Director Software Engineering- CWP (Cortex Cloud)

At Palo Alto Networks®, we’re united by a shared mission—to protect our digital way of life. We thrive at the intersection of innovation and impact, solving real-world problems with cutting-edge technology and bold thinking. Here, everyone has a voice, and every idea counts. If you’re ready to do the most meaningful work of your career alongside people who are just as passionate as you are, you’re in the right place.

In order to be the cybersecurity partner of choice, we must trailblaze the path and shape the future of our industry. This is something our employees work at each day and is defined by our values: Disruption, Collaboration, Execution, Integrity, and Inclusion. We weave AI into the fabric of everything we do and use it to augment the impact every individual can have. If you are passionate about solving real-world problems and ideating beside the best and the brightest, we invite you to join us! We believe collaboration thrives in person. That’s why most of our teams work from the office full time, with flexibility when it’s needed. This model supports real-time problem-solving, stronger relationships, and the kind of precision that drives great outcomes.

As a Director of Engineering at Cortex Cloud, you will lead an engineering group of approximately 25 engineers operating in one of our most complex and cross-functional domains, focused on building KSPM (Kubernetes Security Posture Management) and CNS (Cloud Network Security). This highly technical group works closely with some of the largest companies in the US across various domains. This role requires a strong blend of strategic leadership and deep technical expertise, including systems design and large-scale distributed cloud architectures. You will be responsible for driving the design and delivery of complex, high-impact systems, while ensuring your teams execute against the roadmap with both speed and engineering rigor.

Build, mentor, and lead high-performing backend engineering teams, fostering a culture of empowerment and driving both individual growth and collective impact. Partner closely with Product Management and cross-functional teams (Infrastructure, Research, UX) to define priorities and shape multi-quarter product roadmaps, ensuring alignment across all stakeholders. Own the end-to-end software development lifecycle, translating product strategy into executable plans and ensuring consistent, high-quality, on-time delivery. Provide architectural leadership for scalable, distributed systems operating at petabyte scale, guiding the design and implementation of high-throughput, cloud-native backend microservices. Drive production readiness by enforcing best practices around deployment, observability, reliability, and runtime stability, focusing on the details to ensure operational excellence. Align stakeholders across business units through clear communication of technical strategy, trade-offs, priorities, risks, and execution plans. Engage directly with strategic enterprise customers—including some of the largest companies in the US—to lead technical deep dives, review architecture, and influence future product direction. Foster a culture of high engineering standards, accountability, and continuous improvement, with a strong emphasis on quality and security.

Demonstrated experience leading several backend teams within a large-scale software organization. 5+ years of hands-on software engineering experience with a strong systems-level foundation. Proven ability to plan, execute, and deliver complex roadmaps with high predictability, owning distributed cloud products end-to-end. Demonstrated experience designing and operating large-scale cloud architectures on platforms such as GCP, AWS, or Azure. Strong collaboration skills with a track record of aligning cross-disciplinary teams around shared objectives.

Strong deep understanding