Software Architect – BIGIP for Kubernetes

At F5, we strive to bring a better digital world to life. Our teams empower organizations across the globe to create, secure, and run applications that enhance how we experience our evolving digital world. We are passionate about cybersecurity, from protecting consumers from fraud to enabling companies to focus on innovation. Everything we do centers around people. That means we obsess over how to make the lives of our customers, and their customers, better. And it means we prioritize a diverse F5 community where each individual can thrive. Job Description: F5 is seeking an Architect to lead the architectural vision, strategy, and execution for the BIGIP Kubernetes platform, designed for AI and cloud-native applications. This leadership role is responsible for ensuring scalability, security, performance, and agility across all technical domains of BIGIP’s AI, Kubernetes, and cloud-native capabilities—including, but not limited to, traffic management, load balancing, security, orchestration, and observability. Job Duties and Responsibilities: Set long-term architectural direction, guiding major technology choices and innovation areas. Collaborate closely with product and development teams to ensure software and product architectures align with the company’s vision and future direction. Drive architectural reviews, design validations, and threat modeling to address operational, security, and scalability concerns early in the process. Partner with management to drive product timelines. Lead technical due diligence, competitive assessments, and horizon scanning for new technologies and paradigms. Mentor junior team members. Required Qualifications: Expert knowledge and extensive experience with L2–L7 network protocols (IP, TCP/UDP, TLS, DNS, HTTP, gRPC, BGP, etc.) and web technologies. Experience architecting and designing AI and cloud-native products and infrastructure. Strong expertise in distributed systems, microservices architecture, and cloud-native design. Exceptional problem-solving and project management skills. Strong leadership abilities and a talent for mentoring and developing engineers. Demonstrated excellence in written and verbal communication. Ability to collaborate and thrive in a fast-paced, high-performance environment. Typically requires a minimum of 12+ years of related experience with a Bachelor’s degree; or 10+ years with a Master’s degree; or a PhD with 8 years of experience; or equivalent work experience. Preferred Qualifications: Deep understanding of DPU and GPU technologies. Experience leading complex product development initiatives from concept through release. Extensive development experience with Linux / Unix-like operating systems. The Job Description is intended to be a general representation of the responsibilities and requirements of the job. However, the description may not be all-inclusive, and responsibilities and requirements are subject to change. The annual base pay for this position is: $234,400.00 - $351,600.00 F5 maintains broad salary ranges for its roles in order to account for variations in knowledge, skills, experience, geographic locations, and market conditions, as well as to reflect F5’s differing products, industries, and lines of business. The pay range referenced is as of the time of the job posting and is subject to change. You may also be offered incentive compensation, bonus, restricted stock units, and benefits. More details about F5’s benefits can be found at the following link: F5 reserves the right to change or terminate any benefit plan without notice. Please note that F5 only contacts candidates through F5 email address (ending with @f5.com) or auto email notification from Workday (ending with f5.com or @myworkday.com). Equal Employment Opportunity It is the policy of F5 to provide equal employment opportunities to all employees and employment applicants without regard to unlawful considerations of race, religion, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, sensory, physical, or mental disability, marital status, veteran or military status, genetic information, or any other classification protected by applicable local, state, or federal laws. This policy applies to all aspects of employment, including, but not limited to, hiring, job assignment, compensation, promotion, benefits, training, discipline, and termination. F5 offers a variety of reasonable accommodations for candidates. Requesting an accommodation is completely voluntary. F5 will assess the need for accommodations in the application process separately from those that may be needed to perform the job. Request by contacting [email protected]. Hybrid: Employees within 30 commutable miles of an F5 office are required to work from the office a minimum of 30 business days per quarter. Remote: Primarily work from designated home location but can come into an F5 office to work or travel to an offsite location as needed. Together, we're building a better digital world. Founded in 1996, F5 is a global leader in application delivery and security. Our premier platform helps customers secure and deliver every app, API, and piece of infrastructure across all environments. Backed by over three decades of expertise and 553 patents, our solutions protect against threats while ensuring fast, reliable digital experiences. With over 6,400 employees, we serve more than 23,000 customers in over 170 countries. To continue this work, we need people like you—the best minds in the industry. We're committed to a unique, human-first culture that encourages authenticity, prioritizes diversity and inclusion, and fosters the growth and success of our employees. Apply tot his job