Senior Network Software Engineer

Opplane; United States; On-site; USD 140,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

Opplane is seeking a highly skilled and experienced Senior Networking Software Engineer with a strong focus on transport connectivity and networking products. As a key member of our team, you will design, develop, and deploy enterprise-grade networking appliances, contributing to impactful, large-scale systems in a fast-paced environment.

Opplane is looking for leadership, end-to-end feature ownership, and collaboration in a startup-like environment in the United States.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, or related field.
• 8+ years of experience building enterprise-grade appliances or similar systems.
• 3+ years delivering complex features independently.
• Strong embedded software development skills in C/C++ (Python is a plus).
• Expertise in VPP, DPDK or similar open-source data plane / fast path stacks.
• Good understanding of DPDK-based traffic generators (e.g., TRex) - development experience is a strong plus.
• Strong knowledge of L2-L4 networking and protocols (TCP/IP, UDP, ARP, DHCP, DNS, NAT, Firewall).
• Experience with security protocols (IPsec, SSL/TLS), authentication, and authorization.
• Hands-on experience with Software Defined Networking (SDN) and distributed systems.
• Familiarity with overlays and tunneling technologies.
• Excellent software engineering fundamentals and clean coding practices.
• Hands-on experience with containerization technologies (e.g., Docker) and container orchestration platforms such as Kubernetes.
• Proven ability to succeed in collaborative, startup-like environments.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Design and develop high-performance networking features for enterprise-grade appliances.
• Work on open-source data plane / fast path stacks (VPP, DPDK).
• Lead technical initiatives and mentor team members.
• Own features end-to-end, delivering independently and at scale.
• Collaborate cross-functionally and promote knowledge sharing.
• Communicate architecture decisions and design trade-offs effectively, including at senior levels.
• Manage competing priorities with urgency, accountability, and strong ownership.

Skills

C/C++

Python

VPP/DPDK

DPDK-based traffic generators

TRex

L2-L4 networking

TCP/IP

IPsec/SSL/TLS

SDN

Docker

Kubernetes

Security protocols

Overlays & tunneling

Education

Bachelor's or Master's in CS/EE

Tools

Docker

Kubernetes

Job description

Opplane is seeking a highly skilled and experienced Senior Networking Software Engineer with a strong focus on transport connectivity and networking products.

As a key member of our team, you will design, develop, and deploy enterprise-grade networking appliances, contributing to impactful, large-scale systems in a fast-paced environment.

About the Role

Opplane is seeking a highly skilled and experienced Senior Networking Software Engineer with a strong focus on transport connectivity and networking products.

As a key member of our team, you will design, develop, and deploy enterprise-grade networking appliances, contributing to impactful, large-scale systems in a fast-paced environment.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, or related field
• 8+ years of experience building enterprise-grade appliances or similar systems
• 3+ years delivering complex features independently
• Strong embedded software development skills in C/C++ (Python is a plus)
• Expertise in VPP, DPDK or similar open-source data plane / fast path stacks
• Good understanding of DPDK-based traffic generators (e.g., TRex) - development experience is a strong plus
• Strong knowledge of L2-L4 networking and protocols (TCP/IP, UDP, ARP, DHCP, DNS, NAT, Firewall)
• Experience with security protocols (IPsec, SSL/TLS), authentication, and authorization
• Hands-on experience with Software Defined Networking (SDN) and distributed systems
• Familiarity with overlays and tunneling technologies
• Excellent software engineering fundamentals and clean coding practices
• Hands-on experience with containerization technologies (e.g., Docker) and container orchestration platforms such as Kubernetes.
• Proven ability to succeed in collaborative, startup-like environments
• Strong verbal and written communication skills

Key Responsibilities

• Design and develop high-performance networking features for enterprise-grade appliances
• Work on open-source data plane / fast path stacks (VPP, DPDK)
• Lead technical initiatives and mentor team members
• Own features end-to-end, delivering independently and at scale
• Collaborate cross-functionally and promote knowledge sharing
• Communicate architecture decisions and design trade-offs effectively, including at senior levels
• Manage competing priorities with urgency, accountability, and strong ownership

Nice to Have

• Experience with AWS, Azure, GCP, OCI, Alibaba Cloud
• Cloud-native architectures
• DevOps practices
• Distributed computing and microservices
• Cross-domain knowledge and solutions design mindset
• Security-first approach
• Knowledge of serverless architectures

About Opplane

Opplane specializes in providing advanced data-focused solutions for financial services, telecommunication, and reg-tech to accelerate their digital transformation journey. Opplane leadership team is comprised of Silicon Valley serial entrepreneurs and experienced executives. Its expertise comes from years of specific industry experience at some of the world’s top companies, such as PayPal, Xerox Parc, Amazon, Wells Fargo, SoFi in the areas of product management, data technology, data governance, data privacy, security, machine learning, and risk management.

Global & Multicultural - Diverse perspectives, global collaboration (US, Portugal, India and Singapore offices)

Startup Energy - Fast-moving, impact-driven environment

Ownership Mindset - Engineers own what they build

Collaborative & Friendly - Open, curious, and supportive culture