Principal Performance Engineer - Architect

About NetApp

We’re forward-thinking technology people with heart. We make our own rules, drive our own opportunities, and try to approach every challenge with fresh eyes. Of course, we can’t do it alone. We know when to ask for help, collaborate with others, and partner with smart people. We embrace diversity and openness because it’s in our DNA. We push limits and reward great ideas. What is your great idea?

 

"At NetApp, we fully embrace and advance a diverse, inclusive global workforce with a culture of belonging that leverages the backgrounds and perspectives of all employees, customers, partners, and communities to foster a higher performing organization." -George Kurian, CEO

Job Summary

Data is the currency of business in the digital era. NetApp is the data authority, helping customers leverage and manage their data wherever it resides – in the cloud, in their data centers, or anywhere data flows. Engineers at NetApp help transform the way customers utilize their dynamic, diverse, and distributed information. They are allowing doctors to save lives with deep data analytics shared with medical experts around the world, helping automotive engineers improve autonomous vehicle navigation with artificial intelligence, enabling scientists to monitor and identify environmental hazards through deep image analysis, and providing companies the ability to expand their businesses in yet unimagined ways.

 

By joining NetApp, you can take part in transforming how data is changing the world. ONTAP is the #1 Storage Operating System in the world, managing hundreds of Exabytes of customers information. We have more than 30,000 customers today that rely on us to be the data authority. Take part in the transformation that is changing how we work and play daily.

 

The Performance Engineering team is within the Research and Development function whose overall focus is on technology advances, competitive market and customer requirements, product cost and time-to-market, and product quality. Performance engineers focus on performance analysis and improvement for new products and features as well as enhancements to existing products and features.

As a Performance Architect, you will lead the ONTAP performance team for the various hardware and software projects for ONTAP releases. You will work closely with architects across various engineering development teams to drive performance agenda, establish performance direction, guide performance team’s technical work across all projects. You will have the opportunity to direct impact the roadmaps of all hardware and software groups. You will be able to drive the analysis and optimization of emerging workloads to capitalize on the industry trend including Generative AI and Large Language Model (LLM).  This role is within the Research and Development function whose overall focus is on technology advances, competitive market and customer workload requirements, product cost and time-to-market, and product quality. 

This position requires an individual to be broad-thinking and systems-focused, creative, team-oriented, technologically savvy, able to lead large cross-functional teams, and driven to produce results.
 
Essential Functions:

• Evaluate and propose key architecture options to drive performance
• Evaluate ONTAP competitiveness and drive differentiation with a performance focus
• Optimize ONTAP performance for Generative AI and Large Language Model (LLM)
• Work closely with engineering and product management to drive the performance agenda.
• Evaluate design alternatives for enhanced performance, and prototype opportunities for performance enhancements.
• Design, implement, execute, analyze, interpret, socialize and apply storage-oriented performance measurements and their results, including the creation of tools and automation.

Job Requirements

• In-depth knowledge of technology trend, architecture differentiation, competitive positioning, and workload optimizations.
• Extensive knowledge and experience in computer operating systems, computer architecture and design, data structures, software design and programming practices; systems programming in C and/or C++
• Strong scripting skills - Perl, Python (primarily within JupyterHub), and Shell
• Knowledge of storage systems and file systems highly desirable
• Exceptional presentation and influencing skills.
• The ability to make accurate work estimates and develop predictable plans.
• Demonstrated willingness to take on additional tasks and responsibilities that positively contribute to realization of team, department, and company goals.

Education

• Typically requires a minimum of 12-15 years of relevant experience.
• A Bachelor of Science, Master’s of Science, or PhD Degree in Electrical Engi