Director, Software Engineering (Prisma Access)

Company Description

Our Mission

At Palo Alto Networks everything starts and ends with our mission:

Being the cybersecurity partner of choice, protecting our digital way of life.
Our vision is a world where each day is safer and more secure than the one before. We are a company built on the foundation of challenging and disrupting the way things are done, and we're looking for innovators who are as committed to shaping the future of cybersecurity as we are.

Who We Are

We take our mission of protecting the digital way of life seriously. We are relentless in protecting our customers and we believe that the unique ideas of every member of our team contributes to our collective success. Our values were crowdsourced by employees and are brought to life through each of us everyday - from disruptive innovation and collaboration, to execution. From showing up for each other with integrity to creating an environment where we all feel included.

As a member of our team, you will be shaping the future of cybersecurity. We work fast, value ongoing learning, and we respect each employee as a unique individual. Knowing we all have different needs, our development and personal wellbeing programs are designed to give you choice in how you are supported. This includes our FLEXBenefits wellbeing spending account with over 1,000 eligible items selected by employees, our mental and financial health resources, and our personalized learning opportunities - just to name a few!

At Palo Alto Networks, we believe in the power of collaboration and value in-person interactions. This is why our employees generally work full time from our office with flexibility offered where needed. This setup fosters casual conversations, problem-solving, and trusted relationships. Our goal is to create an environment where we all win with precision.

Job Description

Your Career

Palo Alto Networks is shaping the future with technology that is transforming the way people and organizations operate in the cloud, at the network edge, and everywhere in between. Our mission is to be the cybersecurity partner of choice, protecting our digital way of life.

As a Leader in Engineering you will lead the design, development, and delivery of core services of the Prisma Access platform such as Explicit Proxy services, Mobile users etc. You'll drive innovation at the core of our Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) solution, enabling enterprises to securely connect users to the internet, SaaS, and private applications - with scale, performance, and zero-trust principles at the foundation.

Your Impact

Strategic Leadership

• Define and execute the technical vision for Prisma Access Explicit Proxy and Mobile USers capabilities within the broader SASE architecture.
• Drive architectural evolution from legacy systems to fully cloud-native, distributed services.

Execution & Delivery

• Lead engineering teams building features including SSL/TLS inspection, multi-protocol authentication, PAC/WPAD handling, DNS resolution, NAT and granular access controls.
• Ensure enterprise-grade scalability, reliability, and performance across globally distributed cloud points of presence (PoPs).
• Champion CI/CD, observability, and automation practices that accelerate delivery without compromising quality.

Collaboration & Influence

• Partner closely with Product Management to deliver market-leading SASE capabilities.
• Collaborate with Threat Research and Security Engineering teams to rapidly integrate protections against emerging threats.
• Represent engineering in executive forums, influencing roadmap and customer engagement.

People & Culture

• Grow and mentor a world-class team of engineering managers and senior engineers.
• Build a culture of accountability, inclusion, and innovation across distributed teams.
• Inspire teams to deliver customer-first, mission-critical solutions.

Qualifications

Your Experience

• 10+ years of progressive software engineering experience, with at least 5 years leading large, distributed engineering organizations.
• Proven expertise in Explicit Proxy technologies: HTTP/HTTPS inspection, SSL/TLS interception, authentication flows, PAC/WPAD, DNS handling, and content filtering.
• Strong background in network security and cloud-delivered SWG / SASE services.
• Deep knowledge of building multi-tenant, cloud-native architectures (Kubernetes, microservices, distributed data pipelines, observability stacks).
• Track record of delivering enterprise-grade SaaS products at scale.
• Ability to attract and develop top engineering talent and build high-performing teams.
• Excellent communication and collaboration skills, with experience influencing stakeholders at all levels.

Preferred:

• Experience with Prisma Access, GlobalProtect, or comparable cloud-delivered security platforms.
• Familiarity with Zero Trust architectures and identity-based access control models.

Additional Information

The Team

Prisma Access is the industry's most complete SASE solution, converging network security, SD-WAN, and cloud-delivered services into a single, unified platform. As part of the Prisma Access engineering leadership team, you'll work with some of the brightest minds in cloud security to deliver innovations that protect thousands of enterprises and millions of users globally.

Our Commitment

We don't believe in settling for good enough - we are here to secure the future. If you are passionate about building internet-scale, cloud-delivered security services and thrive on leading teams that solve complex engineering challenges, this is your opportunity to make an impact at Palo Alto Networks.

Compensation Disclosure

The compensation offered for this position will depend on qualifications, experience, and work location. For candidates who receive an offer at the posted level, the starting base salary (for non-sales roles) or base salary + commission target (for sales/commissioned roles) is expected to be between $232,000 - $320,750/YR. The offered compensation may also include restricted stock units and a bonus. A description of our employee benefits may be found here.

Our Commitment

We're problem solvers that take risks and challenge cybersecurity's status quo. It's simple: we can't accomplish our mission without diverse teams innovating, together.

We are committed to providing reasonable accommodations for all qualified individuals with a disability. If you require assistance or accommodation due to a disability or special need, please contact us at

Palo Alto Networks is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity in our workplace, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran status, race, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or other legally protected characteristics.

All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.

Is role eligible for Immigration Sponsorship?: Yes