Principal Verification Engineer

Fortinet, Inc.; Sunnyvale (CA); On-site; USD 179,000 - 219,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

401(k)

Paid holidays

Vacation time

Sick time

Equity program

Medical benefits

Dental benefits

Vision benefits

Disability insurance

Job summary

Fortinet, Inc. is seeking a Staff Verification Engineer in Sunnyvale, CA to own verification frameworks for ASIC drivers and software features.

You will design scalable test environments, drive strategy, and mentor a growing team of engineers across software, hardware, and ASIC domains. You will also help establish testing standards, perform root cause analyses, and collaborate with cross-functional teams to ensure robust verification and timely sign-off on product releases in a hybrid work

Qualifications

• 8–12 years of professional software development or verification engineering experience.
• Strong proficiency in Ruby and Python with automation tooling experience.
• Solid TCP/IP, routing, switching, and firewall knowledge; Linux internals appreciated.
• Experience mentoring engineers, code reviews, and cross-functional collaboration.

Responsibilities

• Design, develop, and maintain verification frameworks and automation tools for ASIC drivers.
• Build and maintain test environments, test suites, and verification infra for driver/software features.
• Drive verification strategy, test plans, coverage analysis, and closure.
• Analyze and resolve complex cross-layer issues in software, driver, and hardware.
• Lead reviews, promote best practices, and mentor junior/mid engineers.
• Collaborate with software, hardware, and ASIC teams to validate fixes and sign-off criteria.
• Develop tools to generate network traffic and simulate test scenarios; measure performance.

Skills

Ruby

Python

ASIC verification

Linux

TCP/IP networking

Code reviews

Mentoring

Team leadership

Software development

Debugging

Education

Master's degree

Tools

Docker

Kubernetes

Traffic generators

Viavi Spirent

Open-source networking

Job description

• Locations Sunnyvale, CA, United States (Hybrid)
• Job Schedule Full time

Job Description

We are looking for a highly motivated, experienced, and versatile Staff Verification Engineer to join our team. In this role, you will design, develop, and own the verification frameworks, test environments, and automation infrastructure for ASIC (Applied Specific Integrated Circuit) drivers and software features across our current and next-generation products. You will drive verification strategy and standards across the product line, serve as the go-to technical authority for the most complex verification challenges, and mentor and grow the team. You will be working alongside a closely-knit cross-functional team of experienced software, hardware, and ASIC engineers.

Job Responsibilities

• Design, develop, and maintain robust, scalable verification frameworks and automation tools in Ruby and Python for ASIC drivers.
• Build and maintain comprehensive test environments, test suites, and verification infrastructure to validate ASIC driver and software features functionality, performance, and reliability.
• Drive verification strategy and planning, including test plan development, coverage analysis, and coverage closure for ASIC drivers and software features.
• Replicate and drive complex customer-reported and internally-discovered issues to resolution, performing deep root cause analysis across the software, driver, and hardware layers.
• Conduct thorough code reviews of verification code, provide constructive feedback, and champion engineering best practices across the team.
• Mentor and guide junior and mid-level engineers through pair programming, design reviews, and technical guidance, fostering their growth into senior technical contributors.
• Collaborate closely with software, hardware, and ASIC engineers to ensure verification gaps are identified, defects are properly reproduced, and fixes are validated.
• Build and maintain tools to generate network traffic, simulate test scenarios, and measure performance and reliability.
• Serve as the go-to technical authority for ASIC driver verification, resolving the most complex and ambiguous issues that cross software, driver, and hardware boundaries.
• Influence hardware and software teams on verification sign-off criteria, testability improvements, and debug capabilities.
• Lead hiring and growth of the team, raising the technical bar across the team through mentorship, code reviews, and technical guidance.
• Champion innovation in verification methodology, tooling, and process improvements organization-wide.
• Contribute to the overall technical direction of the verification platform, including tooling strategy, technology selection, and long-term roadmap.
• Master's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related technical field, or equivalent experience.
• 8 to 12 years of professional software development or verification engineering experience.
• Strong proficiency in Ruby and Python, with a proven track record of building and maintaining automation frameworks and tooling.
• Solid understanding of TCP/IP, routing, switching, and firewalls.
• Deep Linux command line expertise, with experience building test environments, developing on Linux, and troubleshooting complex system-level issues.
• Strong programming fundamentals and software engineering discipline, including data structures, algorithms, design patterns, and clean code practices.
• Demonstrated experience troubleshooting software, drivers, and networks logically and analytically.
• Fundamental knowledge of Linux operating system internals, kernel, and device drivers.
• Familiarity with advanced networking protocols, security concepts, and DevOps/tooling practices.
• Proven ability to design and implement scalable verification architectures and make sound technology trade-offs in ambiguous, high-stakes situations.
• Demonstrated experience mentoring engineers and conducting effective code reviews.
• Strong communication skills, and ability to work in a collaborative cross-functional environment.
• Ability to take ownership of complex projects, work with minimal supervision, and research and master new technologies quickly.

