The application window is expected to close on: 10/19/2026

Location: Washington, DC

Meet the Team

Cisco is seeking a government affairs professional to join a global team for a position based in our Washington, DC office as a Senior Manager of U.S. Federal Affairs. Reporting to the Vice President and Head of Americas Government Affairs, this individual will primarily help manage Cisco’s engagement with Democrats in the U.S. Congress.

Cisco’s Government Affairs team represents the company with governments around the world to build relationships with key leaders, advance Cisco’s public policy goals, and educate governments about our industry. Government Affairs is involved in all key legislative, regulatory, and global issues that impact the technology industry.

 

We are comprised of government and public policy experts across two dozen countries who represent Cisco at the highest levels of government. The team has extensive experience in and out of government and are recognized leaders in the industry.

                              

Your Impact

As Senior Manager of U.S. Federal Affairs, you will represent Cisco with officials throughout the federal government. You play a pivotal role in formulating and implementing innovative policy solutions that advance Cisco’s business and enable our purpose to power an inclusive future for all.

 

Key responsibilities include:

• Building strong political relationships with key members of the Senate and House and their staffs
• Developing and advocating for public policies that advance ICT adoption and enable Cisco’s mission to power an inclusive future for all
• Providing direct support and counsel to Cisco executives in meetings with key government officials
• Collaborating across Cisco and externally with companies and industries to advance key public policy goals
• Managing Cisco’s activities at trade associations and industry coalitions related to public policy issues
• Supporting Cisco’s political activities, including Cisco’s employee-sponsored political action committee

 

Minimum Qualifications:

• 7+ years of experience in the federal government or across a combination of federal government and private sector roles
• Degree in Business, Economics, Law, International Affairs, Public Policy, or a related field
• Experience staffing and briefing senior government officials and/or executives
• Demonstrated interest and experience handling congressional relations and advocacy, as well as policy analysis
• Strong political judgment and experience in managing complex political situations
• Familiarity with public policy issues impacting the technology industry

Preferred Qualifications:

• Relevant private sector or technology industry experience strongly preferred
• Advanced degree in Business, Economics, Law, International Affairs, Public Policy, or a related field
• Outstanding verbal and written communication and presentation skills
• Ability to operate with a high degree of autonomy, taking initiative and handling multiple issues and responsibilities fully and effectively under tight deadlines
• Exceedingly collaborative, with high emotional intelligence and a demonstrated ability to communicate seamlessly across internal teams, build consensus without friction, and put collective mission success above individual ownership
• Strong external relationship and coalition building skills
• Excellent strategic thinking, problem-solving, leadership, organization, and project management skills

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 $180,200.00 to $242,200.00 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 paid days off for personal wellness determined by Cisco

• Non-exempt employees** receive 16 days of paid vacation time per full calendar year, accrued at rate of 4.92 hours per pay period for full-time employees

• Exempt employees participate in Cisco’s flexible vacation time off program, which has no defined limit on how much vacation time eligible employees may use (subject to availability and some business limitations)

• 80 hours of sick time off provided on hire date and each January 1st thereafter, and up to 80 hours of unused sick time carried forward from one calendar year to the next

• Additional paid time away may be requested to deal with critical or emergency issues for family members

• Optional 10 paid days per full calendar year to volunteer

For non-sales roles, employees are also eligible to earn annual bonuses subject to Cisco’s policies.

Employees on sales plans earn performance-based incentive pay on top of their base salary, which is split between quota and non-quota components, subject to the applicable Cisco plan. For quota-based incentive pay, Cisco typically pays as follows:

• .75% of incentive target for each 1% of revenue attainment up to 50% of quota;

• 1.5% of incentive target for each 1% of attainment between 50% and 75%;

• 1% of incentive target for each 1% of attainment between 75% and 100%; and

• Once performance exceeds 100% attainment, incentive rates are at or above 1% for each 1% of attainment with no cap on incentive compensation.

For non-quota-based sales performance elements such as strategic sales objectives, Cisco may pay 0% up to 125% of target. Cisco sales plans do not have a minimum threshold of performance for sales incentive compensation to be paid.

The applicable full salary ranges for this position, by specific state, are listed below:

New York City Metro Area:

$198,500.00 - $324,100.00

Non-Metro New York state & Washington state:

$180,200.00 - $278,600.00

* For quota-based sales roles on Cisco’s sales plan, the ranges provided in this posting include base pay and sales target incentive compensation combined.

** Employees in Illinois, whether exempt or non-exempt, will participate in a unique time off program to meet local requirements.