Hardware Design Engineer Technical Lead

Cisco Systems; San Jose (CA); On-site; USD 172,000 - 245,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental, vision insurance

401(k) with Cisco matching

Paid parental leave

Disability coverage

Life insurance

Paid time off

Job summary

Cisco Systems is seeking a Hardware Design Technical Lead to shape the next generation Hyperscaler Switch hardware, based on Silicon One and other merchant ASICs. You will own system and board specifications, schematic capture, FPGA/ASIC bring-up, and cross-team collaborations across ASIC, DFT, SI, software, and manufacturing.

Bring-up and debugging in lab environments with scopes and analyzers, plus liaison with suppliers, are key parts of the role.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's, Master's, or PhD in EE/CE/Telecom with strong fundamentals.
• Experience with high-speed board design and bring-up.
• Proficient with schematics/Layout and hardware bring-up
• Experience collaborating with software and manufacturing teams.

Responsibilities

• Define and design the next generation Hyperscaler Switch hardware based on Silicon One and/or merchant ASIC.
• Lead system and board level specification, schematic capture, FPGA/ASIC bring-up and troubleshooting.
• Collaborate with ASIC, DFT, SI, software and manufacturing teams to resolve design issues.
• Debug in labs using scopes and analyzers to validate hardware behavior.
• Serve as technical liaison with major component suppliers.

Skills

Strong communication skills

Teamwork

Debugging in lab

System bring-up

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering or Computer Engineering or Telecommunications

Master's degree in Electrical Engineering or Computer Engineering or Telecommunications

PhD in Electrical Engineering or Computer Engineering

Tools

Verilog HDL

VHDL

PCB design

Schematic capture

FPGA design

Python

Tcl

PCIe

I2C

SPI

MDC/MDIO

Job description

The application window is expected to close on: 11/30/2026

Meet the Team

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 global team of creative experts, bringing our unique backgrounds and bold 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.

Your Impact

Hardware design technical lead is a key member of the Cisco Purpose Built Switch hardware team.

• Define and design the next generation Hyperscaler Switch hardware based on Silicon One and or merchant ASIC.

• Responsible for system and board level specification, schematic capture, FPGA design, ASIC/System level bring up and troubleshooting.

• The individual is expected to bring up the system to work with multiple groups including ASIC, DFT, Signal Integrity, software, Diagnostics and Manufacturing team to resolve any design issues.

• Debug and troubleshoot in labs using scopes and analyzers

• Act as technical liaison with major component Suppliers for the product

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering or Computer Engineering or Telecommunications and 8+ years of experience, or Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering or Computer Engineering or Telecommunications and 6+ years of experience, or PhD in Electrical Engineering or Computer Engineering + 3 years in system level development.

• Prior experience with common HW technology, including power ,clock, memory, CPU, and variety of system interfaces.

• Previous experience with complex high-speed board design and board bring-up.

• Prior experience with schematics/layout, Hardware bring-up, trouble-shooting, system level testing.

• Experience with working with Software team on system bring-up and porting, devices configuration (registers level).

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with schematics, PCB and Verilog HDL/VHDL design

• Experience on the scripts (Python, Tcl, etc.)

• Experience with lab bring up and design validation of products

• Knowledge on the Ethernet protocol is a plus

• Experience with access switch Ethernet interfaces: gigabit, multi gigabit, 10 gigabit.

• Experience with high speed Ethernet interfaces: 25G, 100G, 400G, 800G.

• Experience with DRAM, CPU subcomplex and control interfaces such as PCIe, I2C, SPI, MDC/MDIO

• Self-motivation, teamwork and strong communication skills are essential.

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 $171,600.00 to $245,000.00 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:

$171,600.00 - $281,800.00

Non-Metro New York state & Washington state:

$151,300.00 - $250,900.00

• 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.

Cisco is an Affimative Action and Equal Opportunity Employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, genetic information, age, disability, veteran status, or any other legally protected basis.

Cisco will consider for employment, on a case by case basis, qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.