Specialist, Software Developer in London

As the global leader in high-speed connectivity, Ciena is committed to a people-first approach. Our teams enjoy a culture focused on prioritising a flexible work environment that empowers individual growth, well-being, and belonging. We’re a technology company that leads with our humanity—driving our business priorities alongside meaningful social, community, and societal impact.

The Technology Application Sales (TAS) Software Developer position has responsibility for implementing use cases and proof of concepts in support of the go to market and technical sales teams. Working closely with Solution Architects (SA), Technical Sales Leads (TSL) and Global Sales & Partner (GS&P) leads, the candidate will translate pre-sales requests into technical supporting material; product demonstrations, solutions, and enablement scripts for colleagues to apply. The successful candidate is a strong team member who communicates clearly and knows how to drive requirements to technical implementation and application support, with a passion for delivering successful outcomes and a desire to provide Blue Planet teams with top quality configured products and solutions.

The ideal candidate will have technical knowledge of the OSS domain with specific focus on one of the Blue Planet portfolio products, a thorough understanding of a broad range of telecommunications technologies, as well as a good understanding of software development and system integration patterns. The applicant needs to have experience in software configuration, deployment and testing according to product and solution patterns. They will have experience working with architects and designers collaboratively to understand requirements around OSS software configuration and possess the ability to translate those requirements into software solutions across the Blue Planet Portfolio or similar applications.

Successful candidates can expect to participate in the following day-to-day activities and duties:

• Configuration and development of customisations as applicable to Blue Planet products.
• Creates demo and PoC supporting material; demo scripts, recordings and clickable demos to describe the product and use case implementation and benefits.
• Interact with the client’s IT, Network Operations, Planning and Engineering teams in the process of delivering Proof of Concepts to account opportunity audiences to understand target business and system processes and to define outcomes using BP products.
• Work closely with Blue Planet pre-sales and Go-To-Market teams to ensure alignment between sales messaging and solution being developed throughout the demo/PoC creation process.
• Work independently and in a hands-on manner.
• Facilitate and/or participate in knowledge transfer and enablement of the pre-sales teams to ensure TAS end users are well-informed and engaged and projects are delivered to (internal and external) customer satisfaction.
• Facilitate and participate in workshops and design sessions both internally and externally to drive towards an optimal solution for a desired requirement while maintaining pragmatism and meeting sales objectives.

Key skills:

• Minimum of 5 years in the role of hands-on Software Developer in the telco OSS and/or BSS areas with experience in a selection of the following:
• Backend programming/markup languages: Java/J2EE, Python.
• Backend development frameworks/libraries: maven, Spring Data/Security/MVC.
• Backend testing frameworks/libraries: junit.
• DB: Neo4j (graph DB), Oracle DB, PostgreSQL+TimescaleDB.
• Other technologies: ElasticSearch, drools, Kafka integration, ReST (on Spring MVC), SSO (LDAP, Reverse Proxy, OAuth2).
• Programming theory: algorithms and data structures, relational and graph database concepts, etc.
• Understanding of Telecom Network design and software that supports providers.
• Understanding of the Telco OSS ecosystem and ideally knowledge of one or more of the Blue Planet Portfolio products and their role in operators' ecosystems.
• Configuration processes from a functional and technical perspective.
• Domain knowledge in multiple telecom technologies (DWDM, Ethernet, IP, etc).
• Demonstrated expert knowledge of the software development life cycle and practices.
• 5+ years’ experience in the OSS domain.
• Domestic and international travel is required.

Pay ranges at Ciena are designed to accommodate variations in knowledge, skills, experience, market conditions, and locations, reflecting our diverse products, industries, and lines of business. Please note that the pay range information provided in this posting pertains specifically to the primary location, which is the top location listed in case multiple locations are available.

Non-Sales employees may be eligible for a discretionary incentive bonus, while Sales employees may be eligible for a sales commission. In addition to competitive compensation, Ciena offers a comprehensive benefits package, including medical, dental, and vision plans, participation in 401(K) (USA) & DCPP (Canada) with company matching, Employee Stock Purchase Program (ESPP), Employee Assistance Program (EAP), company-paid holidays, paid sick leave, and vacation time. We also comply with all applicable laws regarding Paid Family Leave and other leaves of absence.

At Ciena, we are committed to building and fostering an environment in which our employees feel respected, valued, and heard. Ciena values the diversity of its workforce and respects its employees as individuals. We do not tolerate any form of discrimination. Ciena is an Equal Opportunity Employer, including disability and protected veteran status. If contacted in relation to a job opportunity, please advise Ciena of any accommodation measures you may require.