Hardware Engineer

The application window is expected to close on : 03 / 02 / 2026

Job posting may be removed earlier if the position is filled or if a sufficient number of applications are received .

Meet the Team

Join our Electrical IC Design team responsible for driving innovation in Cisco's silicon photonics platform. As a senior technical leader, you'll collaborate with experts in electrical engineering, optics, firmware, and systems to bring high-speed transceiver modules from concept to production. You will play a key role across the entire product lifecycle-from initial specification through validation and manufacturing release.

Your Impact

As a Hardware Engineer at Cisco, you will contribute to the design, development, and delivery of next-generation hardware products that power global networks. You'll collaborate across functions to drive high-quality, scalable solutions while applying industry standards, best practices, and innovative thinking to solve complex technical challenges.

Specific Responsibilities

Design, develop, and deliver small-to-medium hardware features from technical concept through verification and production.

Collaborate cross-functionally with system designers, validation, diagnostics, and manufacturing teams to ensure robust, high-quality designs.

Participate in design reviews and verification processes to ensure compliance with Cisco and industry standards.

Develop and execute unit and integration test plans, including identifying opportunities for test automation and improved debugging.

Minimum Qualifications

Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or a related technical field.

Hands-on experience with RTL design and / or hardware verification using SystemVerilog or Verilog.

Experience using simulation and debugging tools to verify hardware functionality and analyze results (e.g., waveform analysis, testbenches).

Exposure to hardware verification or validation workflows, including unit-level or integration-level testing.

Experience with TCL and Python scripting in support of verification and analysis workflows.

Preferred Qualifications

Master's Degree or PhD with 0-3 years of experience.

Exposure to ASIC or SoC design and verification flows, including RTL simulation, synthesis, or timing analysis.

Experience developing or executing testbenches, test plans, or verification scripts.

Exposure to hardware validation or lab environments, including PCB-level testing or FPGA-based verification.

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 :

The starting salary range posted for this position is $122,000.00 to $172,100.00 and reflects the projected salary range for new hires in this position in U.S. and / or Canada locations, not including incentive compensation

• , equity, or benefits.

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

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 ofunused sick timecarried forwardfrom one calendar yearto 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 :

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 :

$135,800.00 - $222,400.00

Non-Metro New York state & Washington state :

$122,000.00 - $197,900.00