Researcher | VMware Research Group (VRG) - Opportunity for Working Remotely

Key Skills

Algorithms, Effective communication skills, Machine learning techniques

Job Description

Researcher, VMware Research Group (VRG)

The Elevator Pitch: Why will you enjoy this new opportunity?

Some critical sources of job satisfaction include the people you work with, the impact you may have, and the intellectual merits of the work you do. The responsibilities associated with this role will span programs that range from speculative academic explorations to long range transformational technology projects within the office of the CTO. You will engage with thought-leading faculty, star students, and VMware’s emerging technical leaders – people who as a rule are inspiring, technologically daring, driven, and collegially collaborative. If we are jointly successful, we will create technology options and new lines of business for VMware and advance the state of the art in computing.

The role itself must also be a great fit. The person who fills this role will have a strong record as a researcher in important and challenging open problems in computer science. We are particularly interested in machine learning and systems. The goals of VRG are to advance the state of the art, transfer research results to VMware business units, and to disrupt the industry. VRG researchers accomplish this by combining research breakthroughs with VMware’s premier development capabilities and industry presence. With its early roots in academia, VMware has established itself as a source of groundbreaking innovation with a culture that flourishes with technical leadership. The VRG is extending the depth of our innovation pipeline through a culture of research excellence combined with deep and meaningful partnerships that bridge the gap between academic research and the leading technologists within the Company’s business units. Learn more about us: https://research.vmware.com/

Success in the Role: What are the performance outcomes over the first 6-12 months you will work toward completing?

You will define and drive research projects, either on your own or in collaboration with peer researchers and/or technologists. The resultant work should be of publishable quality in top research forums. Your first months will involve building your internal network, learning about VRG projects, VMware’s products, becoming acquainted with VMware’s customers, understanding the current portfolio of research projects, and absorbing VMware’s strategy. Within the year, you will identify 1-2 research projects to work on, either proposing a new project and/or working on an existing project and making progress towards producing key results.

The Work: What type of work will you be doing? What assignments, requirements, or skills will you be performing on a regular basis?

Our Researchers are responsible for the investigation of new and unproven technologies, advancing state of the art, and developing ideas that inspire and inform the future of VMware. They are expected to launch new research initiatives and/or collaborate on existing research projects, building on their Ph.D. experience.

• You will define and pursue original research agendas with significant impact on both VMware and the research community is a requirement, along with excellent written and verbal communication skills, and ability to collaborate effectively both with other researchers and product teams within VMware.
• You will demonstrate deep technical expertise in your research area.
• You will be passionate about and have a consistent record for building stuff people use --- prototypes, open source code, etc. Researchers with algorithms and/or theory expertise should have a track record of collaborating effectively with systems builders.
• You will create a clear, bold and compelling vision of the next research breakthrough you want to work on at VMware and how to get started towards it. This should include the ability to inspire and enlist others in their quest.
• You will collaborate effectively both with other researchers within VRG, external academic researchers and with product team technologists within VMware.

What is the leadership like for this role? What is the structure and culture of the team like?

You will be joining the Research team, comprised of Researchers, Academic Visitors, Interns, Post-Docs, Research Managers, and Operations. The team’s epicenter is Palo Alto, CA and spread throughout VMware offices including Seattle, WA and Israel.

The research team has a culture of collegial excellence and is growing from its early focus on systems research to include theory and a broader set of technical domains. Several ongoing incubation programs are building on recent research results to create new lines of business and significant product differentiation. Although most researchers are based in Palo Alto, there are also important research outposts at other VMware locations including Israel and Seattle. The structure of the team is relatively flat, with researchers reporting to one of a few research directors.

Inclusion, transparency, accountability, integrity, humility, collaboration, community, open source, effective processes, and employee growth are critical for our team. Our leadership is committed to strong feedback practices, with a focus on receiving and giving constructive criticism kindly. We value diversity and strive for an inclusive team. We recognize that the work here is never done, and that continuing to move the needle is a key expectation of roles of this level. We also prioritize work life balance and a fun workplace.

Where is this role located?

Flexible: The role is considered flexible and will be a mix of working from a local VMware office and remote depending on your preferences and the arrangements determined with your future manager. You will be expected to live within a reasonable non-daily commute of the office in any of the VRG locations.

This job may require the candidate to travel and/or work from a facility that requires full vaccination prior to entry.