Preferred qualifications:

• Experience developing and owning verification frameworks and test automation platforms at scale.
• Experience building and maintaining ASIC driver software or kernel-space code in C.
• Experience in using Viavi (Spirent TestCenter, Avalanche) or Keysight (Ixia, Breaking Point) traffic generators.
• Experience contributing to open-source networking or Linux kernel projects.
• Track record of driving technical decisions, setting verification standards, and influencing the direction of a team or the broader organization.
• In-depth knowledge of at least 2 of the following areas, with strong proficiency in each:
  • Protocols & Networking: BGP, OSPF, LACP, STP/RSTP/MSTP, ARP, DNS, IPsec, IPv6, TLS, multicast, VXLAN, GRE, SD-WAN, QoS (Quality of Service)
  • Security: Cryptography fundamentals, mTLS, PKI/certificate management, network security protocols
  • DevOps: Containerization (Docker, Kubernetes), CI/CD pipeline design, infrastructure as code, test automation at scale
  • Performance & Tools: network packet analyzers (e.g., Wireshark), benchmark testing, building tools to generate traffic

Must be authorized to work in the U.S. without sponsorship.

The US base salary range for this full-time position is $179,000-$219,000. Fortinet offers employees a variety of benefits, including medical, dental, vision, life and disability insurance, 401(k), 11 paid holidays, vacation time, and sick time, as well as a comprehensive leave program.

Wage ranges are based on various factors, including the labour market, job type, and job level. Exact salary offers will be determined by factors such as the candidate's subject knowledge, skill level, qualifications, experience, and geographic location.

All roles are eligible to participate in the Fortinet equity program. Bonus eligibility is reviewed at the time of hire and annually at the Company’s discretion.

Why Join Us:

We encourage candidates from all backgrounds and identities to apply. We offer a supportive work environment and a competitive Total Rewards package to support you with your overall health and financial well-being.

Embark on a challenging, enjoyable, and rewarding career journey with Fortinet. Join us in bringing solutions that make a meaningful and lasting impact to our 890,000+ customers around the globe.

About Us

Fortinet (NASDAQ: FTNT) secures the largest enterprise, service provider, and government organizations around the world. Fortinet empowers its customers with intelligent, seamless protection across the expanding attack surface and the power to take on ever-increasing performance requirements of the borderless network - today and into the future. Only the Fortinet Security Fabric architecture can deliver security without compromise to address the most critical security challenges, whether in networked, application, cloud or mobile environments. Fortinet ranks number one in the most security appliances shipped worldwide and more than 500,000 customers trust Fortinet to protect their businesses.

We are committed to providing reasonable accommodations for all qualified individuals with disabilities. If you require assistance or accommodation due to a disability, please contact us at [e-mail].

Fortinet is an equal opportunity employer. We value diversity in our company, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age, military/veteran status or any other applicable legally protected characteristics in the location in which the candidate is applying.