we are seeking an experienced and strategic Vice President of Program & Release Management to lead the end-to-end lifecycle of complex programs and software releases across our networking portfolio. This executive will drive cross-functional execution across Product, Engineering, and Quality to ensure high-quality delivery to global customers and partners.
The VP will play a critical leadership role in the R&D management team, scaling program and release governance in a fast-growing, globally distributed environment. This includes orchestrating large-scale software releases and aligning platform evolution with customer commitments.
Key Responsibilities:
Strategic Program Leadership
Lead large-scale programs spanning a 300+ engineering organization across multiple products, platforms, and technologies.
Translate business and product strategy into executable multi-quarter roadmaps.
Define development processes to support scale and quality.
Establish metrics and reporting frameworks to provide transparency and risk insights to the team.
Release Management & Execution
Own the release lifecycle from planning through all execution phases to customer go-to-market readiness.
Ensure structured coordination of software and hardware releases across Engineering, QA, and delivery teams.
Integrate AI-based tooling and analytics (release forecasting, risk detection, automation, quarter planning readiness, customer trends) to drive release excellence.
Cross-Functional Management
Partner with Product, Engineering, and Customer Support to align priorities and remove blockers.
Manage dependencies and trade-offs across diverse stakeholder groups.
Team Leadership
Build, mentor, and scale a high-performing Program & Release Management organization.
Promote a culture of continuous improvement and innovation.
Requirements: 10+ years in senior program management and release leadership roles within a technology company, preferably in Networking, Infrastructure, or AI/Cloud platforms.
Proven track record of delivering complex, cross-functional programs at scale in global organizations.
Deep understanding of software release lifecycles and execution governance.
Strong strategic mindset with the ability to influence senior leadership.
Experience with AI-enabled execution tooling and data-driven release insights preferred.
Preferred Qualifications:
Success in scaling PMO/Release teams in an advanced engineering organization within a fast-growing, mid-sized startup.
Exposure to networking, security, or telecom domains.
This position is open to all candidates.