Job Description: Principal Engineer – Unified Communications (Webex Dedicated Instance)

Role Summary

The Principal Engineer - Unified Communications (UC) is the senior technical authority responsible for the architecture, design, and long-term strategy of the enterprise Unified Communications environment leveraging Cisco Webex Dedicated Instance (DI). This role provides deep hands-on expertise across voice, video, messaging, and contact center integrations while setting standards for scalability, resilience, security, and operational excellence.

The Principal Engineer partners closely with Network Engineering, Collaboration, Security, Cloud, and Business teams to ensure the UC platform supports mission-critical communication needs across a global, distributed organization.

Key Responsibilities

Technical Leadership & Architecture

• Serve as the primary technical authority for the Unified Communications platform built on Cisco Webex Dedicated Instance.
• Define and maintain UC architecture standards, reference designs, and best practices.
• Lead the design of complex UC solutions including Call Control (CUCM), Unity Connection, IM & Presence, Expressway, Webex App integration, and hybrid/cloud connectivity.
• Evaluate Cisco roadmaps, Webex DI releases, and new collaboration capabilities; provide strategic recommendations and adoption plans.
• Own enterprise UC technical standards and approve deviations from architectural baselines.

Platform Engineering & Operations

• Design, build, and operate highly available, secure, and scalable UC environments.
• Lead advanced troubleshooting and root-cause analysis for complex voice, video, and signaling issues.
• Establish operational standards for monitoring, alerting, capacity planning, and performance optimization.
• Drive platform stability through proactive lifecycle management, upgrades, and configuration governance.
• Serve as final technical escalation authority for cross-domain UC incidents impacting multiple business units.

Voice, Video & Call Routing

• Architect enterprise voice solutions including SIP, PSTN connectivity, call routing, survivability, and global dial plans.
• Ensure high-quality voice and video experiences through proper QoS design, codec selection, and network alignment.
• Provide expertise in emergency services (E911), call admission control, and location-based services.

Integrations & Hybrid Connectivity

• Architect integrations between Webex DI and on-prem systems, cloud services, SBCs, and third-party platforms.
• Provide technical leadership on identity, authentication, directory integration, and SSO.
• Support integrations with contact center platforms, recording, compliance, and analytics solutions.

Security, Compliance & Governance

• Ensure UC designs meet enterprise security, privacy, and regulatory requirements.
• Partner with Security teams to define access controls, encryption standards, certificate management, and audit practices.
• Establish governance models for configuration changes, feature enablement, and vendor management.

Mentorship & Technical Influence

• Mentor and coach UC and network engineers; elevate overall technical capability.
• Lead architectural reviews, design forums, and post-incident reviews.
• Influence technical direction through documentation, standards, and collaboration rather than direct authority.

Stakeholder & Vendor Collaboration

• Act as a trusted technical advisor to IT leadership and business stakeholders.
• Translate business communication needs into scalable UC solutions.
• Serve as a senior escalation point with Cisco and strategic partners.

Required Qualifications

• 8 -12+ years of experience in Unified Communications, Collaboration, or Voice Engineering roles.
• Deep hands-on experience with Cisco Webex Dedicated Instance and core UC components (CUCM, Unity Connection, IM & Presence, Expressway).
• Strong understanding of SIP, VoIP, PSTN connectivity, dial plans, and call flows.
• Proven experience designing and supporting large-scale, enterprise UC environments.
• Advanced troubleshooting skills across signaling, media, network, and endpoint layers.
• Strong understanding of enterprise networking concepts including QoS, routing, and firewalls as they relate to UC.

Preferred Qualifications

• Cisco certifications (CCNP Collaboration, CCIE Collaboration, or equivalent).
• Experience with global UC deployments and multi-region architectures.
• Familiarity with SBCs (Cisco CUBE or third-party).
• Experience integrating UC platforms with contact center, compliance recording, or regulated environments.
• Exposure to automation, APIs, or scripting for UC operations.

Leadership Competencies

• Strategic thinker with the ability to balance long-term architecture with operational realities.
• Clear communicator capable of explaining complex UC concepts to both technical and non-technical audiences.
• Strong ownership mindset with a focus on reliability and user experience.
• Collaborative leader who builds trust across infrastructure, security, and application teams.

Working Environment

• Primarily remote with collaboration across distributed and global teams.
• Participation in on-call rotations or escalation support for critical incidents.

Success Measures

• Availability, stability, and performance of the UC platform.
• Adoption of standardized architectures and operational best practices.
• Reduction in incidents through proactive design and lifecycle management.
• Positive feedback from engineering peers, leadership, and end users.

This role is ideal for a senior Unified Communications engineer who wants to own and shape an enterprise Webex Dedicated Instance platform while remaining deeply technical and influential at scale.