Zscaler
Senior Staff Machine Learning Engineer - Agentic AI & Digital Experience
About Zscaler
Zscaler accelerates digital transformation so our customers can be more agile, efficient, resilient, and secure. Our cloud native Zero Trust Exchange platform protects thousands of 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 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 make a positive difference on a global scale, we invite you to bring your talents to Zscaler and help shape the future of cybersecurity.
Role
We are looking for an experienced Sr. Staff Machine Learning Engineer to join our Digital Experience team. This is a hybrid role reporting to the Senior Manager, Machine Learning Engineering. You will play a critical role in shaping the next generation of Digital Experience with world-class tools to identify insights and enable agentic AI functionalities, joining a team that has built the world's largest cloud security platform from the ground up.
What you’ll do (Role Expectations)
Frame high-impact use cases, design agent workflows involving planning and memory, and build the frameworks for all Digital Experience products
Evaluate and integrate advances in LLMs/SLMs, retrieval, fine-tuning, and inference optimization to deliver reliable and cost-efficient production features
Design, implement, and operate resilient microservices and data pipelines that are observable and performant
Partner with Product, UX, and customers to turn ambiguous problems into measurable wins with clear SLAs and feedback loops
Who You Are (Success Profile)
You thrive in ambiguity. You're comfortable building the path as you walk it. You thrive in a dynamic environment, seeing ambiguity not as a hindrance, but as the raw material to build something meaningful.
You act like an owner. Your passion for the mission fuels your bias for action. You operate with integrity because you genuinely care about the outcome. True ownership involves leveraging dynamic range: the ability to navigate seamlessly between high-level strategy and hands-on execution.
You are a problem-solver. You love running towards the challenges because you are laser-focused on finding the solution, knowing that solving the hard problems delivers the biggest impact.
You are a high-trust collaborator. You are ambitious for the team, not just yourself. You embrace our challenge culture by giving and receiving ongoing feedback—knowing that candor delivered with clarity and respect is the truest form of teamwork and the fastest way to earn trust.
You are a learner. You have a true growth mindset and are obsessed with your own development, actively seeking feedback to become a better partner and a stronger teammate. You love what you do and you do it with purpose.
What We’re Looking for (Minimum Qualifications)
BS in Computer Science or related field with 7+ years of experience, or MS/PhD with 6+ years of experience solving real-world problems using AI/ML and distributed systems
Exceptional problem-solving skills driven by first-principles thinking across programming, data structures, algorithms, and machine learning
Proven experience in the full ML model lifecycle including building, deployment, monitoring, and optimization
Hands-on expertise with modern GenAI stacks such as LangChain, LangGraph, CrewAI, vector stores, RAG, and evaluators
Experience designing and operating distributed microservices using Kubernetes, Docker, and CI/CD while writing production-grade code in Python, Go, or Java
What Will Make You Stand Out (Preferred Qualifications)
Experience fine-tuning and serving proprietary SLMs and LLMs at scale with a focus on latency, cost, and safety
Prior delivery of agentic systems in production including advanced context engineering and memory management strategies
A track record of building high-throughput, fault-tolerant systems with clear SLOs
#LI-AN4 #LI-Hybrid
At Zscaler, we are 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. Join us in our mission to make doing business seamless and secure.
Our Benefits program is one of the most important ways we support our employees. Zscaler proudly offers comprehensive and inclusive benefits to meet the diverse needs of our employees and their families throughout their life stages, including:
- 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.
By applying for this role, you adhere to applicable laws, regulations, and Zscaler policies, including those related to security and privacy standards and guidelines.
Zscaler is committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all individuals. We strive to create a workplace where employees are treated with respect and have the chance to succeed. 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 federal, state, or local laws. See more information by clicking on the Know Your Rights: Workplace Discrimination is Illegal link.
Pay Transparency
Zscaler complies with all applicable federal, state, and local pay transparency rules.
Zscaler is committed to providing reasonable support (called accommodations or adjustments) in our recruiting processes for candidates who are differently abled, have long term conditions, mental health conditions or sincerely held religious beliefs, or who are neurodivergent or require pregnancy-related support.
