Staff Software Engineer, Networking (Seattle or SF Bay Area)
Docker has been one of the most loved brands in developer tooling, trusted by more than 20 million monthly users and over 20 billion container image pulls. From solo founders to the world's largest companies, developers rely on Docker to build, share, and run their applications across our suite of products including Docker Desktop, Docker Hub, and Docker Scout.
We are a globally distributed, remote-first team building the tools that define how software gets built and delivered. As AI agents redefine software development, Docker is at the center of that shift, providing the sandboxed environments, verified images, and secure infrastructure that make autonomous workflows trustworthy by default.
As a Staff Software Engineer in Networking, you will set the technical direction for the networking stack behind Docker's Sandboxes platform and make architectural decisions that ripple across Docker's product portfolio. Your work will directly enable Docker's expansion into AI and security products.
This role calls for someone who:
Combines deep technical expertise in infrastructure at scale, virtual networking, service mesh, orchestration, and integration across the broader infrastructure stack;
Communicates and collaborates well, thinks critically, and turns ideas into working systems
Adapts to ambiguity and brings clarity
Provides technical leadership to a small team of engineers, driving customer delight through the solutions they deliver
Responsibilities
Design, implement, and operate core networking services that power Docker's Sandboxes platform across local laptops and public cloud environments
Build scalable networking infrastructure for microVM orchestration, workload scheduling, and lifecycle management
Develop high-performance networking data- and control-plane components for multi-tenant agentic workloads
Ensure network reliability, observability, and performance across Docker's Sandbox infrastructure
Collaborate with product, platform, and security teams to deliver customer-focused capabilities
Participate in architectural discussions, code reviews, and design documents
Contribute to automation and CI/CD improvements across the deployment pipeline
Debug and resolve production issues across distributed systems in local and public-cloud environments
Take part in on-call rotation for your team; respond to incidents and drive continuous improvement of system reliability and availability
Qualifications
8+ years of experience building and leading large-scale cloud or distributed systems, with a focus on networking foundations
Track record of driving technical consensus and delivering high-quality infrastructure software at scale, on tight timelines
Experience with microservices architecture, container networking, service mesh, policy enforcement, and container orchestration
Experience with kernel and user-space networking technologies, including Linux networking, OVS/OVN, DPDK, and eBPF
Experience designing and operating highly available, secure, and observable networking infrastructure
Strong understanding of cloud infrastructure (AWS, Azure, GCP, OCI) and related scalability patterns
Familiarity with CI/CD pipelines, monitoring, and infrastructure-as-code tooling
Excellent problem-solving and debugging skills in distributed environments
Strong communication skills and ability to collaborate across remote, cross-functional teams
Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field, or equivalent practical experience
What to Expect
First 30 days
Onboard, integrate with our Sandbox infrastructure teams, and build context on Docker's Sandbox vision
Deep-dive into Sandbox architecture for local and public-cloud infrastructure, with a focus on driving simple, common foundational primitives usable across both environments
Identify the highest-leverage opportunities in the current architecture, along with strategic and tactical execution risks
First 90 days
Develop a technical roadmap to address the challenges identified; drive consensus across stakeholders
Provide technical leadership to a small team of engineers to deliver on the roadmap
Establish or improve technical standards for development, deployment, operation, and observability of networking services
One-year outlook
Drive simplification of foundational networking infrastructure across local and public-cloud environments
Establish repeatable engineering practices for quality, performance, and operational excellence
Set a standard for what a small team of engineers can deliver and manage when given a charter, autonomy, and the tools they need
Docker considers visa sponsorship on a case-by-case basis based on business needs.
Compensation & Equity
United States: $170,350 – $275,550 + equity
Perks
Freedom & flexibility; fit your work around your life
Designated quarterly Whaleness Days plus end of year Whaleness break
Home office setup; we want you comfortable while you work
16 weeks of paid Parental leave (after 6 months of employment)
Technology stipend equivalent to $100 USD net/month
PTO plan that encourages you to take time to do the things you enjoy
Training stipend for conferences, courses and classes
Equity; we are a growing start-up and want all employees to have a share in the success of the company
Docker Swag
Medical benefits, retirement and holidays vary by country
Remote-first culture, with offices in Seattle and Paris
#LI-REMOTE
Check your CV against this role
Drop your CV. You get a 0-100 fit score against the actual job description, plus the read a senior engineering lead would write. Private to you.
Score this once, or every future role
Start the candidate journey and every new role on the board gets scored against you.
Five minutes. Tell us what you’re after, drop your CV once, pick how we should reach out. You get a candid read back and you only hear from us when a role fits.