Principal Firmware Engineer

Verizon • Irving, TX

2d • Hybrid

About The Position

Verizon is seeking a highly experienced Principal Embedded Firmware Engineer to architect, drive, and optimize the firmware lifecycle for next-generation networking devices, including Wi-Fi routers, gateways, and access points. The role addresses complex technical challenges in embedded Linux and wireless networking, and sets technical standards for the team through firmware development, packet analysis, and system triage.

The position includes developing high-performance firmware applications in C and modern C++ (C++11/14); analyzing network traffic and diagnosing connectivity, protocol, and latency issues; investigating system crashes and root causes; validating Wi-Fi performance and router features; producing detailed engineering reports; and building automation for testing, log collection, and soak testing.

This is a hybrid role with a defined work location, working from home and in the office at least three days per week. The scheduled workweek is 40 hours, and travel of up to 25% is expected.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree or four or more years of work experience.
• Six or more years of relevant experience, demonstrated through work and/or military experience or specialized training.
• Comprehensive understanding of IEEE 802.11 standards (a/b/g/n/ac/ax/be), WPA2/WPA3, WPS, and physical/MAC-layer mechanisms behind common RF performance bottlenecks.
• Firmware or software development experience in networking and embedded systems, with deep specialized expertise in Wi-Fi routers, gateways, or access points.
• Experience with open-source router operating systems such as OpenWrt, prplOS, or RDK-B, or proprietary router SDKs such as Qualcomm, Broadcom, or MediaTek.
• Willingness to travel up to 25% of the time.

Nice To Haves

• Master-level expertise writing production-quality code in C and C++ (C++11/14).
• Deep command of Linux/Unix terminal environments, including advanced core commands, standard debugging tools, shell scripting, and system and memory process monitoring.
• Extensive experience capturing and analyzing TCP/IP, UDP, DNS, DHCP, ARP, and ICMP traffic using industry-standard tools.
• Experience architecting, configuring, and deploying applications using Docker and containerized embedded development environments.
• Hands-on experience designing hardware test environments, including RF sniffers, chambers, and network traffic generators such as Spirent, Ixia, or iPerf.

Responsibilities

• Architect, develop, and optimize high-performance firmware applications using C and modern C++ (C++11/14) in embedded Linux environments.
• Lead deep packet inspection and network traffic analysis using Wireshark, tcpdump, and wireless sniffers to resolve connectivity dropouts, protocol anomalies, and latency issues.
• Diagnose critical system issues using shell terminals such as SSH and serial; extract and analyze log bundles, investigate kernel and application-layer crashes, and isolate root causes.
• Oversee end-to-end Wi-Fi performance validation across 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, and 6 GHz bands, including band and AP steering, mesh networking, DHCP, NAT, firewall, QoS, and parental controls.
• Produce detailed bug reports with reproducible steps, system-state observations, log files, and packet captures (.pcap).
• Design and maintain Python and shell scripting frameworks to automate test cases, streamline log collection, and execute large-scale soak testing.

Benefits

• Medical, dental, and vision coverage
• Short- and long-term disability insurance
• Basic and supplemental life insurance
• AD&D insurance
• Identity theft protection
• Pet insurance
• Group home and auto insurance
• Matched 401(k) savings plan
• Up to 8 company-paid holidays per year
• Up to 6 personal days per year
• Paid parental leave
• Adoption assistance
• Tuition assistance
• Incentives and other benefits through the total rewards package
• Potential premium pay, including overtime, shift differential, holiday pay, and allowances, depending on the role
• Up to 15 days of vacation per year for newly hired employees, increasing with additional service

What This Job Offers

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