Principal Engineer, systems design engineering - Western Digital

At Western Digital, our vision is to power global innovation and push the boundaries of technology to make what you thought was once impossible, possible.

At our core, Western Digital is a company of problem solvers. People achieve extraordinary things given the right technology. For decades, we’ve been doing just that. Our technology helped people put a man on the moon.

We are a key partner to some of the largest and highest growth organizations in the world. From energizing the most competitive gaming platforms, to enabling systems to make cities safer and cars smarter and more connected, to powering the data centers behind many of the world’s biggest companies and public cloud, Western Digital is fueling a brighter, smarter future.

Binge-watch any shows, use social media or shop online lately? You’ll find Western Digital supporting the storage infrastructure behind many of these platforms. And, that flash memory card that captures and preserves your most precious moments? That’s us, too.

We offer an expansive portfolio of technologies, storage devices and platforms for business and consumers alike. Our data-centric solutions are comprised of the Western Digital®, G-Technology™, SanDisk® and WD® brands.

Today’s exceptional challenges require your unique skills. It’s You & Western Digital. Together, we’re the next BIG thing in data.

We are seeking a world-class Principal System Engineer to join our team developing a wide variety of advanced next-generation high performance storage system enclosures for the OEM and data center marketplace. You will have demonstrated leadership ability executing complex programs and an understanding of the who, what and how of system development. You will have strong skills and experience in the computer server and storage industry including familiarization with embedded storage processors, storage protocols, and servers. This is a high-impact, high visibility opportunity for the right individual with superior technical skills, good project management abilities, and an enthusiasm for success.

This is a technical leadership position that requires and individual that excels at leadership and collaboration.  As a leader, the candidate must be able to coordinate and guide the activities of other team members.  The successful candidate will be a role model for other members of the team, demonstrating the transparency, commitment and accountability that is expected from all team members. Strong interpersonal communication skills are a must.

Essential Responsibilities

• Provide multi-disciplinary technical leadership for the development of storage enclosures and storage servers consisting of mechanical chassis, hard drives, fans, power supplies, firmware, and printed circuit board assemblies with high-speed communication interfaces
• Develop System Specifications starting from customer and architectural requirements, providing detailed mechanical, electrical, functional, and environmental specifications and requirements for all major subsystems, interfaces between subsystems, and external interfaces
• Develop product requirements for manufacturability and engage with the manufacturing team to ensure the product can be effectively manufactured
• Coordinate cross-functional design reviews and oversee the development of system and subsystem verification plans
• Lead system integration activities during the prototype phase and oversee root cause resolution of specification and design defects
• Collaborate effectively cross-functionally with FW, EE, ME, product management, program management, verification engineering and manufacturing engineering to ensure that the designed system meets all product and regulatory requirements and can be effectively verified, manufactured and tested
• Assist with training the sales team, work directly with early customers, and provide technical support to the NPI team during the production ramp
• Provide mentorship to other SE engineers as needed

• BS or MS degree in Electrical Engineering or Computer Engineering, Mechanical Engineering (or related field)
• 8+ years of experience with storage and server product systems design & development
• Very familiar with Computer architecture and components including motherboards, memory, and x86 CPUs
• Experience with systems integration activities
• Experience with Hard drive and flash-based devices
• Familiar with High-speed communication protocols such as PCIe, DDR, Ethernet and SAS/SATA, and NVMe
• Server management experience including UEFI, BIOS, BMC, IPMI, Redfish, and OS/driver installation
• Current knowledge of the latest networking standards and best practices  
• Expertise in board level and system level troubleshooting
• Expert understanding of the use of test equipment such as analyzers, high-speed real-time scopes, pattern generators and BERT equipment
• Demonstrated ability in creative problem solving and innovation
• Strong team player, effective communication skills, and highly motivated
• Knowledge of agile development and self-managed development teams from design to production

Western Digital is committed to providing equal opportunities to all applicants and employees and will not discriminate based on their race, color, ancestry, religion (including religious dress and grooming standards), sex (including pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions, breastfeeding or related medical conditions), gender (including a person’s gender identity, gender expression, and gender-related appearance and behavior, whether or not stereotypically associated with the person’s assigned sex at birth), age, national origin, sexual orientation, medical condition, marital status (including domestic partnership status), physical disability, mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, protected medical and family care leave, Civil Air Patrol status, military and veteran status, or other legally protected characteristics. We also prohibit harassment of any individual on any of the characteristics listed above. Our non-discrimination policy applies to all aspects of employment. We comply with the laws and regulations set forth in the Equal Employment Opportunity is the Law poster.

Western Digital thrives on the power and potential of diversity. As a global company, we believe the most effective way to embrace the diversity of our customers and communities is to mirror it from within. We believe the fusion of various perspectives results in the best outcomes for our employees, our company, our customers, and the world around us. We are committed to an inclusive environment where every individual can thrive through a sense of belonging, respect and contribution.

Western Digital is committed to offering opportunities to applicants with disabilities and ensuring all candidates can successfully navigate our careers website and our hiring process. Please contact us at staffingsupport@wdc.com to advise us of your accommodation request. In your email, please include a description of the specific accommodation you are requesting as well as the job title and requisition number of the position for which you are applying.

Based on our experience, we anticipate that the application deadline will be 05/20/2024 (3 months from posting), although we reserve the right to close the application process sooner if we hire an applicant for this position before the application deadline.  If we are not able to hire someone from this role before the application deadline, we will update this posting with a new anticipated application deadline

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