Product Line Manager - Routing & Switching Innovation

Ciena is a global leader in high-speed connectivity, committed to a people-first approach. They are seeking a Product Line Manager to drive innovation strategy and growth of the IP Routing portfolio, focusing on the integration of AI in Service Provider networks.

Responsibilities:

• Identify and define differentiated IP routing solution opportunities using qualitative and quantitative analysis
• Engage global Service Providers to understand network evolution, AI-driven operational models, and new service constructs
• Lead proof-of-concept initiatives to validate solutions and drive customer adoption
• Align routing innovation requirements with the broader Ciena portfolio roadmap in partnership with PLM peers
• Translate market and innovation needs into detailed product requirements and multi-year roadmaps with engineering teams
• Provide thought leadership on AI-enabled routing capabilities, operational efficiency, and new revenue models
• Produce roadmap narratives, whitepapers, presentations, and value propositions to support customer engagement and sales enablement

Requirements:

• Education: Bachelor's degree in Engineering or a related technical field; advanced degree preferred
• Experience: 7+ years of experience in Product Management or technical strategy leadership within routing, networking, telecommunications, or cloud infrastructure
• Application of IP routing protocols including OSPF, IS-IS, BGP, MPLS, Segment Routing (SR-MPLS and SRv6), multicast, QoS, and VXLAN
• Background in Service Provider network architectures including core, metro, access, edge, cloud, and data center interconnect environments
• Application of AI-driven networking use cases such as predictive analytics, anomaly detection, automated optimization, intent-based operations, and traffic forecasting
• Collaboration across product teams and portfolios to drive alignment and cohesive solution delivery
• Communication of technical and strategic concepts to audiences ranging from engineering teams to executive leadership
• Experience defining routing solutions or AI- and automation-driven network capabilities
• Track record of defining innovative solutions and driving adoption within Service Provider organizations
• Direct engagement with Tier 1 or Tier 2 Service Providers on automation or AI-focused initiatives
• Familiarity with machine learning analytics platforms, data pipelines, telemetry systems, and cloud-native architectures