Senior Hardware Design Engineer

Cisco; San Jose (CA); On-site; USD 150,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

Cisco Systems, Inc. is seeking a Senior Hardware Design Engineer in San Jose to own the end-to-end hardware development lifecycle—architecture to mass production. You will lead complex circuit design, PCB layouts, and validation for secure, high-performance hardware appliances.

You will mentor junior engineers, drive cross-functional collaboration with software, BIOS and manufacturing, and apply AI-driven tools to optimize design cycles and reliability.

Qualifications

• Masters with 4+ years in hardware design
• Bachelor's with 7+ years in hardware design
• Experience taking hardware from concept to production
• Experience with Cadence Allegro/Concept and Mentor Graphics Xpedition

Responsibilities

• Lead the hardware development lifecycle from architecture to mass production.
• Architect and drive complex circuit designs, schematics, and PCB layouts for high-performance security appliances.
• Define and execute DVT strategies to meet regulatory and performance specs.
• Serve as primary technical authority for root-cause analysis of hardware issues.
• Collaborate with hardware, software, BIOS, and manufacturing teams to resolve bottlenecks.
• Drive design methodology improvements and maintain high-quality technical documentation.
• Mentor junior engineers and promote innovation.
• Leverage AI-driven design tools to streamline design cycles and improve quality.

Skills

Technical leadership

PCB design

System integration

DVT methods

Signal integrity

RTL/firmware interaction

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

Master's degree in engineering

Bachelor's degree in engineering

Tools

Cadence Allegro/Concept

Mentor Graphics Xpedition

Job description

The Firewall Hardware Team at Cisco is responsible for designing and developing high-performance, secure firewall hardware platforms that protect enterprise, data center, and cloud networks from evolving cyber threats. This team focuses on creating advanced hardware solutions, including FPGA-based crypto accelerators and network processing units, to deliver exceptional throughput, low latency, and robust security features.

Your Impact

As a Senior Hardware Design Engineer, you will serve as a technical lead for the development of Cisco’s next-generation security hardware appliances. You will own the end-to-end hardware development lifecycle, from architectural definition to mass production. This role requires a high degree of autonomy, technical leadership, and the ability to drive innovation within a fast-paced environment. You will act as a subject matter expert, mentoring junior engineers and collaborating across global cross-functional teams to deliver carrier-grade products.

Key Responsibilities

• Technical Leadership: Lead the hardware development lifecycle for complex, high-performance security appliances, ensuring alignment with product roadmaps and architectural standards.
• Design Ownership: Architect and drive the creation of complex circuit designs, schematics, and PCB layouts, ensuring optimal performance, signal integrity, and manufacturability.
• System-Level Validation: Define and execute comprehensive design verification and validation (DVT) strategies, ensuring adherence to rigorous regulatory and performance specifications.
• Advanced Troubleshooting: Serve as the primary technical authority for complex root cause analysis of hardware issues, including signal integrity, power distribution, and mechanical integration.
• Strategic Collaboration: Act as a key technical liaison between hardware, software, BIOS, and manufacturing teams. Provide expert guidance to resolve cross-functional bottlenecks.
• Process & Quality: Drive continuous improvement in design methodologies, maintain high-quality technical documentation, and conduct rigorous design reviews to mitigate risk.
• Mentorship: Provide technical guidance and mentorship to junior engineering staff, fostering a culture of innovation and engineering excellence.
• Integrate AI-driven design, simulation, and diagnostic tools to streamline design cycles, enhance predictive quality analysis, and improve overall operational efficiency

Minimum Qualifications:

• 4+ years of experience with a Masters’ degree or 7+ years of experience with a Bachelors’ degree. Experience expected to be in hardware design.
• Experience taking complex hardware products from concept to production.
• Experience with industry-standard design suites, such as Cadence Allegro/Concept, Mentor Graphics Xpedition, etc.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Architectural Expertise: Deep proficiency in board design leveraging x86, ARM, and high-performance FPGA/SoC architectures.
• High-Speed Design: Expert-level knowledge of high-speed interface bus design (PCIe Gen 4/5, DDR5, PAM4) and high-speed Ethernet (100G/400G).
• Board-Mounted Power Design (Bonus): Demonstrated expertise in designing robust power delivery networks (PDN). Proficiency in selecting and implementing DC-DC converters, LDOs, and managing power sequencing for high-current, low-voltage processors, FPGAs, and ASICs.
• Signal & Power Integrity: Advanced capability in modeling and mitigating signal integrity and power distribution challenges in dense, high-speed systems.
• Firmware/RTL Interaction: Strong understanding of RTL design (Verilog/System-Verilog) and its interaction with hardware/BIOS.
• Communication: Exceptional ability to communicate complex technical concepts to both technical and non-technical stakeholders.

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.