Technical Lead- Escalation Engineer

Application window expected to close on 08/31/2026; posting may be removed earlier if the position is filled or sufficient applications are received.

About the Role

This role focuses on AI and SAN solutions, including testing and certifications for FICON, SAN, and MDS products. You will work closely with partners, Marketing, development, and test teams at Cisco, executing certification testing and troubleshooting both internally and with partners. The position involves creating technical documentation for internal teams and contributing to user-facing documentation, troubleshooting software issues, filing bugs, and driving product innovation and usability improvements. You will leverage AI tools to streamline repetitive tasks and develop tools or agents as needed.

Responsibilities

• Use specialized expertise in FICON, SAN, MDS, and AI to test and certify code, troubleshoot issues, and recommend best practices.
• Solve complex problems and identify innovative solutions with a broad perspective.
• Drive complex certifications through completion and lead projects spanning multiple teams.
• Influence software and/or hardware engineering roadmaps and guide the development and implementation of software.
• Lead and mentor others, improving the technical design of solutions.
• Advocate for new product features to address customer needs and articulate design choices based on market awareness and competition.
• Innovate new products, ideas, features, and tools to meet unmet customer needs.
• Influence and track metrics to measure success.
• Write clean, standardized tests and influence architectural decisions focusing on security, scalability, and reliability.
• Contribute to threat modeling and protection of the SAN and AI portfolios.
• Proactively identify, prioritize, and resolve risks and issues in production systems.
• Design and implement robust monitoring tools for visibility and reliability, acting on data and alerts to improve performance.
• Lead postmortems, review root cause analysis, and ensure on-call coverage.
• Contribute to knowledge sharing within the professional community through technical blogs or publications.
• Scope work accurately, provide reliable project estimates, and communicate delivery trade-offs to cross-functional partners.
• Mentor peers and facilitate knowledge sharing within the team (e.g., brown bags, demos, design sessions).

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree + 8 years of related experience, or Master’s + 6 years, or PhD + 3 years, or equivalent technology work experience.
• In-depth experience in SAN and Fibre Channel.

Preferred Qualifications

• Tool development experience (AI, monitoring, telemetry, SAN insights, etc.).
• Strong communication skills to engage effectively with key customers and articulate complex issues clearly.
• Demonstrated experience handling customer issues.

Why Cisco?

At Cisco, we revolutionize how data and infrastructure connect and protect organizations in the AI era and beyond. With 40 years of fearless innovation, we create solutions that bridge physical and digital worlds, providing unparalleled security, visibility, and insights. Our global team collaborates with empathy to drive meaningful impact at scale. Cisco’s solutions are everywhere, and so is our impact.

Pay

The starting salary range for this position is $151,600.00 to $222,400.00 for new hires in U.S. and/or Canada locations, not including incentive compensation, equity, or benefits. Individual pay is determined by hiring location, market conditions, job-related skills, experience, qualifications, education, certifications, and training. Below are the full salary ranges for specific locations:

• New York City Metro Area: $186,900.00 - $307,800.00
• Non-Metro New York State & Washington State: $166,300.00 - $274,100.00

For quota-based sales roles, the ranges include base pay and sales target incentive compensation combined.

Benefits

• Medical, dental, and vision insurance.
• 401(k) plan with Cisco matching contribution.
• Paid parental leave, short- and long-term disability coverage, and basic life insurance.
• Eligibility for Cisco restricted stock units, which vest over time with continued employment.
• Paid time off, including:
  • 10 paid holidays per full calendar year, plus 1 floating holiday for non-exempt employees.
  • 1 paid day off for employee’s birthday and a paid year-end holiday shutdown.
  • 4 paid days off for personal wellness.
  • Non-exempt employees receive 16 days of paid vacation per full calendar year (accrued at 4.92 hours per pay period).
  • Exempt employees participate in a flexible vacation program with no defined limit (subject to business needs).
  • 80 hours of sick time provided on hire and each January 1st, with up to 80 hours carried forward annually.
  • Additional paid time off for critical or emergency family issues.
  • Optional 10 paid days per year for volunteering.
• Eligibility for annual bonuses (subject to Cisco’s policies).
• For sales roles, performance-based incentive pay split between quota and non-quota components, with no cap on incentive compensation for quota-based roles.