Ecosystem Lead, P4; Contractor

The Linux Foundation is a 501(c)(6) non-profit that provides a neutral, trusted hub for developers and organizations to code, manage, and scale open technology projects and ecosystems.

The P4 language represents the next major transformation of network infrastructure, enabling network owners to specify and implement network functionality, rather than relying on vendors to provide pre-programmed packet formats and protocols. P4-specified data planes include the switch fabric, NICs, and CPU soft switches, enabling end-to-end customization that empower the network owner to customize the network for their specific needs. The language is driving the next big inflection point for SDN.

We are looking for an individual to promote, nurture, and grow the P4 ecosystem, helping the community advance the underlying technologies, and helping drive adoption by onboarding new collaborators through education, training, and community engagement.

This is a technical role, ideal for an individual from a hands-on software engineering background in networking who wants to move into a community-facing role leveraging their deep technical skills.

Responsibilities:

• Identifying strategies to drive adoption of P4 in industry, working closely with P4 members and other stakeholders
• Driving evolution of the P4 specifications and software, working closely with the P4 TST and Working Groups
• Growing the P4 community by organizing events, including workshops, developer training, etc.
• Recruiting new project members and helping align P4's work with their goals
• Encouraging community members to take on leadership roles in the P4 project
• Writing and publishing content to explain and promote the P4 language
• Managing the project budget, working closely with the P4 Governing Board
• Coordinating with LF staff on project management

Travel: up to 10%

Prerequisites:

• Strong technical understanding of the foundational technologies of networking (L2/L3, BGP, IPv6, etc.)
• Passion and ability to learn, position, write about, and present programmable networking and P4
• 5+ years in the networking industry in a software development or research role
• Desire and ability to write about and promote technology products
• Enthusiasm for SDN and P4 technologies
• Strong teaching and explanatory skills, enjoys teaching
• Extrovert - preference for communicating, presenting, writing, posting, engaging …
• Entrepreneurial spirit, willing to be hands-on and take charge

Desirable Skills and Background:

• Already part of the networking and/or P4 ecosystems
• Community engagement experience (e.g., user groups, developer groups, conference presentations, etc.)
• An understanding of the networking market and ecosystem, from silicon to system and from cloud to telco operators
• Work experience with a smart NIC vendor, virtual switching solutions, or overlay networking
• Research background on novel uses for P4
• Experience contributing to open source projects
• Passport and/or Visa enabling unencumbered international travel

Suitable Backgrounds:

• Software programmer building datacenter or cloud-facing networking solutions
• Researcher working on programmable networking (recent graduates with advanced degrees and significant hands‑on programming experience to be considered)
• Desire to get into community and developer relations
• Tenure with a company leveraging P4 or programmable networking silicon, Smart NIC, or DPU

Salary $100,000 - $250,000 USD

All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.