Distinguished Software Engineer (Hybrid)

This position is a hybrid role, requiring the employee to work both onsite and remotely. Candidates should be comfortable with a flexible work arrangement that balances in-office collaboration and remote work. Specific onsite days and remote days will be coordinated with the team and manager.

About the Role

As part of the Splunk organization at Cisco, you will sit at the center of the observability and security data revolution. Our Distinguished Engineer team drives architecture and technical direction for Splunk’s AI with Security, ingesting petabytes of data for over 95% of the Fortune 100.

We are seeking a Distinguished Engineer in AI with Security to spearhead our next-generation intelligent security portfolio. Operating at the intersection of advanced AI research and enterprise-scale software engineering, you will serve as a key technical strategist, translating breakthrough innovations in GenAI and security intelligence into high-impact business opportunities. Working alongside exceptionally smart engineers who value rigorous thinking and friendly collaboration, this is where the technical future gets defined.

Your Impact

• Engineering Thought Leadership: Act as an internally and externally recognized technical thought leader with deep expertise in AI, machine learning, and security systems.

• Architecture & Strategy: Drive long-term business and technology impact by shaping the architecture and product portfolio roadmap from concept to scalable enterprise solutions.

• Drive Key Programs: Originates, implements, completes, and documents key technology programs and initiatives that define our platform's AI and security capabilities.

• Cross-Organizational Influence: Own cross-organizational domains, partnering closely with product, research, and engineering teams to build strong internal and external technical partnerships.

• Innovation to Business Value: Translate complex technical innovations into scalable products that solve critical security challenges for enterprise customers.

• Mentorship & Culture: Mentor and guide junior researchers, engineers, and technical team members, cultivating a culture of rigorous engineering and continuous learning.

Minimum Qualifications

• Education & Experience:

• Bachelor’s degree with 17+ years of related experience, OR Master’s degree with 14+ years of related experience, OR Ph.D. with 10+ years of related experience in Computer Science, AI, Cybersecurity, or a related technical field.

• Domain Expertise: In-depth knowledge and a proven, demonstrable track record in AI and Security technologies, machine learning architectures, and modern security landscapes.

• Scale & Execution: Demonstrated experience in leading impactful AI/Security product development and deployments at enterprise scale.

• Partnership & Communication: Exceptional communication skills with the ability to articulate complex technical concepts, research insights, and architectural visions to both technical and non-technical executive audiences.

• Industry Recognition: Recognized internally or externally as an industry expert through patents, publications, awards, or significant contributions to the AI/Security community.

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:

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:

Non-Metro New York state & Washington state:

* 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.