Principal Engineering, Hardware Project & Program Management
$233,900–$330,400 year
On-siteSan Jose, California, United States
Job Summary
Own the end-to-end execution of Cisco's critical hyperscale system programs, guiding products from concept definition through customer deployment. Lead large-scale, multi-year initiatives involving system architecture, custom ASICs, silicon development, hardware engineering, software, operations, and manufacturing. Establish executive-level program governance, operating mechanisms, risk management frameworks, and decision-making processes to ensure delivery predictability. Drive synchronization across independent internal silicon organizations, platform engineering, validation, and customer deployment activities. Partner directly with strategic hyperscale account teams to understand requirements, lead qualification planning, and ensure successful delivery meeting performance, cost, and schedule objectives. Provide leadership across Engineering Services, setting strategy, planning resourcing, and establishing program management and Agile principles. Work onsite in San Jose, CA, with a starting salary of $233,900 to $330,400.
Required Qualifications
- Bachelor's degree in electrical or computer engineering
- 15+ years of experience leading large-scale, multi-functional hardware development programs
- Master's degree in electrical or computer engineering
- 12+ years of experience leading large-scale, multi-functional hardware development programs
- Proven experience leading programs involving custom ASICs, silicon development, SoCs, or advanced semiconductor technologies
- Experience with driving executive-level decision-making, partner alignment, and large programs across matrixed organizations without direct organizational authority
Desired Qualifications
- Holds a PMP (Project Management Professional) or PgMP (Program Management Professional)
- Experience working directly with hyperscale cloud providers and managing large-scale datacenter infrastructure deployments
- Deep understanding of hardware product development lifecycles (architecture, design, validation, manufacturing, qualification) for computer, networking, switching, optics, or AI infrastructure
- Strong executive presence with exceptional communication, negotiation, and influence skills to thrive in highly ambiguous environments
- Experience leading first-generation platform introductions and programs involving significant technology innovation
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