Engineering & C&Q Program Lead - Automation + Qualification

Location: United States (Remote, with 30–50% travel)Employment type: Full-time About PersperityPersperity is a Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business delivering commissioning, qualification and validation (CQV), program management, automation and process engineering to regulated industries, including pharmaceutical, biotech, medical device, aerospace and defense. We are small, and we work inside our clients' plants as an extension of their teams. That means the people we hire are visible, trusted with real scope, and expected to exercise judgment without being managed day to day. The RoleThe Engineering and C&Q Program Lead is responsible for the overall planning, coordination, and execution of commissioning and qualification (C&Q) activities across platforms. This role serves as the primary technical interface between engineering design, project execution, and C&Q delivery, ensuring alignment with client objectives and regulatory compliance. You will own the delivery of automated capital equipment inside client manufacturing facilities, from requirements and design review, through factory acceptance testing at the equipment builder, through installation, site testing and qualification, to a documented, qualified asset the client can run. Own is the right word. You are the responsible individual, not a contributor to someone else's project. You will follow the asset delivery process set by the client's SOPs and manage the due dates set in the project schedule. You will direct the C&Q Lead, engineers and testers working with you, and hold vendors to their commitments. You will also track equipment and project deliverables status and report it to the client. What Makes This Role UnusualMost people in this field are strong on one of two sides. Either they are automation and equipment engineers who can read a schematic, follow PLC logic and challenge a vendor's design on its merits or they are qualification professionals who write and execute documentation that survives an audit. This role needs both. That combination is genuinely rare, and it is the reason the job exists. If you have spent a career on automated equipment and then moved into a regulated environment, or came up through validation and pushed yourself into the controls side, we want to hear from you. What You'll DoOwn capital equipment delivery end to end, as the accountable individualSet risk-based qualification strategy: right-sizing rigor, and using leverage and replication where the technical justification supports itLead factory acceptance testing at equipment builders and integrators, including punch list management and the ship / no-ship recommendationReview designs, drawings and control system architecture, and challenge them where they need challengingAuthor qualification documentation, and review what others produceProvide technical oversight for complex systems including process automationDirect and mentor C&Q Leads, engineers and contract testers, usually without positional authority over themManage equipment and deliverables status against due dates and report monthlyServe as the main point of contact for cross-functional coordination among design, automation, engineering, QA, and vendors.Operate credibly as an external party inside a client organization, including in technically contentious conversationsProvide regular status updates to Persperity leadership on schedule, resourcing and project health, in addition to client-facing reportingProactively identify future client project needs and help prepare scalable solutions and team readiness What We Need5+ years automation engineering and commissioning and qualification within a cGMP or comparably regulated manufacturing environmentDemonstrated ownership of at least one capital asset through its full lifecycle, as the responsible individualAutomation and equipment credibility: engineering drawings and schematics, PLC and HMI architecture, and ideally robotics, vision or motion systemsHands-on authorship and execution of qualification documentation (IQ/OQ/PQ or equivalent)Experience with an electronic validation platform such as: Kneat, ValGenesis, Veeva or similarA bachelor's degree in engineering or a technical disciplineWillingness to travel 30–50%, including stretches of several consecutive weeksAuthorization to work in the United States without sponsorship What HelpsRisk-based qualification under ASTM E2500 or lean validation principlesConsulting or client-facing delivery experienceNew manufacturing facility startup, or replicate and platform equipment programsPMP or equivalent program management credentialBased in or near the Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania (a plus, not a requirement)Military service — we are a veteran-owned business and veterans are strongly encouraged to apply Who Does Well HerePersperity is small and scaling quickly, and the people who thrive have a few things in common. They are self-sufficient. Nobody will be managing your program for you. That is the job. You manage your own performance, evaluate yourself honestly, and tell us early when something needs attention. They do not stay in a swim lane. You sit closer to our clients than anyone else does, and the next engagement usually starts as something you noticed before anyone wrote a scope of work for it. They treat variety as the appeal. Every client brings different procedures, platforms and equipment. The people who do well here find that interesting rather than tiresome. They can move between rooms. On the floor with a technician at 6:00 a.m. and in a governance review with client leadership at 2:00 p.m. adjusting how you communicate without adjusting what is true. Two things sit underneath all of it and are not negotiable. The first is the integrity of the record: you will not sign something you do not believe, and you will not let schedule pressure produce a test record you would not want to explain to an inspector. The second is grit. Capital equipment programs are long, the middle is unglamorous, and you push through it without becoming a difficult person to be around. And one thing we mean literally: tell us what you want and we will build toward it. Pursuing a degree, a sabbatical, family commitments, adjusting your workload, or moving into a new industry. We adapt to that, including the shape your assignments take as we grow. We can only do it if you tell us. Being Straight With You About The Hard PartsThe travel is real. 30–50%, and sometimes several weeks in one stretch at an equipment builder or a client site. This is the most common reason people leave roles like this in year one. If that does not work for your life right now, it is better for both of us to know that up front. You will be largely unsupervised. We are a small firm and you will often be the most senior Persperity person in the building. That suits people who structure their own work and raise problems early. It does not suit people who want a manager checking in daily. You will be a guest in someone else's facility. Client procedures govern, not your preferences, and they differ from site to site. If procedural variety frustrates you, this will be a long few years. This Role Probably Isn't For You IfYour validation experience is entirely computer system validation (LIMS, SAP, Part 11, software assurance) that is skilled work, but it is not this workYou have led qualification programs but have never opened a drawing or a PLC projectYou are an automation engineer who has never produced documentation that had to satisfy an auditorYou have contributed to capital projects but have never been the person accountable for one We would genuinely rather you apply and be wrong about the fit than not apply. But we read carefully, and the two halves of this role both get tested in the interview. Compensation And Benefits$145,000 – $180,000 per year, depending on experience and on the depth you bring to both halves of the role. The upper end is for someone whose automation credibility holds up under technical questioning. It is the premium for a genuinely rare combination, not for years served. We take a deliberately compensation-forward approach: we would rather pay you well in cash than route money through benefits you may or may not use. That is a real trade-off and you should hear it plainly rather than discover it at offer stage. What that means today:Compensation set above market for the role, reflecting the lighter benefits packageUp to $2,500 per employee toward an annual company retreat. 2026 is Cabo San Lucas.Unlimited paid time off, approved in advance. The conditions are practical rather than bureaucratic: tell us early enough that we can arrange client coverage, and don't schedule it on top of a commitment we've made to a client. Plan ahead and we will make it workNo employer-sponsored health insurance or retirement plan at present For 2027, we intend to offer access to health coverage and a retirement plan on an employee-funded basis. We will tell you where that stands during the process rather than making it sound more settled than it is. If a full benefits package is what matters most to you, a large pharma site or an established consultancy will serve you better than we will, and we would rather say so now. To ApplyWe don't ask for a resume or a cover letter. Instead, please complete our career interest form. It takes about ten minutes, and it tells us more about what you have actually done than a resume would. If a role is a fit, we will come back to you to arrange a conversation. Persperity is an equal opportunity employer. Employment is contingent on background screening, drug screening, and where applicable, client approval as key personnel.