Principal, Product RE - Grid Scale Systems, BESS

About The Role

As Principal Product RE, you will own end-to-end product development, integrating inverter hardware with cooling/thermal systems, safety, and controls — connecting to the BMS and Site EMS — for utility-scale Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) spanning outdoor cabinets and containerized platforms. You will lead the design of liquid-cooled, air-cooled, and hybrid thermal systems supporting multi-MW/MWh BESS installations operating in data centers. This role requires deep, hands-on expertise in inverter system design, thermal cooling, advanced simulation, and BESS safety compliance.

What You Will Do

• Develop in-house or outsourced thermal cooling solutions (liquid cooling, heat exchangers) across the full product lifecycle.
• Work in cross-functional teams of inverter hardware, firmware, test automation, and mechanical engineers, including teams spread across geographies such as Bangalore, India.
• Specify, design, verify, and debug complex site controls connecting to the BMS (battery management system) and EMS (energy management system).
• Integrate grid-scale inverter PCS with MWh-scale DC BESS for data centers.
• Participate in early-stage product development, communicate expectations, and ensure successful capture of design, manufacturing, supply chain, quality, test, and service requirements.
• Develop schedules for new product development from concept to launch — setting milestones, assessing and mitiging risks, building action plans, coordinating activities, and driving results across cross-functional teams.
• Conduct regular project status meetings with the project team and stakeholders to communicate and coordinate activities.
• Deliver new products on time, within budget, and at the expected quality and reliability levels.
• Serve as the central technical leader across mechanical, electrical, and firmware engineering, cloud/mobile software, quality, manufacturing, and supply chain/operations.
• Guide daily engineering tasks, including schedule prioritization and tracking the status and resolution of bugs/issues.
• Facilitate initial build plans, drive material readiness with supply chain, and evaluate constraints.
• Collaborate with engineering teams to solve technical problems and provide rapid prototyping support.
• Collaborate with manufacturing and quality teams to develop efficient methods for assembling and testing products.
• Generate high-value ideas and transform them into platform-level designs.
• Support system architecture, cost-reduction proposals, and failure root-cause analysis.
• Engage with internal technical communities and contribute to cross-team knowledge sharing.
• Mentor and grow engineers on the team.
• Lead efforts to meet grid code requirements and certifications (UL and IEC) for BESS applications serving data centers.
• Define engineering requirements, develop test plans, and deliver proofs of concept (POCs).
• Champion technical excellence, rigorous documentation, and scientific discipline.
• Serve as a subject matter expert for next-generation platforms.

Who You Are And What You Bring

• B.E. with 15+ years of relevant industry experience, or a Master's degree with 13+ years of relevant industry experience.
• Proven track record developing high-power, high-voltage power distribution products from concept to market launch in commercial/industrial settings.
• Experience developing device models for multiple DC and AC parallel connections, with accurate loss estimation using simulation tools.
• Expertise in cooling design and optimization, balancing cost and performance across product applications.
• Proficiency in tolerance analysis, worst-case analysis (WCA), DPPM, DFMEA/AFMEA, and root-cause analysis for field failures.
• Extensive knowledge of high-voltage integration of 277/480V grid-connected systems and data centers.
• Strong site controls design, troubleshooting, and problem-solving skills.
• Hands-on experience with Python and embedded software for inverter controls development, within a test automation environment.
• Strong system-level understanding of PCS architectures, battery rooms, DC- vs. AC-coupled systems, and thermal coordination with BMS, EMS, and PCS derating logic.
• Demonstrated technical leadership: leading programs, influencing architecture decisions, and mentoring senior and staff-level engineers.

Work Location

This role is based at our Austin, Texas office and requires working on-site 5 days per week. The base pay range for this position is $130,000 to $183,000 per year. This salary range may be modified in the future. The successful candidate’s starting pay will be determined based on job-related skills, experience, education or training, work location, and market conditions. This position is also eligible for bonus, equity, and benefits.