Product Management Leader, Client Optics - Acacia

About this role

The application window is expected to close on: 09/25/2026 Job posting may be removed earlier if the position is filled or if a sufficient number of applications are received .

This position requires candidates to be based in Holmdel, NJ or Maynard, MA or San Jose, CA.   Meet the team Acacia, now a part of Cisco, is a global leader in the design and manufacture of high-speed coherent optical interconnect products. We are the architects behind the technology that transforms how data centers, cloud providers, and service providers connect. By pioneering breakthroughs in Silicon Photonics and Digital Signal Processing (DSP), Acacia is shrinking complex, power-hungry optical systems into high-performance, pluggable modules that scale the internet for the future.

As part of the Acacia team at Cisco, you will work on the cutting edge of 400G, 800G, and 1.2T technologies. We are a group of innovators dedicated to solving the world’s most difficult bandwidth and power-efficiency challenges. If you are passionate about pushing the boundaries of physics and engineering to build a faster, more connected world, Acacia is where you belong.

Your Impact As a Product Management Leader for Acacia, you will be responsible for driving the integration and promotion of Acacia’s high-speed cohere and client optical interconnect products within Cisco’s broader portfolio. In this role, you will: • Collaborate with Engineering on managing and progressing product development projects as well as developing requirements and priorities.

• Collaborate with Operations: Partner with the operations team to enhance supply chain security, manufacturability, capacity ramp-up, and cost reduction.

• Drive Product Success: Lead the product through every stage of its life cycle, ensuring specs, quality, market timing, and profitability.

• Define Requirements: Establish clear product requirements

• Drive customer product documentation in collaboration with Engineering and Systems Applications Engineering

• Execute and Review: Oversee all phases of the Product Life Cycle and ensure successful Decision Reviews.

• Collaborate on Roadmaps and Go-to-Market Strategy: Influence strategic decisions on product and customer engagement, prioritization, and resource allocation.

Minimum Qualifications • Bachelor’s degree in optical/electronic engineering, physics, or a related field to include 12+ years of industry experience in product development, field application engineering or product management. 

• Demonstrated technical expertise in software, hardware and/or optics engineering.

• Demonstrated experience understanding client optics and/or optical transceiver market and standardization.

• Demonstrated experience with full product life cycle process including product releases and return on investment analysis.

Preferred Qualifications • Business-level fluency in Mandarin (spoken and written) is strongly preferred, to support close partnership with APJC-based stakeholders. Candidates without Mandarin fluency should have demonstrated experience partnering with or working within APJC organizations and navigating cross-regional business dynamics.

• Significant background and experience in related engineering field(s).

• Understanding of the role and implications of IEEE and OIF standards.

• Understanding of client optics applications and corresponding priorities.

• Exceptional communication and collaboration skills, demonstrated through various professional or personal experiences.

• Experience presenting to a technical audience distilling and addressing their concerns.

• Experienced in communicating a clear strategy and motivating team members.

Why Cisco?  At Cisco, we’re revolutionizing how data and infrastructure connect and protect organizations in the AI era – and beyond. We’ve been innovating fearlessly for 40 years to create solutions that power how humans and technology work together across the physical and digital worlds. These solutions provide customers with unparalleled security, visibility, and insights across the entire digital footprint. Fueled by the depth and breadth of our technology, we experiment and create meaningful solutions. Add to that our worldwide network of doers and experts, and you’ll see that the opportunities to grow and build are limitless. We work as a team, collaborating with empathy to make really big things happen on a global scale. Because our solutions are everywhere, our impact is everywhere.  We are Cisco, and our power starts with you. 

Message to applicants applying to work in the U.S. and/or Canada:

The starting salary range posted for this position is $194,600.00 to $285,700.00 and reflects the projected salary range for new hires in this position in U.S. and/or Canada locations, not including incentive compensation*, equity, or benefits. Individual pay is determined by the candidate's hiring location, market conditions, job-related skillset, experience, qualifications, education, certifications, and/or training. The full salary range for certain locations is listed below. For locations not listed below, the recruiter can share more details about compensation for the role in your location during the hiring process.

U.S. employees are offered benefits, subject to Cisco’s plan eligibility rules, which include medical, dental and vision insurance, a 401(k) plan with a Cisco matching contribution, paid parental leave, short and long-term disability coverage, and basic life insurance. Please see the Cisco careers site to discover more benefits and perks.  Employees may be eligible to receive grants of Cisco restricted stock units, which vest following continued employment with Cisco for defined periods of time.

U.S. employees are eligible for paid time away as described below, subject to Cisco’s policies: • 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 p

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