Staff Software Engineer - Embedded Networking (remote)

Johnson Controls; Milwaukee (WI); Remote; USD 130,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Bonus plan

Benefits package

Remote work

Job summary

Johnson Controls is seeking a Staff Software Engineer, Embedded Networking to extend Airwall onto new devices, modernize the stack, and strengthen our security in OT environments. This remote US-based role requires deep kernel/embedded networking experience, C/C++/Rust, IPsec, and a proven ability to ship in downtime-critical operations.

You will work with a global team and mentor others while delivering production-grade software.

Qualifications

• 8+ years shipping production networking software in embedded or kernel-adjacent systems.
• Proficiency in C, C++, or Rust.
• Strong understanding of the networking stack from Layer 2 through Layer 4 and analyzing packets.
• Hands-on embedded Linux experience on constrained hardware or OpenWRT.
• Knowledge of IPsec, ESP, IKE and PKI-based identities.
• History of shipping in environments where downtime carries real consequences.
• Clear communication across product and engineering teams.

Responsibilities

• Extend Airwall onto new classes of devices and hardware targets.
• Own embedded software on constrained targets, including OpenWRT and ARM-based platforms.
• Work in the secure data path: identity-based networking, IPsec, ESP, IKE, NAT traversal, and PKI.
• Modernize the Airwall stack to improve performance, observability and maintainability.
• Diagnose hard networking failures in live customer environments, down to packet level.
• Contribute to core codebases and raise code quality and testing standards.
• Mentor engineers and serve as a technical role model.

Skills

Networking software

C/C++/Rust

Embedded Linux

IPsec/PKI

OpenWRT

Packet capture

Cross-team communication

Tools

OpenWRT

Job description

About Johnson Controls

Johnson Controls, a global leader in thermal management, mission-critical building systems, energy efficiency, and decarbonization, helps customers use energy more productively, reduce carbon emissions, and operate with the precision and resilience required in rapidly expanding industries such as data centers, healthcare, pharmaceuticals, advanced manufacturing, and higher education.

For more than 140 years, Johnson Controls has delivered performance where it really matters. Backed by advanced technology, lifecycle services and an industry-leading field organization, we elevate customer performance, turn goals into real-world results and help move society forward.

Visit johnsoncontrols.com for more information and follow @Johnsoncontrols on social platforms.

What you will do

Our Airwall Zero Trust technology secures mission critical assets around the world. It provides encrypted remote access, protects communication from the edge to the cloud, and makes legacy infrastructure invisible to discovery and attack. For operators running equipment that cannot be patched or taken offline, that combination is the difference between a contained incident and a shutdown.

The Staff Software Engineer, Embedded Networking, is a hands-on engineering role at the core of the product. You will extend Airwall onto new classes of devices, modernize a technology stack that has to keep pace with a fast-moving market, and strengthen our competitive position in operational technology security. The work runs from constrained embedded targets up through the secure data path, and it stays close to the code.

Few engineers arrive fluent in identity-based overlay networking, so we hire for systems depth and expect you to pick up the protocol work quickly. You don't have to be a recognized authority on zero trust networking or IPsec on day one, and by the time you're finished here, you will be.

This is a remote position for US based candidates.

How you will do it

• Extend Airwall onto new classes of devices and hardware targets, taking the platform into environments it does not reach today
• Own the embedded software running on constrained targets, including OpenWRT, and ARM-based platforms
• Work deep in the secure data path: identity-based overlay networking, IPsec and ESP, IKE, tunnel encapsulation, NAT traversal, Layer 2 connectivity carried over Layer 3, and certificate-based identity backed by PKI
• Modernize the Airwall technology stack, retiring what has aged and raising the ceiling on performance, observability, and maintainability
• Diagnose hard networking failures in live customer environments, down to packet-level analysis
• Contribute to core codebases and raise the standard for code quality, testing, and performance
• Mentor engineers across the team and serve as a technical role model

What you will need

Required

• 8+ years shipping production networking software, with significant time on embedded or kernel-adjacent systems
• Deep expertise in C, C++, or Rust, with the ability to work across all three
• Command of the networking stack from Layer 2 through Layer 4, including the judgment to reason about a failure from the wire upward and read a packet capture unaided
• Hands-on embedded Linux experience on resource-constrained hardware, or OpenWRT
• Working knowledge of encrypted transport such as IPsec, ESP, and IKE, along with certificate-based identity and PKI
• A track record of shipping into environments where downtime carries real consequences
• Clear communication and the judgment to work well across product and engineering teams

Preferred

• Experience with Host Identity Protocol (RFC 7401) or another identity-based networking overlay
• Background in operational technology or industrial control systems, including protocols such as BACnet or Modbus
• Exposure to hardware bring-up, board support packages, or firmware release engineering
• Contributions to open source networking projects

How we work

• We build with AI in the loop. We expect you to use coding harnesses such as Claude, Copilot, Codex, or Cursor as part of your normal workflow, and to have the judgment to know where they help and where they get in the way
• We stay close to customers. You will talk directly with the people running the networks you protect
• We measure ourselves on what reaches production and holds up there
• Learn more about our Airwall technology here https://openblue.johnsoncontrols.com/airwall

HIRING SALARY RANGE: $130,000 - $180,000 (Salary to be determined by the education, experience, knowledge, skills, and abilities of the applicant, internal equity, and alignment with market data.) This role offers a competitive Bonus plan that will take into account individual, group, and corporate performance. This position includes a competitive benefits package. The posted salary range reflects the target compensation for this role. However, we recognize that exceptional candidates may bring unique skills and experiences that exceed the typical profile. If you believe your background warrants consideration beyond the stated range, we encourage you to apply. To support an efficient and fair hiring process, we may use technology assisted tools, including artificial intelligence (AI), to help identify and evaluate candidates. All hiring decisions are ultimately made by human reviewers. For details, please visit the About Us tab on the Johnson Controls Careers site at https://jobs.johnsoncontrols.com/about-us

#LI-REMOTE

Johnson Controls International plc. is an equal employment opportunity and affirmative action employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, protected veteran status, genetic information, sexual orientation, gender identity, status as a qualified individual with a disability or any other characteristic protected by law. To view more information about your equal opportunity and non-discrimination rights as a candidate, visit EEO is the Law. If you are an individual with a disability and you require an accommodation during the application process, please visit here.