The application window is expected to close on: 10/08/2026
Meet the TeamEnterprise AI Platforms & Infrastructure (EAIPI) powers Cisco's digital transformation by owning and operating the full infrastructure stack-including data centers, GPU clusters, storage, orchestration, and full-stack observability-within a complex hybrid-cloud environment. Our mission is to provide robust AI and infrastructure capabilities to Cisco's global enterprise, product business units, and workforce. We operate as "Customer Zero," partnering with Cisco product organizations to validate new technologies under real-world production conditions, ensuring operational excellence and reliability before external release. There is a strong preference for candidates based in San Jose (SJC) or Milpitas, California or Raleigh-Durham (RTP), North Carolina, to enable onsite collaboration 2-3 days per week.
Your ImpactAs the Director of Cloud Operations, you will lead the strategy, engineering, and operational excellence of Cisco's enterprise multi-cloud ecosystem (AWS, Azure, GCP, OCI, and others). Positioned at the intersection of infrastructure, security, developer velocity, and financial efficiency, you will influence how thousands of Cisco engineers build and operate cloud workloads. You will define and enforce cloud governance and compliance, drive developer enablement through a product-led approach, manage enterprise FinOps and cloud economics, and lead cloud operations toward autonomous, AI-native infrastructure. Success in this role means maintaining 24/7 operational resilience, fostering a culture of continuous learning, and scaling a diverse, world-class engineering organization.
Minimum Qualifications- 12+ years of progressive cloud engineering experience, including 5+ years in senior leadership managing managers and technical leads in large enterprises.
- 10+ years of expertise in multi-cloud architecture and operations across AWS, Azure, GCP, and hybrid environments.
- 5+ years of experience scaling FinOps frameworks, governance models, and cost-management tools (e.g., Cloudability or cloud-native tools).
- 5+ years of experience of modern SRE practices, observability platforms (Splunk, Datadog, Prometheus/Grafana), Infrastructure as Code (Terraform), and CI/CD automation.
Basic Qualifications- AWS/GCP Professional Certifications and FinOps Certified Practitioner (FOCP).
- Experience with agentic workflows, AIOps, and AI-driven automation in enterprise IT.
- Demonstrated success leading large-scale organizational transformations and complex platform migrations.
- Exceptional communication skills to translate complex technical requirements into executive business strategy.