Staff, Systems Design – System Architect
At a glance
Senior Engineering Leadership role at Thermofisher. Pleasanton · full-time · $135,900–$190,000 base.
techroles summary, based on the employer's posting.
What you'll do
- Set the embedded architecture for scientific instruments and lab automation, including subsystem boundaries, interfaces and communications
- Turn product and system needs into software requirements, architecture documents and implementation plans
- Design how subsystems coordinate workflows, communicate with devices, manage state, diagnose faults and recover from errors
- Work with hardware, systems and software groups to integrate instrument capabilities, then investigate complex reliability and performance issues
- Shape reusable design standards and verification approaches, guide engineering tools, and mentor software engineers
What you bring
- A relevant technical degree plus the required experience: at least four years with a PhD, six with a master's, or eight with a bachelor's
- A track record architecting embedded software for complex electromechanical products, such as instruments, robotics or comparable systems
- Experience designing modular software and subsystem interfaces, including communications, diagnostics, error handling and state management
- Hands-on work connecting software to hardware and building automated tests, integration tools or simulation capabilities
- You can lead technical decisions across engineering teams and bring strong design, testing and release practices
Who this fits
This senior technical leadership role suits an embedded software architect who can guide design across product teams and mentor engineers. The role is fully onsite in Pleasanton, with priority for Bay Area residents; relocation assistance is unavailable. You must already be authorized to work in the United States without current or future sponsorship and pass a background check that includes drug screening. Travel may reach twenty percent as needed.
From the employer
Work Schedule
Standard (Mon-Fri)Environmental Conditions
OfficeJob Description
LOCATION: This is a fully onsite position based at our Pleasanton, CA site. Unfortunately, relocation assistance is NOT provided. Priority will be given to LOCAL candidates currently residing in the Bay Area.
- Must be legally authorized to work in the United States without sponsorship now or in the future.
- Must be able to pass a comprehensive background check, which includes a drug screen.
As part of the Thermo Fisher Scientific team, you’ll discover meaningful work that makes a positive impact on a global scale. Join our colleagues in bringing our Mission to life every single day to enable our customers to make the world healthier, cleaner and safer. We provide our global teams with the resources needed to achieve individual career goals while helping to take science a step beyond by developing solutions for some of the world’s toughest challenges, like protecting the environment, making sure our food is safe or helping find cures for cancer.
Description
Join our team as a Staff, Systems Design – System Architect at Thermo Fisher Scientific. This role provides architecture and technical leadership for embedded software that coordinates, monitors, and controls complex scientific instrument subsystems, rather than focusing primarily on low-level firmware development.
You will define and evolve the embedded software architecture for advanced scientific instruments and laboratory automation platforms. You will work across hardware, systems, application software, quality, and product teams to deliver reliable, maintainable, and scalable software solutions that enable instrument capabilities from concept through release and sustaining support.
The role focuses on embedded software design across instrument subsystems, including workflow orchestration, device communications, subsystem coordination, diagnostics, state management, error handling, data exchange, and integration with higher-level applications. You will guide technical decisions, establish architectural standards, mentor engineers, and help shape reusable software platforms across products.
Key Responsibilities
- Lead the architecture and technical design of embedded software for complex scientific instruments and laboratory automation platforms.
- Define software boundaries, component responsibilities, interfaces, and communication patterns across embedded subsystems, hardware controllers, and higher-level applications.
- Translate product and system needs into clear embedded software requirements, architecture specifications, design documentation, and implementation plans.
- Architect software for subsystem coordination, workflow execution, device communication, diagnostics, error recovery, event handling, configuration, and state management.
- Partner with electrical, mechanical, firmware, systems, and application software teams to deliver integrated instrument capabilities.
- Establish reusable software architectures, design patterns, coding standards, interface specifications, and technical-review practices.
- Lead technical investigations and root-cause analysis for complex software integration, reliability, performance, and field issues.
- Define and support software verification strategies, including unit, integration, system, simulation, and hardware-in-the-loop testing.
- Develop or guide the development of automation and engineering tools that improve software quality, test coverage, and development efficiency.
- Mentor embedded software engineers and provide technical leadership across product development teams.
- Influence technical roadmaps, platform reuse strategy, and improvements to the embedded software development lifecycle.
Minimum Requirements
- PhD + 4 yrs: Master's degree + 6 years of experience, or Bachelor’s degree + 8 years of experience in embedded software development, software architecture, or complex product development.
- Degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Software Engineering, or a related technical field.
- Demonstrated experience architecting and delivering embedded software for complex electro-mechanical products, scientific instruments, laboratory automation, robotics, industrial systems, or comparable products.
- Strong experience designing modular, maintainable software systems using C++, Python, and/or other relevant programming languages.
- Experience designing software components, service interfaces, communication layers, diagnostics, error handling, and state management across distributed instrument subsystems.
- Experience integrating embedded software with sensors, actuators, motion systems, fluidics, imaging systems, control electronics, or external devices.
- Experience with embedded or real-time operating environments and the practical constraints of software that interfaces with hardware.
- Experience developing automated test frameworks, integration tools, simulation environments, or hardware-in-the-loop test capabilities using Python or similar technologies.
- Strong understanding of software design principles, API/interface design, version control, code review, continuous integration, automated testing, and release management.
- Experience leading technical design decisions and influencing cross-functional engineering teams.
- Strong communication, collaboration, problem-solving, and mentoring skills.
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience with laboratory, analytical, life sciences, medical-device, automation, robotics, or other regulated products.
- Experience with distributed embedded systems, device communications, industrial protocols, Ethernet-based systems, or software services running on instrument-connected platforms.
- Experience with real-time behavior, motion control, fluidics, imaging, precision measurement, or workflow orchestration.
- Familiarity with safety, risk management, cybersecurity, or regulated software-development practices.
- Experience with Linux-based embedded platforms, RTOS-based products, or containerized/edge software environments.
- Experience collaborating with firmware teams; hands-on device-driver, microcontroller, or low-level firmware development is beneficial but not required.
- Experience working in Agile product development environments.
- Ability to travel up to 20% as needed.
Compensation and Benefits
The salary range estimated for this position based in California is $135,900.00–$190,000.00.This position may also be eligible to receive a variable annual bonus based on company, team, and/or individual performance results in accordance with company policy. We offer a comprehensive Total Rewards package that our U.S. colleagues and their families can count on, which includes:
A choice of national medical and dental plans, and a national vision plan, including health incentive programs
Employee assistance and family support programs, including commuter benefits and tuition reimbursement
At least 120 hours paid time off (PTO), 10 paid holidays annually, paid parental leave (3 weeks for bonding and 8 weeks for caregiver leave), accident and life insurance, and short- and long-term disability in accordance with company policy
Retirement and savings programs, such as our competitive 401(k) U.S. retirement savings plan
Employees’ Stock Purchase Plan (ESPP) offers eligible colleagues the opportunity to purchase company stock at a discount
For more information on our benefits, please visit: https://jobs.thermofisher.com/global/en/total-rewards
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