Principal Product Manager

NetApp•San Jose, CA

About The Position

We are seeking a Principal Product Manager to lead the strategy, roadmap, and lifecycle management of NetApp's Enterprise Storage networking portfolio. This role owns end-to-end networking product management across cluster interconnects, storage network fabric, Fibre Channel SAN switching, and high-speed frontend connectivity. This PM operates at the intersection of storage platform strategy and networking ecosystem evolution - partnering closely with systems engineering, ONTAP engineering, supply chain, finance, and go-to-market teams to ensure NetApp's networking solutions are competitive, deliverable, and directly enabling customer success in AI, enterprise, and large-scale workloads. The role carries both strategic and operational responsibility: defining multi-generation networking roadmaps and supply strategies while simultaneously driving active NPI programs, managing partner and vendor relationships, and maintaining product lifecycle discipline across a broad portfolio. Networking is a critical enabler of NetApp's storage platform competitiveness. As customers scale AI infrastructure and enterprise deployments to new levels of performance and complexity, networking architecture, supply resilience, and ecosystem integration have become gating factors for storage system wins and shipments. This role shapes the strategy that removes those barriers - enabling NetApp's platforms to deliver where and when customers need them, at the performance levels that modern workloads demand. You will operate with significant autonomy, influence platform roadmap decisions across multiple product lines, and work directly with senior leadership to define and execute a networking strategy that supports NetApp's growth in AI, enterprise SAN, and large-scale infrastructure.

Requirements

10+ years of product management or technical product planning experience in enterprise infrastructure, storage, networking, or related hardware/software domains.
Strong understanding of data center networking architectures, including high-speed Ethernet, Fibre Channel SAN, and cluster fabric design.
Proven experience leading complex NPI programs through all lifecycle phases, from requirements definition through qualification, GA, and sustaining through EOL.
Demonstrated ability to manage multi-vendor ecosystems, including partner roadmap alignment, qualification strategy, and supply risk management.
Experience driving cross-functional execution across engineering, supply chain, operations, and go-to-market teams.
Strong communication and executive presence, with the ability to represent complex networking tradeoffs clearly to senior stakeholders.

Nice To Haves

Familiarity with enterprise storage platforms and how networking infrastructure enables storage system performance, scalability, and supportability.
Experience with AI infrastructure, large-scale cluster fabrics, or high-performance computing networking.
Background in product lifecycle management including EOA strategy, stocking optimization, and operational tooling.
Experience working with OEM partners or in multi-partner delivery models.

Responsibilities

Define and own the comprehensive Enterprise Storage networking strategy, spanning cluster fabric, storage backend networks, frontend high-speed Ethernet, Fibre Channel SAN, and switched enclosure platforms.
Develop a multi-generation networking roadmap aligned to NetApp's platform strategy and competitive requirements, with clear prioritization across speed transitions, form factors, and delivery models.
Identify and evaluate emerging networking technologies and architectures - including AI-optimized Ethernet fabrics, next-generation switch platforms, and flexible customer-managed network models - and define NetApp's positioning and adoption path.
Establish and maintain clear swim-lane guidance for when each networking tier applies, reducing field ambiguity and improving deal velocity.
Lead multiple concurrent NPI programs across switch platforms, optics, cables, network interface cards, and switched enclosures - driving requirements, prioritization, and cross-functional execution through all lifecycle phases.
Define clear, well-structured product requirements for semester planning, engineering, and operations teams, ensuring networking programs are aligned to platform launch schedules and customer commitments.
Evaluate multi-source and multi-vendor qualification strategies to improve supply resilience across critical networking components.
Own and develop strategic relationships with key networking vendors across switching, optics, and connectivity - including both incumbent and emerging suppliers.
Drive joint roadmap alignment and early-engagement programs with ecosystem partners to ensure NetApp's platform and software requirements are reflected in partner product plans.
Evaluate and define flexible customer-managed network models (e.g., customer-provided switch infrastructure) to support large-scale, high-velocity deployment scenarios, including tradeoffs in support boundary, margin, and field experience.
Gather and synthesize requirements from enterprise customers, OEM partners, AI and hyperscale-adjacent accounts, and the field organization to inform networking priorities and design decisions.
Translate customer and market needs into clear product requirements, competitive positioning, and business cases - connecting networking investments to platform win rates, deal velocity, and revenue impact.
Partner with GTM, sales, and field teams to develop prescriptive, solution-led networking guidance and reference architectures for AI, SAN, and large-scale enterprise workloads.
Develop and maintain networking solution packaging, configuration guidance, and field-facing swim-lane documentation to ensure consistent, scalable deployment practices.
Partner with product marketing to ensure networking advancements are integrated into platform messaging, AI and enterprise solution stories, and field enablement content.
Drive adoption metrics, track deployment friction signals, and implement corrective actions to improve customer time-to-value.
Serve as the single point of accountability for Enterprise Storage networking across engineering, supply chain, operations, finance, marketing, and field sales.
Communicate networking strategy, roadmap, and tradeoffs clearly to executive leadership, field organizations, and external partners.
Influence platform-level decisions - including interconnect architecture, NIC selection, and enclosure design - that span multiple storage product lines.