CISCO DESIGN LANGUAGE PROJECT

Lay the ground work for Cisco’s next generation products

Brand: CISCO
Development: 2013

“Defining the Next Evolution of Cisco’s Industrial Design Language”

In 2011 I joined Cisco Systems’ Central Engineering team to take a holistic view of the product portfolio. Years of acquisitions had created a diverse but fragmented design landscape. My role was to bring this together and establish a clear industrial design identity for the Security Technology Business Unit (STBU) and the Unified Access Business Unit (UABU). The aim was to explore a design language that could span multiple product lines, speak with one brand voice, and set a direction for the future.

A collection of five Cisco networking devices, including switches and routers, arranged in two rows on a plain white background.
A timeline showing the evolution of Cisco logos from 1985 to 2006, including four versions with different design styles and color schemes.

SHAPING THE NEXT CHAPTER

BRAND EVOLUTION
Understand the corporate brand direction shift through out the past and think about how might we evolve our products from here.

Collection of Cisco networking equipment including switches, routers, and modules arranged on a white background.

LEGACY PRODUCTS
Where we started and how we have been utilizing the teal color as a part of brand identity. How we might update bezels & plastic-heavy forms.

Diagram illustrating how structured design impacts various aspects such as scalability, performance, functionality, flexibility, capacity, and availability.

DESIGN PRINCIPLES
Where we needed to go & how to translate that into tangible design choices.

EVOLUTION — IDENTIFYING CISCO’S DNA


This study explores how Cisco’s design identity could evolve. I introduced new colors, details, and design elements to refresh the look and feel of the products.

Each page highlights key components — color palettes, surface treatments, and signature details — that strengthen usability, security, and brand recognition.

The goal is to move beyond individual product styling and create a consistent design system. A modern industrial aesthetic, approachable yet distinctly Cisco.

Diagram comparing old and new Cisco logo styles, with Cisco network hardware and DNA icon, illustrating brand evolution.
A technical guide about a Cisco networking equipment rack including details like colors, materials, vents, textures, motifs, controls, and connector port graphics, with branding and product information.

MAPPING WHAT FEELS ICONIC

This study looks at what connects Cisco’s wide range of products. Representative models were reduced to clean silhouettes, with key details highlighted through simple icons.

Patterns began to emerge in the placement of ports, vents, and light indicators, showing how these choices give each unit its own personality. By stripping things back to the essentials, it became easier to see the elements that feel truly iconic across the brand.

A diagram showing different types of electronic devices, including a cellphone, a tablet, a laptop, a desktop computer, and a smartwatch, arranged in a column on the right side of the image. The left side features icons indicating different connection types, such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and USB, along with a Cisco logo at the top left corner.

Collaboration with Tanberg (Norway)

Office Phones

Large Monitors

Monitor Stands

Telepresence

WebEx

Enterprise Networking

IoT

Collection of various network and computer hardware components, including switches, routers, servers, and other electronic devices, arranged on a white background with the Cisco logo in the top left corner.

Security Technology

Enterprise Networking

Data Center

Service Provider

Service Technology software

Diagram displaying various types of network equipment and their corresponding protectors or shields, with Cisco logo in the top left corner.

Security

IP Phones (Original Cisco Models)

Video Surveillance

Enterprise Networking

Routers

switches

wireless LAN controllers

branch networking

Diagram of a wearable action camera with a screen, body, and two accessories.

Consumer Products
(By Aquisitions)

Flip Video cameras

Linksys home routers

CISCO CONCEPTUAL DESIGN LANGUAGE PROPOSAL

The proposal reimagines Cisco’s design identity through new colors, refined details, and distinctive elements. The aim is to elevate the visual and tactile qualities of the products while creating a stronger, more unified story that reflects values of security, reliability, and innovation.

Each page highlights a specific design component — from color palettes that shift perception, to surface treatments that add precision, to detail cues that strengthen usability and trust. These explorations serve as a conceptual study, helping internal stakeholders envision how future products could express a clearer and more flexible brand identity across business units.

The direction moves beyond individual styling toward a holistic design system. By capturing what feels iconic today and building on it, the study outlines a path toward a modern industrial aesthetic that is approachable yet distinctly Cisco.

  • A Cisco design concept sheet showing three images of a filter grille, a vault door, and a vintage car with accompanying text about design principles, logo treatment, color proportions, vent patterns, and LED lighting.
  • Diagram showing different Cisco security appliance equipment and their labels, including a desktop, 1U rack mount, 1 RU product example, and 2 RU product with bezel example.
  • A rack of server hardware, including multiple network switches, and Cisco security appliances in a data center.
  • Diagram illustrating Cisco's design language concept with three sections: 1) design direction showing images of metal grill, switches, and a luxury car with the words 'Simple, Heavy Duty and Timeless'; 2) language elements showing the Cisco logo, a black strip with hardware components, color proportions with matte silver, light gray, and white; 3) design details with black dotted vent patterns and simple green circular LED icons.
  • Collection of Cisco network security appliances, including desktop, 1RU, and bezel-mounted models, with labels indicating model names and components.
  • Illustration of a Cisco networking rack with multiple black servers and networking equipment, labeled as 'STBU Design Language Concept-B' and 'Simple, Heavy Duty and Timeless'.
Stacked Cisco network switches with multiple ports and ventilation holes.
Set of Cisco ASA 5506-X security appliances, including a top view of two units with front panels showing LED indicators, network ports, and ventilation grills, displayed on a white background.
Multiple Cisco ASA 5506-X security appliances arranged on a white background, shown from different angles, with front and back views highlighting ports and indicator lights.
Six Cisco networking devices, including switches and security appliances, arranged in two rows against a white background.
Set of three Cisco network devices including a security appliance, a switch, and a wireless access point, shown from front, back, and side views.
Front view of a Cisco ASA 5585-X adaptive security appliance network device, showing status LEDs, power button, and network ports.
Cisco network switch with multiple Ethernet ports and indicator lights.
Cisco network switch with multiple ports, indicator lights, and ventilation holes.
Two Cisco networking devices with multiple ports and green indicator lights, placed on a white surface.
Cisco network device with multiple yellow network cables connected to it, mounted on a white wall.
Cisco Catalyst 2960-X Series network switch with multiple Ethernet ports.
Image of a large Cisco network switch with multiple Ethernet ports, stacked Cisco switches, and a large Cisco Cisco Catalyst 2960-X Series switch.
Cisco network switch with multiple ports, including Ethernet and uplink ports, designed for enterprise networking.
Four Cisco Catalyst 2960-X Series switches stacked vertically, with multiple Ethernet ports, model labels, and status indicator lights.

CNC MILLED PROTOTYPES

At the end of the project the Central Engineering team built a set of physical prototypes using CNC-milled metal blocks. These archetypes represented a new vision for Cisco’s Network Security and Firewall appliances, translating the design language into tangible forms that communicated strength, precision, and a modern industrial character.

Two silver electronic devices on a white table in a conference room.

What began as an exploration of Cisco’s design identity became an important step toward defining the future of Cisco’s product design language.

By examining the fundamental DNA of Cisco hardware — color, form, materials, and signature details — this study introduced a refreshed visual system that balances technological sophistication with approachability. The proposed design elements strengthen usability, reinforce perceptions of security and reliability, and create clearer brand recognition across product families.

The work moves beyond styling individual devices. It establishes the foundation for a scalable industrial design framework that allows Cisco’s product ecosystem to evolve with consistency, clarity, and confidence.

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