Senior Manager Engineering Firmware

Major Responsibilities

• Lead, coach, and develop a team of firmware and embedded software engineers, including hiring, onboarding, performance management, career development, and succession planning.
• Set and communicate the technical vision, standards, and best practices for firmware development across the team's product portfolio.
• Build a culture of quality, accountability, collaboration, and continuous improvement.
• Plan and manage team capacity and resource allocation across concurrent projects, balancing new product development against sustaining and field-support demands.
• Establish team goals and individual development plans aligned to the engineering organization's roadmap and objectives.

Technical & Delivery Leadership

• Own the firmware architecture and design approach for embedded controllers across the team's product area.
• Guide the design and development of application firmware in C and C++ for embedded controllers, including communication interfaces, control algorithms, and new system features.
• Direct the firmware verification strategy, including test specification, lab and on-product system testing, and integration with HIL and SIL verification environments.
• Ensure adherence to coding standards, documentation, configuration management, and applicable compliance and functional safety requirements.
• Lead and participate in design reviews, code reviews, FMEA and DFMEA, and Design for Manufacturability and Design for Test activities.
• Direct root cause analysis and resolution of firmware field issues in partnership with the lifecycle and platform organizations.

Cross-Functional & Program Leadership

• Partner with hardware, systems engineering, product management, test, and other core engineering teams (engines, transfer switches, alternators, and others) to define interfaces, requirements, and control algorithms.
• Collaborate with the platform and specialties organization on common firmware approaches, reuse, and platform consistency across product lines.
• Represent firmware in project planning, estimation, prioritization, and risk management, and communicate status and trade-offs to engineering and product leadership.
• Provide effort estimates and technical feasibility input to support intake and roadmap decisions.

Minimum Requirements

• Education: Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Software Engineering, or a directly related engineering degree required. Advanced degree preferred.
• Work Experience: Minimum 10 years of embedded firmware and software development experience using languages such as C, C++, and C#, with progressively increasing responsibility. Minimum 3 years leading engineering teams, as a people manager or in a formal technical leadership capacity. Direct people management strongly preferred. Demonstrated success taking embedded products from concept through production.
• Knowledge, Skills & Abilities: Strong people leadership, with the ability to hire, develop, motivate, and retain engineering talent. Expert understanding of embedded systems engineering principles and firmware development for microprocessors and microcontrollers. Expert knowledge of communication protocols and hardware interfaces. Proven ability to set technical direction and make sound architecture and design decisions. Strong project and resource planning skills, with the ability to manage competing priorities across multiple projects. Excellent ability to translate complex technical information for both technical and non-technical audiences and to influence across functions. Advanced ability with FMEA and DFMEA and with Design for Test and Manufacturability practices. Experience with simulation tools and with developing PC-based test tools. Ability to troubleshoot designs to the component level. Strong commitment to quality, safety, and continuous improvement.