Leader, Software Engineering

The application window is expected to close on: 09/17/2026 Job posting may be removed earlier if the position is filled or if a sufficient number of applications are received . This is a hybrid position. The selected candidate will be required to be in the office 2-3 days a week at our RTP, NC or Richardson, TX location. Meet the Team Join a dynamic Engineering Team at Cisco, where we are redefining enterprise software development through modern AI-driven tools and rapid innovation. Our team’s purpose is to design, build, and scale internal / external applications that streamline operations, reduce third-party software costs, and accelerate Customer’s and Cisco’s digital transformation. You’ll collaborate with a highly skilled, matrixed group of developers, technical experts, and multi-functional partners from Platform, Product Management, and Delivery organizations. The team thrives in an agile, collaborative environment that values bias to action, continuous learning, and the opportunity to influence core business outcomes. If you’re excited about being on the forefront of AI-enabled engineering at scale, this is the place for you. Your Impact As an Engineering Manager, you will lead a high-performing team responsible for the end-to-end lifecycle of our applications. You will drive innovation in application development, ensure rigorous quality through functional and performance testing, and oversee the seamless deployment of solutions into production. You will be a key advocate for modern engineering practices, specifically focusing on robust CI/CD (Continuous Integration/Continuous Deployment) processes to accelerate delivery and maintain high system reliability. Leadership & Strategy: Lead, mentor, and grow a team of software engineers, fostering a culture of collaboration, technical excellence, and continuous improvement. Application Development: Oversee the design, development, and maintenance of scalable, high-quality software applications. Quality Assurance: Define and implement strategies for functional and performance testing to ensure product stability and performance before production release. CI/CD Excellence: Champion the end-to-end CI/CD process, ensuring automated pipelines are efficient, secure, and reliable. Operational Support: Provide leadership support for production environments, ensuring high availability and rapid incident resolution. Cross-functional Collaboration: Partner with product management, architecture, and operations teams to align engineering efforts with business objectives. Drive the Execution Commit process and deliver based on the commitment. Minimum Qualifications Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a similar STEM field. 10+ years of professional experience with 4+ years leading and managing software engineering teams. Experience managing distributed engineering teams in a global organization. Technical background in application development and modern software delivery lifecycles. Experience with CI/CD methodologies, automation tools, and performance testing frameworks. Preferred Qualifications Hands-on experience with cloud-native technologies and infrastructure-as-code. Demonstrated ability to drive technical transformation and process improvements. Excellent communication, stakeholder management, and team-building skills. 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. Message to applicants applying to work in the U.S. and/or Canada: The starting salary range posted for this position is $151,600.00 to $222,400.00 and reflects the projected salary range for new hires in this position in U.S. and/or Canada locations, not including incentive compensation*, equity, or benefits. Individual pay is determined by the candidate's hiring location, market conditions, job-related skillset, experience, qualifications, education, certifications, and/or training. The full salary range for certain locations is listed below. For locations not listed below, the recruiter can share more details about compensation for the role in your location during the hiring process. U.S. employees are offered benefits, subject to Cisco’s plan eligibility rules, which include medical, dental and vision insurance, a 401(k) plan with a Cisco matching contribution, paid parental leave, short and long-term disability coverage, and basic life insurance. Please see the Cisco careers site to discover more benefits and perks. Employees may be eligible to receive grants of Cisco restricted stock units, which vest following continued employment with Cisco for defined periods of time. U.S. employees are eligible for paid time away as described below, subject to Cisco’s policies: 10 paid holidays per full calendar year, plus 1 floating holiday for non-exempt employees 1 paid day off for employee’s birthday, paid year-end holiday shutdown, and 4 paid days off for personal wellness determined by Cisco Non-exempt employees** receive 16 days of paid vacation time per full calendar year, accrued at rate of 4.92 hours per pay period for full-time employees Exempt employees participate in Cisco’s flexible vacation time off program, which has no defined limit on how much vacation time eligible employees may use (subject to availability and some business limitations) 80 hours of sick time off provided on hire date and each January 1st thereafter, and up to 80 hours of unused sick time carried forward from one calendar year to the next Additional paid time away may be requested to deal with critical or emergency issues for family members Optional 10 paid days per full calendar year to volunteer For non-sales roles, employees are also eligible to earn annual bonuses subject to Cisco’s policies. Employees on sales plans earn performance-based incentive pay on top of their base salary, which is split between quota and non-quota components, subject to the applicable Cisco plan. For quota-based incentive pay, Cisco typically pays as follows: .75% of incentive target for each 1% of revenue attainment up to 50% of quota; 1.5% of incentive target for each 1% of attainment between 50% and 75%; 1% of incentive target for each 1% of attainment between 75% and 100%; and Once performance exceeds 100% attainment, incentive rates are at or above 1% for each 1% of attainment with no cap on incentive compensation. For non-quota-based sales performance elements such as strategic sales objectives, Cisco may pay 0% up to 125% of target. Cisco sales plans do not have a minimum threshold of performance for sales incentive compensation to be paid. The applicable full salary ranges for this position, by specific state, are listed below: New York City Metro Area: $186,900.00 - $307,800.00 Non-Metro New York state & Washington state: $166,300.00 - $274,100.00 * For quota-based sales roles on Cisco’s sales plan, the ranges provided in this posting include base pay and sales target incentive compensation combined. ** Employees in Illinois, whether exempt or non-exempt, will participate in a unique time off program to meet local requirements.