STEM OPT Specialist - Software Engineering Jobs

The application window is expected to close on: 07/30/2026. Job posting may be removed earlier if the position is filled or if a sufficient number of applications are received.

About the Role

Cisco's Enterprise Networking team is hiring a Product Manager to own identity and segmentation outcomes across the Catalyst and Meraki switching portfolio. This is a security product role that lives inside the network business: you will define how identity from Cisco ISE and Duo becomes enforceable segmentation policy on the switch, in traditional campus designs as well as SD-Access and EVPN fabrics, anchored to the Cisco Secure Network Reference Architecture.

You will own one of the highest-leverage surfaces in enterprise security: the point where identity becomes enforcement in the campus network.

• Own strategy and roadmap for how Catalyst and Meraki switches consume identity from Cisco ISE and Duo and enforce group-based segmentation through TrustSec, Security Group Tags, and Meraki Adaptive Policy.
• Define how those security outcomes layer onto both non-fabric campus designs and SD-Access and EVPN fabrics, so customers get one consistent policy model wherever they sit on the fabric journey.
• Drive the discovery and modeling layer that turns identity, endpoint, and flow data into enforceable switch policy: visibility, policy analytics, simulation, and staged enforcement customers can trust in production.
• Grow adoption of the identity-to-enforcement path that the majority of customers deploying Cisco networking and security together build on, with the switch as the enforcement point supplying policy context that Hybrid Mesh Firewall and detection services consume.
• Land these outcomes within the Cisco Secure Network Reference Architecture in partnership with the ISE, Duo, firewall, detection, and platform teams.
• Practice disciplined product management: continuous customer discovery, opportunity sizing, crisp requirements, adoption instrumentation, and launch execution with engineering, design, marketing, and sales.
• Use AI tools throughout the product lifecycle to compress research, requirements, and analysis cycles, and raise the bar for how the team operates.

Minimum Qualifications

• 3+ years of product management experience, including building or shipping cybersecurity products: identity and access management, zero trust, network security, NAC, or firewall.
• Demonstrated product management tradecraft: customer discovery, prioritization, roadmap ownership, metrics-driven iteration, and cross-functional execution.
• Practical understanding of identity and segmentation concepts such as 802.1X, RADIUS, device posture, group-based policy, microsegmentation, and firewall policy models.
• Working fluency in enterprise campus networking, both traditional L2/L3 designs and overlay fabrics such as SD-Access or EVPN, sufficient to partner deeply with switching platform engineering teams.
• Clear, concise communication with executives, customers, and field teams.

Preferred Qualifications

• Hands-on product experience with identity, NAC, segmentation, or firewall platforms from any major vendor, for example Cisco ISE or Duo, Palo Alto Networks, Fortinet, Zscaler, Okta, Microsoft Entra, or Aruba ClearPass.
• Familiarity with zero trust frameworks (NIST SP 800-207, CISA Zero Trust Maturity Model) and how campus segmentation maps to them.
• Experience defining adoption metrics and telemetry for enterprise software and using them to steer roadmap decisions.
• Daily use of AI tools in product work: research synthesis, requirements drafting, competitive analysis, or prototyping.
• Bachelor's degree in computer science, engineering, or a related technical or business field, or equivalent practical experience.

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 $135,800.00 to $193,400.00 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** 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:

$135,800.00 - $222,400.00

Non-Metro New York state & Washington state:

$122,000.00 - $197,900.00

• 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.