Sr. Staff Software Development Engineer

About Zscaler

Zscaler accelerates digital transformation to ensure our customers can be more agile, efficient, resilient, and secure. As an AI-forward enterprise, we are constantly pushing the envelope, leveraging the world’s largest security data lake to power our cloud-native Zero Trust Exchange platform. This innovation protects our customers from cyberattacks and data loss by securely connecting users, devices, and applications in any location.

Here, impact in your role matters more than title and trust is built on results. We say, impact over activity. We seek innovators who actively use AI to amplify their impact and who thrive in an environment where we leverage intelligent systems to stay ahead of evolving threats. We believe in transparency and value constructive, honest debate—we’re focused on getting to the best ideas, faster. We build high-performing teams that can make an impact quickly and with high quality. To do this, we are building a culture of execution centered on customer obsession, collaboration, ownership, and accountability.

We value high-impact, high-accountability with a sense of urgency where you’re enabled to do your best work and embrace your potential. If you’re driven by purpose, thrive on solving complex challenges, and want to be part of the team that’s helping to secure the AI age, we invite you to bring your talents to Zscaler and help shape the future of cybersecurity.

Role

We are looking for a Senior Staff Software Engineer to join our ZCC Team. This is a hybrid role based in Mohali location, reporting to the Senior Engineering Manager within the Engineering department. As a Senior Staff Software Engineer, you will be a key player in the entire product development lifecycle, designing and maintaining high-quality server‑side software. Your deep knowledge of C programming and low‑level system architecture will be crucial for creating efficient, reliable, and scalable solutions that enable organizations worldwide to harness speed and agility.

What You’ll Do (Role Expectations)

• Designing, developing, coding, testing, and debugging complex software in C language
• Architecting and implementing software for resource‑constrained environments, including optimized memory and CPU usage
• Developing networking applications on operating systems like Linux or FreeBSD to ensure deterministic and reliable performance
• Mentoring junior engineers, conducting code reviews, and championing best practices in software engineering
• Creating and maintaining comprehensive technical documentation for software designs and APIs

Who You Are (Success Profile)

• Thrives in ambiguity – comfortable building the path as you walk it; sees ambiguity as raw material for meaningful creation
• Acts like an owner – passion for the mission fuels bias for action; operates with integrity and navigates between high‑level strategy and hands‑on execution
• Problem‑solver – laser‑focused on finding solutions; tackling hard problems delivers the biggest impact
• High‑trust collaborator – ambitious for the team, embraces challenge culture, gives and receives ongoing feedback with candor, clarity, and respect
• Learner – growth mindset, obsessed with personal development, actively seeks feedback, loves what you do and does it with purpose

What We’re Looking For (Minimum Qualifications)

• 7+ years of professional experience in software development with a focus on system software
• Expert‑level proficiency in C programming; experience in Java is a plus
• Strong hands‑on experience with operating systems such as Linux or FreeBSD
• Proficiency in using debugging tools including GDB and logic analyzers
• Experience with version control systems, particularly GitLab

What Will Make You Stand Out (Preferred Qualifications)

• Solid understanding of computer architecture, memory management, and concurrency
• Knowledge of networking protocols including TCP/IP and UDP
• Experience with scripting languages like Python or Bash for automation and testing

Benefits

Zscaler is committed to building a team that reflects the communities we serve and the customers we work with. We foster an inclusive environment that values all backgrounds and perspectives, emphasizing collaboration and belonging.

Our Benefits program includes:

• Various health plans
• Time‑off plans for vacation and sick time
• Parental leave options
• Retirement options
• Education reimbursement
• In‑office perks, and more

Learn more about Zscaler’s Future of Work strategy, hybrid working model, and benefits here.

Pay Transparency

Zscaler complies with all applicable federal, state, and local pay transparency rules.

Equal Opportunity & Accommodations

Zscaler is committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all individuals. All qualified applicants will be considered for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy or related medical conditions), age, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, genetic information, disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.

Zscaler provides reasonable support (accommodations or adjustments) in our recruiting processes for candidates who are differently abled, have long‑term conditions, mental health conditions, sincerely held religious beliefs, are neurodivergent, or require pregnancy‑related support.

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