operations. Cisco's IIOT team provides an outstanding, unique experience for software engineers by combining the resources offered by a sizeable multi-geography organization and a large campus (with an on-site gym, healthcare, café, social interest groups, and philanthropy) with the startup culture and breadth of growth opportunities that working in a smaller teams can provide.

Meet the Team

Join the Cisco IIOT team in product development for Industrial IOT switching and routing products that transforms industrial operations. Cisco's IIOT team provides an outstanding, unique experience for software engineers by combining the resources offered by a sizeable multi-geography organization and a large campus (with an on-site gym, healthcare, café, social interest groups, and philanthropy) with the startup culture and breadth of growth opportunities that working in a smaller teams can provide.

Your Impact

In this pivotal role, you will drive the design and development of next-generation Control Plane and Data Plane software for Cisco's groundbreaking Networking and Network Security Platforms. Demonstrating AI and AI assist technologies, you will translate complex requirements into robust, scalable solutions, directly influencing the security and performance of Cisco's global infrastructure. You will lead significant features, innovate new intellectual property, and play a crucial part in shaping the future of secure networking.

Responsibilities

• Design and development of IIoT hardware platforms, ensuring seamless integration between hardware and software layers.
• Design and development of control plane and data plane software for Cisco IIOT Switching, Routing products.
• Design and develop low-level software components, including BSP, device drivers and kernel modules.
• Analyse requirements and problem statements to come with right software designs and solutions. To be able to write details Design documents and Functional Specifications.
• To Code and Unit Test Software components and modules. It is required to have strong white- box testing and automating skills. Triage, debug, and root cause simulation, software bring-up, and customer failures
• Work with local and remote teams to review Product Requirements Document, to collaborate on SW Functional and Design Specifications, Unit and Integration test plans. Also responsible for reviewing test strategy and test plans for Functional and System Test teams.
• To be able to innovate and come up with new ideas that can lead to filing patents and creating IP value for the company

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelors (8-12 years) or Master’s degree(6-10 years) in Computer Science, EE/ECE or related fields.
• Prior work experience with control plane software or data plane software, data structures, Wireless experience (802.11ac/ax/be), Linux/RTOS/Networking OS internals
• Strong understanding of OS (e.g. Linux, RTOS, Unix) and experience working with Linux kernel, device drivers, and BSPs.
• Proficient in writing quality code in C/C++.
• Experience in developing software/firmware for networking products.
• Excellent knowledge of software architecture and system design.
• Experience using Traffic generators/Analyzers such as IXIA/Sniffer is a plus.
• Technical leadership experience in leading high performance teams to provide technical leadership for designing and implementing quality features and solutions.
• Hands on experience with Gen AI assistant technologies, natural language processing (NLP) or Gen AI technologies (OpenAI, Gemini, MCP, Agentic AI etc..)

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with debugging and verification methodologies
• You have hands-on development experience on L2, L3 protocols.
• Cisco Networking certificates such as CCNA, CCNP, CCIE are desirable.

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.