Director, Core Runtime & Platform Engineering

Ford • Palo Alto, CA

1d • Hybrid

About The Position

Ford Motor Company is undergoing a significant transformation, shifting towards a software-defined, intelligent, and globally connected manufacturing system. The Advanced Technology & Platforms (ATP) organization, specifically the Core vertical, is responsible for developing the foundational platform stack that underpins this global manufacturing transformation. This platform includes CoreOS (the operating and orchestration layer), FMIL (Ford Manufacturing Intelligence Layer) for real-time signal processing and decisioning, and CoreDS (the data platform for traceability and intelligence). The Director, Core Runtime & Platform Engineering will lead the engineering teams responsible for the runtime, edge, connectivity, cloud infrastructure, developer platform, and reliability of CoreOS and FMIL, ensuring secure and scalable operation across Ford's manufacturing network. This role is crucial for building the platform backbone that unifies industrial devices, controls, signals, and applications, while also providing APIs, SDKs, and services for teams to build and scale consistently. The position reports to the Director of Software, Controls & Diagnostics and is central to enabling Ford's "Build Once, Scale Everywhere" strategy and closed-loop learning across manufacturing systems.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, or related field
• 10+ years in software, platform, or infrastructure engineering
• 5+ years leading engineering teams delivering complex systems at scale
• Experience building distributed systems, runtime platforms, or edge computing systems
• Experience designing and operating cloud-native and hybrid edge-cloud platforms (AWS, GCP, Azure; Kubernetes)
• Experience building platform APIs, SDKs, or reusable developer systems
• Strong understanding of industrial systems, factory automation, and device integration
• Experience in several of the following: Distributed systems and container orchestration (Kubernetes, Docker), Edge computing and real-time systems, Hybrid edge-cloud architectures and distributed control planes, Platform APIs, SDKs, and developer tooling, Industrial communication protocols (EtherCAT, Profinet, CAN, OPC UA, MQTT, etc.), Streaming and messaging systems (Kafka, NATS, Pub/Sub), Observability platforms (Prometheus, Grafana, OpenTelemetry), Infrastructure automation, CI/CD, and reliability engineering, Building platforms that scale across multiple products, plants, or business domains

Nice To Haves

• Experience with software-defined manufacturing or industrial automation platforms
• Familiarity with TRL/MRL/IRL lifecycle models
• Experience in automotive or high-volume manufacturing environments
• Experience integrating runtime, data, and controls-adjacent systems into unified platforms

Responsibilities

• Lead the Core Runtime Platform, including architecture, delivery, and establishing standards for runtime services, deployment models, lifecycle management, and system interfaces.
• Build the Core Developer Platform by defining and delivering platform APIs, SDKs, and shared services, creating reusable primitives, and establishing developer standards to drive platform adoption.
• Lead development of Industrial Edge & Distributed Systems, including edge computing platforms, distributed systems for high-throughput, low-latency workloads, and resilient edge runtimes.
• Own Device Connectivity & Industrial Middleware, standardizing interfaces for PLCs, robotics, and industrial equipment, defining integration patterns across various protocols, and building reusable adapters, APIs, and SDKs.
• Architect and operate Cloud & Hybrid Platform Infrastructure, including hybrid edge-cloud infrastructure, cloud-based control planes, secure edge-to-cloud patterns, and cloud-native services.
• Build Real-Time Data, Telemetry & CoreDS Integration systems, ensuring seamless integration between edge data and cloud platforms, and supporting closed-loop systems.
• Build platform-wide Observability, Diagnostics & Runtime Integrity across edge and cloud environments, enabling real-time monitoring, alerting, and diagnostics.
• Define Reliability, Deployment & Global Scale strategies, including SRE and release engineering practices, SLAs, and leading global rollout of Core platforms.
• Provide Engineering Leadership & System Execution, building and leading a high-performing engineering organization, driving engineering excellence, and translating strategy into roadmaps and execution.
• Engage in Cross-Functional Platform Leadership, partnering with other vertical teams, aligning with plant operations and vehicle programs, and contributing to enterprise standards for software-defined manufacturing.

Benefits

• Immediate medical, dental, vision and prescription drug coverage
• Flexible family care days, paid parental leave, new parent ramp-up programs, subsidized back-up childcare and more
• Family building benefits including adoption and surrogacy expense reimbursement, fertility treatments, and more
• Vehicle discount program for employees and family members and management leases
• Tuition assistance
• Established and active employee resource groups
• Paid time off for individual and team community service
• A generous schedule of paid holidays, including the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day
• Paid time off and the option to purchase additional vacation time

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Director