Cisco

Principal Software Engineering

Cisco • $250K — $362K *
Enterprise Technology
11 - 15 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • Bachelor's degree in computer science, engineering, or related field with significant experience (15 years or more)
  • Proven experience as an architect for platform design and deployment
  • Extensive automation experience with labs and infrastructure at scale, ideally using Kubernetes
  • Strong background in system-performance optimization through benchmarking and monitoring
  • At least 10 years of software development skills in Python and one other language like Go or Java
  • Experience in building production-quality APIs and operational dashboards
  • Documented success in improving system capacity or reliability across teams

Responsibilities

  • Define and build the architecture for the core platform including APIs and backend services
  • Orchestrate lab and customer environments at scale with automated scheduling and high availability
  • Automate provisioning and configuration for deployment across all systems
  • Implement versioned workflows with multi-tenant access for teams to collaborate
  • Run automated performance validations and provide documented evidence during deployment
  • Create the daily operational interfaces like dashboards and reporting tools
  • Integrate AI-assisted diagnostics for improved system triage and remediation
  • Lead design reviews and mentor engineers, translating user experience into platform capabilities

Benefits

  • Work within a team at the forefront of AI cluster performance validation
  • Engage in a hands-on role impacting both design and implementation phases
  • Collaborate with diverse teams across engineering, operations, and customer interfaces
  • Opportunity to mentor and lead senior engineers in innovative projects
  • Access to cutting-edge technologies and methodologies in automation and orchestration
Full Job Description
The application window is expected to close on: 10/01/2026
Meet the Team

Cisco Validated Infrastructure Services (CVIS) establishes and proves the performance of large AI clusters before they are handed over to customers. We deploy each cluster, validate it against performance baselines, and deliver the evidence that it is ready for service.

The platform behind that work is full-stack. It combines workflow and API services, network and infrastructure automation, and the UI used to run validation across labs and customer environments.

Your Impact

As a Principal Software Engineer, you will be the hands-on architect and lead developer of this platform. You will take it from design into daily use: services, workflow automation, environment orchestration, diagnostics, and the operational experience.

You will turn expert deployment practice into software that many teams can run, and you will stay accountable for the behavior of the whole system.

  • Define the architecture and build the core platform: APIs, workflow orchestration, backend services, and the engineer-facing experience.
  • Orchestrate lab and customer environments at scale, including concurrent runs, scheduling, throttling, cleanup, high availability, and failure handling.
  • Automate discovery, provisioning, configuration, and validation across compute, network, and storage, including firmware, operating systems, and cluster software when the deployment requires them.
  • Provide versioned workflows and multi-tenant access control so deployment and product teams can share one platform.
  • Automate performance validation during bring-up: run functional, resilience, and performance tests across compute, network, and storage, compare results with baselines, and produce the evidence used for handover.
  • Build the surfaces engineers use daily: dashboards, health and performance views, diagnostics, reporting, and triage.
  • Add AI-assisted diagnostics and triage, with results validated in the real environment.
  • Detect configuration drift and support policy-controlled remediation.
  • Lead design reviews, mentor senior engineers, and turn customer and field experience into reusable platform capabilities.


Minimum Qualifications

  • Bachelor's degree in computer science, computer engineering, electrical engineering, or a related field plus 15 years of related experience; a master's degree plus 12 years; a PhD plus 8 years; or equivalent related work experience.
  • Experience serving as an architect for at least one platform, from technical design and implementation through production deployment and adoption by [one or more teams.
  • Experience automating labs, networks, devices, or infrastructure at scale, and running that automation on Kubernetes or an equivalent control plane.
  • Experience identifying and resolving system-performance constraints using profiling, benchmarking, monitoring, or load testing, with documented improvements in areas such as latency, throughput, capacity, or resource utilization.
  • 10 + years of software-design and development experience using Python and at least one additional production language, such as Go, Java, or Rust.
  • Experience building production APIs, workflow or orchestration services, and the operational UI or dashboards engineers use to run them.
  • Experience delivering documented improvements in at least one area-such as system capacity, delivery cycle time, reliability, or user adoption-and coordinating implementation across engineering, operations, and customer-facing teams.


