Software Engineering Manager, Hardware Test (X-BAT) (R6020)

The role

You will lead a team of software engineers who build and sustain automated production test stands for X-BAT avionics and electrical assemblies. You will own the technical roadmap for test frameworks, station software and test data systems, and work with electrical, mechanical, FPGA and embedded teams.

What you will do

• Lead, mentor and grow a team of software engineers supporting X-BAT avionics production test.
• Own the technical roadmap and execution for automated test stands, reusable test frameworks, station software and test-data systems.
• Build scalable Python software for test sequencing, instrument and fixture control, unit-under-test communication, measurement collection, pass/fail evaluation and reporting.
• Guide software architecture, code quality, configuration management, CI/CD, release processes, documentation and operational support.
• Partner with electrical engineers to translate avionics interfaces, requirements and failure modes into automated test coverage.
• Partner with mechanical engineers on fixtures, cabling, connectors, serviceability, safety and operator workflows.
• Work with FPGA and embedded-software teams to configure, communicate with and validate FPGA-enabled avionics hardware.
• Improve test coverage, station uptime, throughput, failure triage, repeatability and traceability.
• Establish metrics for regression health, station reliability, first-pass yield, retest rate, false failures and recurring failure modes.
• Support root-cause analysis across the unit under test, fixture, instrumentation, test software, embedded software, FPGA behavior and electrical interfaces.

Required qualifications

• 5+ years of experience in software engineering, test automation, embedded systems, hardware-integrated software, manufacturing test, avionics, aerospace, robotics, automotive, industrial systems or si
• 2+ years of direct people-management experience leading software, test or hardware-integration engineers.
• Demonstrated experience building, deploying and sustaining automated functional-test systems for complex hardware.
• Strong Python experience for automation frameworks, hardware communication, instrument control, data acquisition and test orchestration.
• Experience with C++ or C in embedded, systems, device-control or hardware-facing applications.
• Experience working directly with electrical hardware, test fixtures, instrumentation and devices under test.
• Familiarity with FPGA-enabled hardware and working effectively with FPGA engineers on system-level test and debug.
• Familiarity with interfaces and protocols such as Ethernet, TCP/IP, UDP, serial, CAN, SPI, I2C, USB, GPIO, PCIe or JTAG.
• Experience with Git, code review, automated testing, CI/CD, release management and configuration control.
• Strong communication skills and ability to work across software, electrical, mechanical, manufacturing and program teams.

Nice to have

• Experience developing automated production test equipment for avionics, aerospace, defense, autonomous systems, robotics or other mission-critical hardware.
• Experience designing reusable test frameworks rather than only one-off test scripts.
• Experience with programmable power supplies, electronic loads, DAQ systems, digital I/O, network equipment, oscilloscopes, logic analyzers or custom test fixtures.
• Experience with FPGA programming, bitstream management, register-level control, JTAG, board bring-up or FPGA-adjacent debug.
• Experience with embedded Linux, microcontrollers, board-support packages, device drivers or real-time systems.
• Experience with production traceability, serial-number tracking, test-result databases, calibration workflows, manufacturing systems or quality systems.
• Experience in a regulated, safety-critical, mission-critical or configuration-controlled engineering environment.

Benefits

• Bonus for full-time regular employees.
• Benefits for full-time regular employees.
• Equity for full-time regular employees.
• Temporary benefits package for temporary employees, applicable after 60 days of employment.

Before you apply

• All offers are contingent on a cleared background and possible reference check.
• The role is tied to ITAR exposure and requires S/SAR Clearance.
• Military fellows and part-time employees are not eligible for benefits.
• Salary is influenced by skill set, experience, licenses and certifications, and work location.

About the company

Shield AI is a venture-backed defense-tech company that builds AI-powered autonomy software and aircraft systems, including Hivemind, V-BAT, X-BAT and Aechelon simulation technologies. It has offices and facilities across the U.S., Europe, the Middle East and Asia-Pacific.