Senior Hardware Validation Engineer

Senior Hardware Validation Engineer

Detroit, MI (Onsite + 10% local travel)

Job Overview

The Senior Hardware Validation Engineer leads end-to-end hardware validation activities across the product-development lifecycle of products. This role is responsible for establishing validation strategies, managing test plans and execution, maintaining requirements traceability, and driving testing best practices and process improvements. The engineer will combine hands-on testing and test-rig development with validation-management responsibilities, including coordinating with cross-functional teams and suppliers, tracking test progress and risks, and communicating validation readiness. The role also leads technical issue triage and root-cause analysis to ensure timely containment and corrective actions. This position provides technical leadership and mentorship.

Responsibilities

• Validation Management: Lead and manage end-to-end hardware validation activities across all development phases, ensuring plans, schedules, execution, and deliverables align with product requirements and program milestones.
• Test Strategy and Planning: Develop and maintain validation plans, test procedures, test cases, and execution strategies that provide complete requirements coverage and traceability.
• Testing Best Practices and Process Excellence: Establish, champion, and continuously improve testing standards, tools, workflows, and validation processes to drive consistency, efficiency, quality, and repeatability.
• Test Execution and Reporting: Oversee and participate in hardware, vehicle-level, and controlled-environment testing; clearly communicate test status, results, risks, and recommendations to stakeholders.
• Issue Triage and Root-Cause Analysis: Lead the investigation of hardware defects and test failures, partnering with engineering teams and suppliers to identify root causes, define containment actions, and implement permanent corrective actions.
• Supplier and Cross-Functional Coordination: Manage validation activities with suppliers and collaborate with hardware, software, systems, quality, DFMEA/PFMEA, and vehicle integration teams to resolve risks and ensure product readiness.
• Test Infrastructure and Documentation: Support the development of test rigs and test environments, and maintain validation documentation, including Standard Operating Procedures, test reports, lessons learned, and Interface Control Document verification.
• Technical Leadership: Provide guidance and mentorship to junior engineers while promoting a disciplined, data-driven validation culture across the organization.

Minimum Qualifications

• Education: Bachelor s degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or a related technical field is required.
• Relevant Experience: Five (5)+ years' experience in hardware validation, hardware test engineering, quality engineering, or a similar product-development role is required.
• Hardware Validation Expertise: Demonstrated experience developing and executing hardware validation plans, test procedures, test cases, and test reports across product-development phases is required.
• Test Equipment and Test Rig Experience: Hands-on experience building or supporting test rigs and using bench-level test equipment, including oscilloscopes, programmable power supplies, CAN analyzers, digital multimeters, and spectrum analyzers is required.
• Testing and Troubleshooting Skills: Strong knowledge of hardware, sensors, and peripherals, with the ability to execute tests, triage failures, perform root-cause analysis, and support corrective-action development is required.
• Requirements and Documentation Discipline: Experience translating hardware requirements into test cases, maintaining requirements traceability, and documenting test results, issues, and lessons learned is required.
• Collaboration and Communication: Ability to work effectively with cross-functional engineering teams, suppliers, and quality stakeholders in a fast-paced product-development environment.
• Vehicle Testing Capability: Valid driver 's license and ability to support vehicle testing as needed is required.
• Ability to travel in-state and out-of-state or globally, as needed 10%.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or a related technical field is a plus
• Automotive Experience: Previous experience in automotive product development, ideally within an OEM, Tier 1 supplier, or automotive technology organization.
• Vehicle Network Knowledge: Proficiency with automotive communication protocols, including CAN 2.0, CAN FD, Ethernet, LIN, SENT, and FlexRay.
• Systems and Vehicle Integration: Experience with vehicle-level integration testing, Interface Control Document ICD verification, and automotive electronic systems architecture.
• Quality and Risk Management Methods: Working knowledge of structured problem-solving and quality methods, including 8D, DFMEA, PFMEA, change management, and Six Sigma principles.
• Test Automation and Development Tools: Experience with test automation, continuous integration or deployment pipelines, and tools such as GitLab, AWS services, Jira, Zephyr, Asana, or Microsoft Office applications.
• Embedded and Linux Testing: Hands-on experience testing Linux-based or embedded hardware devices, including integration, regression, performance, stress, end-to-end, and security testing.
• Electronics and Compliance Knowledge: Ability to interpret electronic schematics and PCB layouts, with practical experience supporting EMC/EMI design compliance and validation.

Working Conditions

• Work is generally performed in a well-lit, temperature-controlled indoor environment with occasional exposure to the outdoors or any number of elements.
• Work is performed with exposure to any number of elements which may occasionally require some precautions such as safety glasses, protective clothing, ear protection, etc.

This description indicates the general nature and level of work performed by employees in the above job. It is not intended to be a comprehensive inventory of all duties, responsibilities and qualifications required of employees assigned to the job.