Hardware Security Technical Leader CSDL Hybrid

The application window is expected to close on: 11/29/2026

This role is hybrid in Raleigh, North Carolina. (RTP) 3 days onsite per week.

The Security & Trust Organization (S&TO) has corporate-level responsibility for customer data protection and compliance, corporate information protection, and government and product security. Security is a key concern of our customers and a top investment area for Cisco. Join us and help us become the #1 Trusted IT Company in the World!

Within S&TO, the Foundational Security Technologies (FST) team seeks to increase product security and trustworthiness across a broad range of Cisco products through development, integration and deployment of reusable software and hardware solutions. Within Foundational Security, the Hardware & Firmware Security Team (HFST) focuses on security solutions implemented at the hardware and firmware level.

Cisco’s Security and Trust Organization (STO) is seeking a Hardware Security Technical Leader to join the HW-CSDL (Hardware Cisco Secure Development Lifecycle) team.

In this role, the successful candidate will serve as a trusted technical leader and security partner to hardware engineering teams across Cisco, bridging the gap between security assessments and practical hardware implementation. This involves helping product teams interpret evaluation findings, evaluate risk, and architect robust designs that align with HW-CSDL standards and global security regulations.

The position requires an experienced hardware engineering technical leader with a deep background in hardware design, low-level architecture, and security principles
. Key responsibilities include translating sophisticated technical standards into practical engineering requirements and partnering across teams to solve complicated hardware security problems. Success in this role requires the ability to communicate technical concepts clearly through engineering documentation and multi-functional collaboration, while autonomously managing multiple parallel technical initiatives in a dynamic environment!

• Security Consulting, Guidance & Mentorship: Partner directly with product hardware teams to analyze results from hardware security evaluations and provide actionable, clear, and pragmatic design guidance to achieve HW-CSDL compliance. Provide technical mentorship to members of the Security and Trust engineering team.
• System-to-Component Analysis: Deconstruct and review sophisticated hardware architectures from the system level down to boards, ASICs/FPGAs, power/management controllers, and discrete components to identify vulnerabilities and design-in resilience.
• Standards Interpretation & Application: Parse, interpret, and operationalize emerging industry and government standards (e.g., NIST SP 800-193, CNSA 2.0, EU Cyber Resilience Act, IEEE 2883) into technical guidance and design requirements.
• Technical Documentation: Author and provide overall direction for high-quality security requirements, reference architectures, implementation guides, and best-practice documentation for engineering audiences across the company.
• Multi-Workstream Execution: Lead and balance multiple parallel engagements, consulting efforts, and security initiatives across diverse product families with a high-level of autonomy.
• Advocacy &
  
  Education:
  
  Educate and influence hardware design communities outside STO to foster a security-first culture throughout the product development lifecycle.

• Degree in Electrical/Computer Engineering or related field with proven experience: 9+ years (BS), 6+ years (MS), or 3+ years (PhD)
• Prior experience leading security initiatives and mentoring engineers as a technical leader.
• Prior background in hardware…