Staff Software Engineer - Integrated Network Strategy

Cloudflare•San Francisco, CA

3d•Hybrid

About The Position

Integrated Network Strategy is where Cloudflare's foundational infrastructure planning, network design, and capacity roadmaps are shaped. We own the systems and processes that enable our global network to scale across 337+ cities in 125+ countries while maintaining industry-leading performance and reliability. We design the architectural standards, capacity methodologies, and hardware evolution strategies that keep Cloudflare's network ahead of exponential growth. Rather than being constrained by the structures which make Cloudflare a massively successful business, we leverage our edge and network to solve infrastructure problems at massive scale and efficiency—something nearly impossible for any other organization.

Requirements

10+ years designing, operating, or planning large-scale network infrastructure at hyperscale (or equivalent)
Proven track record building greenfield network architectures and evolving them as business needs change
Deep, hands-on expertise with modern routing protocols (BGP, ISIS, RSVP-TE, QoS, traffic engineering)
Strong experience with software-defined networking, overlay networks, and programmable forwarding
Expert-level understanding of network economics: cost drivers, capacity planning, peering strategy, and trade-offs between performance, redundancy, and capital efficiency
Track record automating complex network operations and building extensible frameworks that scale across large teams
Experience designing and implementing DDoS mitigation strategies, firewall policies, and network security at scale
Ability to design intent-based systems that reduce operational complexity while maintaining flexibility
Strong systems-level understanding across the full stack: from hardware platforms and protocols through software-defined networking to application-level routing decisions
Experience leading network design, planning, budgeting, and sourcing decisions for large deployments
Ability to think 3–5 years ahead while shipping solutions today
Proven ability to influence without direct authority; comfortable presenting technical recommendations to senior leadership and non-technical stakeholders
Strong writing and documentation skills; able to articulate complex technical decisions and trade-offs clearly
Experience mentoring junior engineers or leading teams through major architectural transitions
Comfortable working in a matrix environment with multiple stakeholders (product, operations, procurement, finance) and driving alignment

Nice To Haves

Experience at a hyperscaler or large infrastructure platform (Meta, Google, Netflix, Amazon, Microsoft, etc.)
Background designing and implementing network automation frameworks
Experience with network telemetry, Netflow data analysis, and observability at scale
Track record driving significant cost optimization through network design and peering strategy
Experience with IPv6 deployment and evolution at scale
Knowledge of SDN platforms, hardware abstractions, and vendor-agnostic network design
Familiarity with Cloudflare's products, network, or competitive landscape

Responsibilities

Lead the design, evolution, and operational excellence of our global network infrastructure.
Own the foundational decisions about how our network grows: from capacity planning methodologies and hardware evolution strategies to architectural standards that inform infrastructure teams across the organization.
Work with a team of passionate, talented engineers and architects that are building the systems powering the internet's most critical infrastructure.
Play an active part in shaping the network architecture, strategies, and long-term roadmaps that will keep Cloudflare ahead of unprecedented scale.
Make sure our company hits our ambitious infrastructure and operational goals.
Change what's possible for internet infrastructure.
Design and evolve the architecture of Cloudflare's global network, including core infrastructure patterns, interconnection strategies, and edge deployment models.
Establish and maintain design standards that enable consistency, reliability, and defensibility across heterogeneous deployments.
Lead architectural reviews; anticipate technical debt and recommend major evolution initiatives, working across teams.
Own the design and continuous improvement of capacity management processes and systems used across infrastructure teams.
Develop methodologies for forecasting demand, modeling growth scenarios, and optimizing resource utilization.
Build tools, dashboards, and automated systems that make capacity planning visible, transparent, and actionable.
Drive the evolution of network hardware and platform strategies, evaluating new platforms, vendors, and architectures.
Lead technical evaluations of emerging technologies (silicon, switching architectures, routing protocols, optical transport, etc.).
Work with procurement, supply chain, and engineering teams to transition the network to next-generation platforms.
Conceive and plan multi-year technical roadmaps for network infrastructure, anticipating growth patterns and industry dynamics.
Conduct research into emerging infrastructure trends and translate insights into strategic recommendations.
Lead architectural exploration and validation projects that de-risk future directions before large-scale commitment.
Partner with infrastructure teams to translate architectural visions into operational realities.
Work with finance and operations to understand cost implications and optimize infrastructure spend.
Mentor and elevate the technical decision-making capability of engineering teams across the organization.