Leader, Product Management – Coherent Optical Networking / Acacia (Hybrid)

Cisco; San Jose (CA); Hybrid; USD 150,000 - 200,000; Full time

Job summary

A global technology leader is seeking a highly motivated professional to lead the coherent optical business. This hybrid position emphasizes technical expertise in high-speed optics and strong customer engagement. The ideal candidate will drive strategic initiatives while collaborating across teams, managing key partnerships, and delivering impactful presentations. A minimum of 10 years in relevant fields is required, along with a Bachelor's degree in electrical or computer engineering. Join a team dedicated to innovating the future of data and infrastructure.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of relevant experience in high-speed optics, silicon photonics, or coherent optical products.
• Demonstrated experience in product, sales, marketing, or business development.
• Exceptional communication, interpersonal, and presentation skills.

Responsibilities

• Lead customer-facing initiatives for high-capacity optical networks.
• Drive cross-functional efforts to execute design wins.
• Manage a comprehensive sales funnel to track opportunities.
• Deliver presentations and training to customers and sales teams.
• Build relationships with cloud, enterprise, and service provider customers.

Skills

High-speed optics

Silicon photonics

Business development

Customer engagement

Cross-functional leadership

Education

Bachelor’s degree in electrical or computer engineering

Job description

This is a hybrid position and will require being in office 2-3 days per week. Preference will be for candidates based in San Jose, CA or Maynard, MA.

Meet the Team

Acacia, now a part of Cisco, is a global leader in the design and manufacture of high-speed coherent optical interconnect products. We are the architects behind the technology that transforms how data centers, cloud providers, and service providers connect. By pioneering breakthroughs in Silicon Photonics and Digital Signal Processing (DSP), Acacia is shrinking complex, power‑hungry optical systems into high‑performance, pluggable modules that scale the internet for the future.

As part of the Acacia team at Cisco, you will work on the cutting edge of 400G, 800G, and 1.2T technologies. We are a group of innovators dedicated to solving the world’s most difficult bandwidth and power‑efficiency challenges. If you are passionate about pushing the boundaries of physics and engineering to build a faster, more connected world, Acacia is where you belong.

Your Impact

We are seeking a highly motivated and experienced professional to lead and expand the coherent optical business within Cisco’s Acacia business unit. This role combines technical expertise, strategic vision, and customer engagement to accelerate Cisco’s leadership in coherent pluggables for service providers, enterprises, and AI infrastructure networks.

The ideal candidate can move fluidly between technology, business development, and customer strategy—driving design wins, strengthening partnerships, and aligning product execution with market needs.

• Lead customer‑facing initiatives to position Cisco’s coherent optics as the preferred solution for high‑capacity optical networks.
• Drive cross‑functional efforts between engineering and sales to execute on design wins and key customer programs.
• Develop and manage a comprehensive sales funnel to track opportunities, forecast demand, and accelerate growth.
• Deliver presentations and training to customers, sales, and SAE teams to communicate product value and differentiation.
• Partner with Cisco Sales, Product Management, and Marketing to align on product strategy, roadmap, and go‑to‑market plans.
• Manage key ecosystem and technology alliances to ensure product and solution success.
• Build strong relationships with cloud, enterprise, and service provider customers to identify new opportunities and strengthen Cisco’s market presence.
• Gather market intelligence and competitive insights to guide long‑term business and product strategy.
• Represent Cisco and Acacia at industry conferences, technology forums, and customer events to promote thought leadership.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in electrical or computer engineering or related field.
• 10+ years of relevant experience in high‑speed optics, silicon photonics and/or coherent optical products, ideally with exposure to cloud, datacenter, or AI infrastructure markets.
• Demonstrated experience in product, sales, marketing, or business development for hyperscale or service provider customers.

Preferred Qualifications

• Demonstrated ability to analyze new market segments, define product opportunities, and drive adoption.
• Exceptional communication, interpersonal, and presentation skills, including experience presenting to internal and external executives.
• Strong cross‑functional leadership with a track record of working effectively across engineering, sales, and operations teams.
• Highly motivated, self‑driven, and comfortable managing multiple priorities in a dynamic business environment.

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.