Engineering Manager - Firmware
Eaton · Pune
What you’ll do:
As Firmware Engineering Manager, you will lead a global team responsible for embedded firmware and platform software for Critical Power Solutions technology and product-development programs, including uninterruptible power supplies, energy storage, power distribution, and energy metering. You will own people leadership, technical direction, execution, quality, and lifecycle delivery across real-time operating system (RTOS) and embedded Linux platforms. You will partner with product management, systems, hardware, validation, cybersecurity, manufacturing, and global engineering teams to translate business needs into scalable architectures and predictable releases. The role balances hands-on technical leadership with coaching, talent development, resource planning, risk management, and continuous improvement.
"• Lead, coach, and develop a team of firmware engineers and technical leads; set clear objectives, provide regular feedback, conduct performance and development discussions, and build succession plans.
- Own delivery of embedded firmware for technology development and new product programs across RTOS and embedded Linux platforms while meeting scope, schedule, cost, quality, cybersecurity, and product-performance commitments.
- Establish firmware strategy, platform roadmaps, software architecture, requirements, and reuse plans for products including uninterruptible power supplies, energy storage, power distribution, and energy metering.
- Translate business and system requirements into executable plans; prioritize the portfolio, allocate resources, manage dependencies, and make transparent trade-off decisions.
- Provide technical oversight for board support packages, device drivers, bootloaders, middleware, inter-process communication, networking, diagnostics, and application-layer software.
- Guide RTOS design for deterministic behavior, scheduling, synchronization, interrupt handling, memory constraints, safety, and reliability; guide embedded Linux development using Yocto-based distributions, kernel and driver integration, and system services.
- Drive disciplined engineering practices including design reviews, code reviews, static analysis, unit and integration testing, continuous integration, configuration management, release governance, and defect prevention.
- Monitor program execution using meaningful metrics, identify technical and delivery risks early, remove obstacles, and communicate status and recovery plans to stakeholders.
- Partner with systems, hardware, power electronics, validation, cybersecurity, manufacturing, quality, and product teams to deliver robust end-to-end solutions.
- Ensure compliance with applicable product-development processes, functional-safety expectations, cybersecurity requirements, open-source obligations, and company release procedures.
- Lead root-cause analysis and resolution of complex field, lab, and production issues; ensure corrective actions are systemic and lessons learned are reused.
- Build capability through hiring, onboarding, mentoring, technical communities of practice, knowledge sharing, and targeted learning plans.
- Foster an inclusive, accountable, and innovative team culture that encourages constructive challenge, collaboration, ownership, and continuous learning.
- Manage suppliers and engineering partners where applicable, including technical scope, deliverables, reviews, quality, and integration.
- Champion process improvement, automation, platform reuse, and engineering productivity across global firmware teams."
Qualifications:
- Bachelor’s degree in Electrical, Electronics, Computer, Software Engineering, Computer Science, or a related discipline; master’s degree preferred
- 9+ years of embedded software or firmware development experience, including substantial experience with embedded Linux and/or RTOS-based products.
- 3+ years of experience leading engineers through direct people management, technical leadership, or program leadership in a global environment.
Skills:
- Strong C and C++ skills, object-oriented design, software architecture, algorithms, data structures, concurrency, and multi-threading.
- Practical RTOS expertise, including task scheduling, synchronization, interrupt handling, memory management, timing analysis, debugging, and real-time performance optimization.
- Strong embedded Linux expertise, including Yocto Project, Linux kernel concepts, device trees, board support packages, device drivers, bootloaders, system services, and cross-compilation toolchains.
- Experience with software lifecycle practices and tools such as Git, Jira, continuous integration, automated testing, static analysis, requirements traceability, and release management.
- Working knowledge of embedded cybersecurity, secure boot, cryptography, vulnerability management, and secure development practices.
- Demonstrated ability to make architecture and delivery trade-offs, resolve complex technical issues, and communicate decisions clearly to technical and business stakeholders.
Preferred Qualifications:
- Experience with Yocto releases such as Dunfell and Kirkstone, open-source software governance, and upstream contribution.
- Familiarity with power conversion, uninterruptible power supplies, energy storage, power distribution, metering, or other high-reliability industrial products.
- Familiarity with functional safety, product certification, model-based design, test automation, and Agile product development.
- Experience managing external engineering partners, suppliers, budgets, or multi-site resource plans."
"Embodies Eaton leadership attributes—ethical, passionate, accountable, efficient, transparent, and learning—with demonstrated capability in:
- People leadership – sets direction and expectations, delegates effectively, coaches for performance, recognizes contributions, and addresses performance issues promptly and fairly.
- Talent development – identifies strengths and gaps, creates development opportunities, supports career growth, and builds succession and hiring plans.
- Inclusive leadership – creates psychological safety, values diverse perspectives, and builds an environment where people can contribute at their best.
- Strategic thinking – connects technology and platform choices to customer needs, product roadmaps, business priorities, and long-term capability.
- Execution and accountability – converts strategy into clear plans, uses metrics to manage commitments, removes barriers, and delivers results.
- Decision quality – makes timely, fact-based decisions under uncertainty and explains trade-offs, risks, and rationale.
- Influence and stakeholder management – aligns global and cross-functional teams, manages conflict constructively, and communicates effectively at all levels.
- Change leadership – leads teams through ambiguity, drives adoption of improved practices, and sustains organizational change.
- Customer and business acumen – understands customer outcomes, commercial priorities, competitive technologies, and quality expectations.
- Innovation leadership – creates space for experimentation, facilitates effective problem solving, and converts promising ideas into scalable solutions.
- Learning agility and resilience – adapts quickly, seeks feedback, remains composed under pressure, and helps the team recover from setbacks.
- Integrity and judgment – models ethical behavior, protects confidential information, and makes decisions consistent with company values."