Senior Director, Engineering - Quality (Security Business Group)

Cisco•San Jose, CA

4d•$293,900 - $406,800

About The Position

Cisco Security is looking for a strategic, hands-on Senior Director of Quality Engineering to define and lead the quality strategy, operating framework, and engineering standards across our Cloud and Network Security product portfolio. You will build a modern, scalable global quality organization that enables secure, resilient, and exceptional customer experiences across cloud-delivered services, network security platforms, and integrated solutions. Our team is at the forefront of the industry, building AI-powered security products that power Cisco’s security portfolio from network security and threat detection to automated response and predictive analytics. We operate at the intersection of cutting-edge research and massive-scale production, ensuring that Cisco remains the leader in proactive, intelligent security. Success in this role is defined by your ability to create a unified quality engineering vision that empowers Cisco Security teams to ship faster with greater confidence. You will be instrumental in improving overall reliability, security, and customer experience, effectively transforming quality into a measurable, shared responsibility across the entire Cloud and Network Security portfolio.

Requirements

Bachelor’s Degree or 15+ years of progressive experience in software engineering, quality engineering, reliability engineering, or related technical leadership roles.
7+ years of experience leading large, distributed engineering or quality organizations defining quality strategy for cloud-native, SaaS, networking, cybersecurity, or enterprise software products.
Proven experience with CI/CD, automated testing, test infrastructure, API and UI validation, performance engineering, chaos/resilience testing or production observability.
Experience with cloud platforms, distributed systems, networking, and security technologies (eg: firewalls, SASE etc.,)

Nice To Haves

Experience with network security, firewall, SASE, zero trust, identity, cloud security, or threat detection products.
Experience operating in a large, global technology organization.
Demonstrated ability to establish scalable operating models and quality frameworks across multiple product teams.
Proven success influencing senior executives and aligning diverse organizations around shared quality and delivery outcomes.
Familiarity with secure software development lifecycle (SDLC) practices and compliance-driven quality requirements.
Master’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field; an advanced degree is preferred.

Responsibilities

Define and implement an enterprise-quality strategy for Cloud and Network Security products, aligned with business priorities, customer outcomes, and Cisco’s security standards.
Establish a common quality engineering framework spanning development, testing, release readiness, reliability, performance, security validation, and customer experience.
Lead and grow a high-performing global Quality Engineering organization, developing leaders and fostering a culture of accountability, automation, and continuous improvement.
Partner closely with Product Management, Engineering, Security, SRE, Support, and Customer Experience teams to embed quality early in the product lifecycle.
Drive a shift from traditional testing toward modern quality engineering practices, including automated validation, risk-based testing, observability, continuous delivery, and measurable quality outcomes.
Create consistent release governance and readiness mechanisms for complex cloud and network security offerings.
Define quality metrics, dashboards, and executive reporting that connect engineering health to customer impact, reliability, and business performance.
Lead cross-portfolio initiatives to improve defect prevention, scalability, interoperability, performance, resilience, and security assurance.
Advocate for customer-first quality standards, using field insights, support trends, and telemetry to prioritize improvements.
Influence architecture and engineering decisions to ensure products are designed for testability, operability, security, and reliability.

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)
flexible vacation time off program (exempt)
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
Optional 10 paid days per full calendar year to volunteer
annual bonuses (for non-sales roles)
performance-based incentive pay (for sales roles)