Preferred Qualifications

  • Workflow engines, versioned automation and event-driven architecture with message queues and operational data stores.
  • Device or service orchestration, model-driven automation, or scale testing of large managed environments.
  • Performance baselines, capacity testing, resilience testing, fault injection, or failure-mode analysis.
  • AI-assisted triage, diagnosis, or remediation validated in real environments.
  • Large GPU clusters, high-performance computing, or customer cluster bring-up.
  • Slurm or other HPC and AI workload schedulers.
  • PXE, DHCP, Redfish, firmware and BIOS automation, or infrastructure as code.
  • High-performance Ethernet, InfiniBand, or RoCE automation, and high-performance storage.
  • Cisco UCS, Cisco switching, NVIDIA platforms, Supermicro, VAST Data, NVIDIA Base Command Manager, or comparable platforms.
  • CI/CD and automated quality gates for infrastructure or orchestration software.


About Cisco

Cisco Careers

Join the vibrant team at Cisco, a global leader in networking and cybersecurity solutions, where innovation and leadership thrive. Cisco offers a plethora of job opportunities that cater to a range of skills and experiences, making it an ideal place for both seasoned professionals and those seeking an internship to jumpstart their career. Work You’ll Do At Cisco, you’ll be part of a culture that values diversity, leadership, and professional growth. Engage in work that matters with a team that combines technology, creativity, and the power of human connection to redefine networking. Cisco’s commitment to innovation isn’t just about technology, but also about transforming the way we work and collaborate. Cisco’s employment philosophy supports career advancement and nurtures a leadership pipeline that is equipped with diversity training and opportunities for growth. Whether you’re applying your skills to drive our latest innovations or using our vast networking capabilities to solve complex problems, at Cisco, every role is impactful. Join Our Dynamic Team Explore job opportunities in areas ranging from engineering to marketing, sales to cybersecurity. Cisco is hiring individuals who are passionate, curious, and ready to drive change. Positions at Cisco offer competitive benefits, a supportive culture, and the chance to work with cutting-edge technology. Internship Programs Kickstart your career with a Cisco internship. Gain invaluable industry experience, enhance your resume, and build professional networks that last a lifetime. Our internships provide hands-on experience and the chance to work on projects that matter. Leadership and Development Cisco is committed to fostering leadership skills and providing employees with the training needed to succeed. Our leadership programs help you develop new skills, manage teams effectively, and lead with confidence. Cisco’s commitment to professional development ensures that your career path is as dynamic as our technologies. Benefits and Culture Cisco understands the importance of a balanced life. Our benefits package is designed to ensure that our team members are healthy, happy, and secure. At Cisco, you’ll find a supportive culture that encourages open communication, teamwork, and mutual respect. Stay Connected Join Cisco’s Talent Network Stay informed about new positions that match your skills and interests. At Cisco, we value the curiosity and unique perspectives of our team members. Subscribe to receive personalized job alerts and insider tips directly from our hiring managers. Explore Cisco Jobs Ready to advance your career at Cisco? Search open positions, prepare your resume, and get ready for an interview that could lead to your next big opportunity. At Cisco, we’re not just filling positions—we’re investing in leaders. Keep Up to Date Stay ahead with career tips, insider perspectives, and industry-leading insights you can put to use today—all from the people who work here. READ CAREERS BLOG Job Alert Emails Customize your subscription to receive job alerts, the latest news, and insider tips tailored to your preferences. Discover the exciting and rewarding career opportunities that await you at Cisco.
Learn more about Cisco
Size
79,500 employees
Market Cap
$194.5 billion
Industry
Net Income
$10.1 billion
Founded
2014
5 Year Trend
+1.4%
Revenue
$48 billion
NASDAQ

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