Hardware Engineering Manager

Fuse Integration•San Diego, CA

2d•$170,000 - $210,000

About The Position

As the Hardware Engineering Manager, you'll lead Fuse's Mechanical and Electrical Engineering teams - building and developing the people, capabilities, processes, and engineering practices required to deliver innovative, rugged, mission-ready hardware. You'll own the functional management and continued development of Hardware Engineering, including hiring, mentoring, performance management, career development, resource planning, and engineering processes. You'll ensure the team has the people, tools, priorities, and support needed to execute successfully. Technical execution within Hardware Engineering is a shared leadership responsibility. The Hardware Engineering Manager will co-lead technical execution with Fuse's Principal Mechanical and Principal Electrical Engineers, combining organizational leadership with deep discipline-specific technical expertise. Together, this team will guide technical direction, manage risk, mentor engineers, and ensure design maturity. This role requires strong technical breadth across electro-mechanical product development but does not require the Manager to be the foremost technical authority in every hardware discipline. The successful candidate will leverage Principal Engineers and other subject matter experts, recognize risk, ask the right questions, and establish clear technical ownership. You'll collaborate closely with Systems, Software, Network, Product, Production, and Program teams throughout the development lifecycle - from early concepts and requirements through detailed design, prototype builds, qualification, production transition, and sustainment. At Fuse, great engineering leadership means developing both great products and great engineers.

Requirements

Bachelor's or higher degree in Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or related Engineering discipline
8+ years of experience developing complex hardware or electro-mechanical systems
Proven experience leading engineering teams, including hiring, mentoring, performance management, and career development
Strong technical foundation in either Mechanical or Electrical Engineering with demonstrated ability to effectively lead and collaborate across both disciplines
Experience developing complex electro-mechanical hardware from concept through design, prototype, integration, qualification, and production
Demonstrated ability to lead collaboratively with Principal Engineers, senior technical contributors, and subject matter experts
Experience managing engineering resources and priorities across multiple simultaneous projects or programs
Strong understanding of design reviews, technical risk management, configuration management, and engineering change control
Familiarity with hardware verification, environmental qualification, and applicable military/industry standards
Strong communication skills across technical teams, leadership, customers, suppliers, and program stakeholders
U.S. Citizen with ability to obtain Secret Clearance
Must be a nimble self-starter who is excited about technology and has the ability to think out of the box and suggest powerful new ideas

Nice To Haves

Experience developing ruggedized hardware for defense, aerospace, maritime, or harsh-environment applications
Background in tactical communications, networking, computing, or command-and-control systems
Familiarity with MIL-STD-810, MIL-STD-461, MIL-STD-704, DO-160, or similar environmental and electrical qualification standards
Experience with SolidWorks, PDM, and related mechanical CAD environments
Familiarity with electrical design tools, cable/harness design, PCB development, power systems, structural analysis, or thermal analysis
Experience with prototype builds, FAI, qualification testing, NPI/NPD, and manufacturing transition
Experience working in a matrix engineering organization supporting multiple programs
Active Secret Clearance
Curiosity Over Comfort - You ask the right questions across disciplines and are comfortable relying on experts when deeper technical knowledge is required.
Low Ego, High Impact - You empower engineers and technical leaders rather than needing to personally own every technical decision.
Develop Others - You measure success not only by what the team delivers, but by the capability and growth of the engineers delivering it.
Resilient in the Gray - You can balance technical risk, resource constraints, changing priorities, and incomplete information while providing the team with clear direction.

Responsibilities

Lead and functionally manage Fuse's Mechanical Engineers, Electrical Engineers and Designers.
Mentor and develop engineers through coaching, performance management, goal setting, and career development.
Recruit and retain high-performing engineering talent to support Fuse's continued growth.
Establish clear roles, expectations, career paths, and development opportunities across Hardware Engineering.
Identify capability gaps and develop strategies for staffing, training, tooling, processes, and outside technical support.
Co-lead Hardware Engineering technical execution with the Principal Mechanical and Principal Electrical Engineers.
Partner with Principal Engineers to establish technical direction, engineering standards, design practices, and expectations for technical quality.
Maintain a clear partnership between functional leadership and technical authority: the Manager owns organizational effectiveness, staffing, priorities, and execution health, while Principal Engineers provide discipline-level technical leadership and mentorship.
Facilitate technical decisions and escalation when mechanical, electrical, systems, manufacturing, cost, schedule, or program requirements compete.
Partner with Principal Engineers to identify technical risk early and drive appropriate analysis, testing, trade studies, or design changes.
Provide leadership across the hardware lifecycle from concept and requirements through design, analysis, prototyping, integration, qualification, production transition, and sustainment.
Ensure designs appropriately address performance, reliability, manufacturability, maintainability, environmental requirements, and lifecycle needs.
Promote effective electro-mechanical integration and early collaboration between Mechanical and Electrical Engineering.
Drive continuous improvement of engineering processes, tools, CAD/PDM practices, design reviews, configuration management, and documentation.
Partner with Principal Engineers and Systems Engineering to address applicable military and industry standards.
Align Hardware Engineering resources with program and product priorities in partnership with Program Management and Product leadership.
Provide engineering inputs to proposals, ROMs, WBS development, staffing plans, schedules, and execution strategies.
Balance capacity across customer programs, internal product development, sustaining engineering, technical debt, and emerging needs.
Identify resource constraints, technical risks, and schedule concerns early and drive mitigation with leadership.
Support NPD/NPI to ensure designs are mature, documented, manufacturable, and ready for Production.
Partner with the Systems Engineering Manager to align system architecture and requirements with mechanical and electrical execution.
Collaborate with Software, Network, Cyber, Product, Programs, Production, Quality, Configuration Management, and Supply Chain throughout the product lifecycle.
Work with Production and Supply Chain to ensure designs address manufacturability, supplier capability, first article requirements, and production scalability.
Represent Hardware Engineering in customer engagements, technical interchange meetings, program reviews, and field integration events.