I applied online. The process took 1 day. I interviewed at Cisco (San Francisco, CA) in Jan 2010
Interview
Cisco employees are very courteous and polite. The interview process was not as intimidating as I though it would be. It's hard not to get caught up in how relaxed their enviornment is. Lots of people dressed in shirts and shorts. I was definitely over dressed.
I applied online, heard back with in a week, initial recruiter screening, manager interview, technical panel interview, then manager interview again. Technical was a mix of fundamentals and a couple of pretty challenging ones to know off the top your head.
Very casual, unorganised interview. Interviewers talked for the majority and had no idea who I was before the interview i.e. didnt review my CV or experience. Any questions seemed very odd the cuff and unrelated to the job in question.
Very thorough and detailed. Expect in depth questions and be ready with reasonings. I did find it difficult at some points but overall i did prepare well. If you remember your past experiences and concepts you won’t find it that much difficult.