Director, Product Management (AI Defense)

Cisco•Milpitas, CA

7d•$230,100 - $325,300

About The Position

Cisco is seeking a strategic product leader to define and implement the next generation of AI Security capabilities. This leader will own a core area of the AI Defense portfolio, driving product strategy, customer adoption, and cross-functional execution across engineering, design, go-to-market (GTM), and research teams. The role focuses on building enterprise AI security capabilities spanning AI application security, agentic AI, runtime protection, AI governance, AI supply chain security, and AI validation. This individual will help shape Cisco’s long-term vision for securing enterprise AI while translating market opportunities into differentiated products that scale globally.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree with 12+ years of industry experience, strong product management background in the AI products space.
Demonstrable experience in people leadership experience managing senior product managers or technical product leaders.
Experience defining and delivering enterprise software or cloud platform products from strategy through general availability (GA).
Experience building AI, cybersecurity, cloud, identity, networking, observability, or similar enterprise platform products.
Demonstrated success leading cross-functional organizations across Engineering, UX, Marketing, Sales, Customer Success, and executive stakeholders.
Strong executive communication skills with the ability to influence senior leadership and drive organizational alignment.

Nice To Haves

Master’s degree or PhD preferred.
Strong understanding of enterprise AI architectures, large language models (LLMs), AI agents, retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), Model Context Protocol (MCP), AI governance, and runtime security.
Experience developing platform strategies spanning APIs, SDKs, marketplaces, and ecosystem integrations.
Track record of translating emerging technology trends into commercially successful product strategies.
Experience working directly with Fortune 500 customers, strategic design partners, and industry analysts.
Ability to balance long-term platform strategy with near-term execution and customer delivery.
Passion for building products that simplify enterprise adoption of AI while delivering measurable business outcomes.

Responsibilities

Lead the strategy, roadmap, and execution for a major AI Security product area from concept through production, adoption, and lifecycle management.
Define and establish a long-term, multi-year product vision and strategy aligned with Cisco’s AI Security vision and evolving enterprise customer needs.
Drive product investments across AI governance, AI application security, runtime protection, AI supply chain security, agent security, and AI validation.
Partner closely with Engineering, Design, Threat Research, GTM, Customer Experience, Sales, Marketing, and Business Development to deliver market-leading products.
Translate customer requirements, competitive intelligence, and emerging AI threats into clear product direction and execution priorities.
Drive strategic partnerships across the AI ecosystem, including hyperscalers, AI platforms, developer ecosystems, and enterprise software providers.
Lead cross-functional planning, investment tradeoffs, and roadmap prioritization across multiple releases.
Develop deep relationships with customers, design partners, analysts, and strategic partners to influence product direction.
Build compelling product narratives and represent Cisco at executive customer meetings, industry events, analyst briefings, and conferences.
Mentor and develop senior product managers while helping establish world-class product management practices across the organization.
Drive customer-centric innovation across the AI Security portfolio.
Influence cross-business unit strategy and build alignment across Cisco’s Security, AI, Networking, and Observability organizations.
Develop durable competitive differentiation through platform thinking, ecosystem partnerships, and enterprise workflows.
Build high-performing teams that implement with urgency while maintaining exceptional product quality.
Play an instrumental role in establishing Cisco as the trusted security platform for enterprise AI.

Benefits

medical, dental and vision insurance
a 401(k) plan with a Cisco matching contribution
paid parental leave
short and long-term disability coverage
basic life insurance
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
16 days of paid vacation time per full calendar year, accrued at rate of 4.92 hours per pay period for full-time employees (Non-exempt employees)
flexible vacation time off program (Exempt employees)
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
annual bonuses subject to Cisco’s policies (For non-sales roles)
performance-based incentive pay on top of their base salary (For sales roles)
grants of Cisco restricted stock units