Distinguished Engineer

Cisco

Remote

Quick summary

Work type: Remote
Location: San Jose, CA
Salary: $273,200–$384,800 / yr
Posted: 4 days ago
Closes: Jul 31, 2026

Market check

Salary context

Above market

How this pay compares to similar roles

Similar $178k

This role $329k

$101k most similar roles pay here $415k

This role pays more than 97% of similar roles. Most pay $131,750–$224,250 — the shaded band above. At the midpoint, this role pays about $329k versus about $178k for comparable roles.

Based on 240 similar postings.

Employer

About Cisco

Cisco Systems is the world''s leading networking technology company, designing and manufacturing networking hardware, telecommunications equipment, and cybersecurity solutions for businesses and governments. Industry: Networking Technology & Cybersecurity

Cisco currently has 174 open roles on FindRole.

Listed pay typically runs $165,000–$241,400 across 174 roles with salary data.

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At a glance

TL;DR · Distinguished Engineer

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As a Distinguished Engineer in Cisco’s Identity Engineering Group, you will lead the transformation of Cisco’s Identity products into a unified and scalable experience, focusing on secure access control for diverse identities across cloud and client infrastructure. Your daily responsibilities include driving industry-leading technology solutions, setting long-term technical visions, and establishing engineering standards that influence senior leadership and cross-functional teams. You will innovate by translating emerging trends into strategic advantages, mentor senior engineers, and represent Cisco in external forums to shape identity and security innovation. The role requires extensive experience in large-scale software development, platform architecture, and distributed systems, with a preference for those who have led industry-level technical initiatives and contributed to standards bodies.

Skills

Python Java Kubernetes Docker AWS CI/CD PostgreSQL MongoDB Cassandra Terraform Git GitHub Jenkins Ansible Prometheus Grafana OAuth OpenID SAML LDAP

What you'll do

Define and drive the long-term technical vision for platform and identity systems.
Influence senior leadership on technology strategy and direction.
Establish engineering standards guiding multiple organizations and product lines.
Anticipate industry trends to position Cisco as a leader in security innovation.
Lead cross-functional initiatives from concept through delivery with significant impact.
Mentor senior engineers, elevating technical leadership across teams.

What we're looking for

15+ years of experience in designing and developing large-scale software or distributed systems.
Extensive experience defining and influencing technical architecture across multiple teams or organizations.
10+ years of hands-on experience with platform, identity, or security systems.
Proven ability to build and scale highly available, secure, and distributed cloud systems.
Track record of driving significant technical impact at the company-wide or industry level.
Experience in leading complex cross-functional initiatives with substantial business outcomes.
Strong influence on senior leadership regarding technical direction and strategic planning.

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