About this position
This position allows for 3 days per week remote / work from home.
Salary: $140,000 - 170,000/year
A global developer and manufacturer of advanced networking, connectivity, and industrial automation hardware is seeking a Lead Hardware Design Engineer. In this position, you will oversee full-lifecycle printed circuit board (PCB) and system architecture design—guiding complex electronics projects from early-stage concept to high-volume manufacturing.
You will serve as a primary technical driver across multidisciplinary teams—collaborating with software engineering, mechanical design, quality assurance, and operations to deliver durable, scalable, and cost-effective product lines.
Key Responsibilities
- Define end-to-end hardware architecture for industrial IoT, embedded computing, and telecommunications equipment.
- Translate product specifications into robust circuit topologies, system block diagrams, and hardware functional specs.
- Engineer complex mixed-signal, analog, digital, and power regulation sub-assemblies.
- Evaluate and select primary silicon platforms, including application processors, SoCs, FPGAs, power management ICs, memory modules, and high-speed communication transceivers.
- Execute schematic capture via industry-standard EDA platforms while balancing performance, target unit costs, manufacturability, and thermal constraints.
- Architect system designs supporting RTOS environments and Embedded Linux chipsets.
- Layout high-speed communication networks and memory topologies (DDRx, Gigabit/Multi-Gigabit Ethernet, PCIe, USB, SERDES, SPI, I²C, UART).
- Implement physical layer interfaces across wired, fiber, RF, or specialized industrial protocols.
- Design power supply networks, including DC-DC switching regulators, power distribution networks (PDN), and energy-efficient power rails.
- Perform thermal modeling, timing budget calculations, signal integrity (SI), and power integrity (PI) analysis.
- Lead overall hardware delivery efforts through prototype bring-up, design validation testing (DVT), pilot runs, and mass production.
- Partner with PCB layout engineers to define stack-ups, controlled impedance traces, component placement strategies, and strict routing guidelines.
- Troubleshoot board-level issues during assembly and resolve field reliability reports through structured root-cause analysis.
- Identify alternate components, manage bill-of-materials (BOM) lifecycle risks, and execute cost-reduction redesigns.
- Formulate hardware verification, validation, and automated test plans.
- Direct design execution to ensure compliance with global regulatory standards (FCC, CE, UL, EMC/EMI, and environmental regulations).
- Coordinate with external testing labs to achieve product certifications.
- Function as the primary technical authority for assigned hardware platforms.
- Mentor early- and mid-career engineers, providing peer code/schematic reviews and technical direction.
- Help drive internal engineering standards, technology roadmaps, and continuous improvement across the hardware development lifecycle.
Minimum Qualifications
- B.S. in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or a closely related technical field.
- 8+ years of hands-on experience in board-level electronics design and product development.
- Demonstrated track record of launching commercial embedded hardware products from initial design to volume production.
- Deep knowledge of high-speed digital circuit design and mixed-signal architectures.
- Hands-on experience developing hardware for SoC/microprocessor-based architectures and DDR memory interfaces.
- Experience designing power conversion systems, point-of-load (POL) converters, and power management circuits.
- Proficiency in advanced EDA tools for schematic capture and PCB layout oversight.
- Strong diagnostic skills using oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, and RF test equipment.
- Excellent technical documentation, verbal communication, and project management skills.
Location and commute
Columbia, MD 21046.
Plan your route with Google Maps. Travel times and transportation options vary; confirm the work location with the employer before commuting.
How to apply
Review the vacancy and complete the application on the employer or recruitment partner’s website. Requisition ID: WJ-3188471154.