Lead Device Software Engineer, Embedded & Firmware

ConnectDER • Philadelphia, PA

3d • $155,000 - $209,000 • Hybrid

About The Position

ConnectDER is hiring a hands-on technical lead to own the device software system end to end, define its architecture, divide work into well-scoped workstreams, and drive iterative delivery while writing production code and delegating work to a team of three firmware engineers. The position reports to the Director of Electrical Engineering.

The role is responsible for software for the IslandDER digital interface, which is designed to comply with a device-to-device communication standard being co-developed with battery and inverter companies. The interface supports secure integration with home batteries and Vehicle-to-Home solutions. Device software monitors voltage and current, drives relays, performs safety checks, and communicates securely with third-party devices and the ConnectDER cloud. The four main subsystems are Data Acquisition, Control, Communication, and Integration.

The role is based in ConnectDER’s Philadelphia office, with an in-person schedule Tuesday through Thursday. Remote candidates may be considered if they can travel to the Philadelphia office for at least one week per month. The travel expectation is approximately 10% for office-based candidates and approximately 25% for remote candidates.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or Computer Science.
• At least 7 years of firmware engineering experience and a track record of shipping new products at scale.
• Strong system design and documentation skills, including clear technical documentation and design diagrams, and the ability to drive safety certification such as IEC 61508, IEC 60730, or UL 1998 to completion.
• Experience leading the technical direction of a project, architecting an approach, partitioning it into workstreams, and contributing code directly.
• Expertise in C, C++, and/or Rust.
• Deep experience debugging embedded systems using oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, and JTAG/SWD.
• Deep bare-metal or RTOS firmware experience on modern 32-bit microcontrollers, including low-level architecture and multi-core memory optimization; ARM Cortex-M or similar is specified.
• Sophisticated use of AI coding agents while retaining full ownership and being able to explain significant decisions in shipped work.
• Ability to iterate quickly, size effort according to business value, and explain complex requirements to diverse stakeholders.

Nice To Haves

• Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or Computer Science.
• Experience taking safety-critical software through NRTL certification.
• Matter/Thread device commissioning experience, including SPAKE2+/PASE and setup-code or QR pairing.
• Experience with I2C, UART, SPI, CAN/CAN-FD, Ethernet, Make, CMake, test automation, and CI/CD.
• Embedded TCP/IP networking experience such as lwIP, or experience implementing WireGuard or similar secure tunnels on a real-time embedded platform.
• Experience reverse-engineering CAN protocols or developing custom evaluation tools.
• Experience configuring and using an RTOS for multithreaded, timing-critical applications across metrology, safety, and communications.
• Experience with PX5 or ThreadX.
• Experience designing or operating firmware code-signing or PKI systems, including key custody, signing pipelines, secure-boot verification, key rotation, and revocation.
• Familiarity with standards such as UL 1741/IEEE 1547, UL 3141, UL 2900, and ANSI C12.1.

Responsibilities

• Own the overall device software architecture and break complex requirements into well-scoped workstreams with clean interfaces.
• Guide the firmware team while remaining hands-on and writing production code.
• Architect and implement safety-critical software, define the safety boundary, and own the FMEA, safety case, and NRTL certification.
• Design and implement revenue-grade metering systems, including data acquisition, signal processing, and calibration.
• Partner with electrical engineering to co-define requirements, bring up boards, debug hardware/software issues, and influence hardware design for testability and safety.
• Own the secure firmware-update path, including secure boot, code signing, and the associated key-management system.
• Maintain a modern CI/CD pipeline and testable code, and take systems from prototype through mass production.
• Develop design diagrams and safety documentation and defend the safety case to the NRTL.
• Bring up firmware on new boards and debug across the hardware/software boundary.
• Establish a code-signing pipeline for verified over-the-air firmware updates.
• Delegate metering or communications workstreams and review team members’ pull requests.
• Improve control-loop timing to meet its timing budget.

Benefits

• Health insurance plan; the company covers 75% for employees, spouses, and children.
• Flexible paid time off.
• 401(k) with company match.
• Equity stock options.

What This Job Offers

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