VP Systems Engineering

Fluence Energy•Houston, TX

About The Position

The Vice President, Systems Engineering serves as the executive technical authority for the Product Business Unit and is accountable for ensuring Fluence products perform as fully integrated systems throughout the product lifecycle. Reporting to the Head of Product Business Unit, this leader owns system architecture, requirements management, interface definition, integration, verification and validation, certification, product assurance, global laboratories, Hardware-in-the-Loop (HIL) testing, and field reliability. The role establishes engineering standards and governance while ensuring alignment across Product Management, Hardware Engineering, Software & Controls Engineering, Program Management, Manufacturing, Quality, Supply Chain, and Customer Success.

Requirements

20+ years of engineering leadership in complex product development organizations.
10+ years leading global Systems Engineering teams.
Executive-level experience influencing cross-functional organizations and technical strategy.
Deep expertise in architecture, systems integration, verification & validation, certification, and reliability.
Proven success developing high-performing engineering leaders and organizations.
Bachelor's degree in Systems, Electrical, Mechanical, Computer Engineering, or related field required; Master's or PhD preferred.
20+ years of progressive engineering experience including integrated hardware/software products.
10+ years leading global engineering organizations.
Expertise in systems architecture, requirements management, MBSE, V&V, certification, and product release.
Experience with functional safety, regulatory compliance, reliability engineering, and PLM.
Demonstrated success leading complex technical tradeoff decisions and executive stakeholder engagement.
Experience building engineering organizations, succession pipelines, and technical capability.
Legally authorized to work in the United States at the time of application and throughout employment, without the need for employer sponsorship.

Nice To Haves

Energy storage, industrial automation, automotive, aerospace, or similar complex industry preferred.

Responsibilities

Develop and execute the long-term Systems Engineering strategy aligned with the Product Business Unit strategy, technology roadmap, and business objectives.
Establish the global Systems Engineering operating model, organizational capability roadmap, engineering standards, and technical governance.
Lead investment planning for engineering capabilities including digital engineering, MBSE, simulation, laboratories, HIL infrastructure, and engineering productivity.
Serve as the executive technical authority for all commercial product platforms, providing final technical approval for architecture decisions, technical tradeoffs, and release readiness.
Chair architecture reviews and technical design reviews while resolving cross-functional engineering conflicts.
Own enterprise system architecture, requirements decomposition, interface management, and requirements traceability across the product lifecycle.
Ensure platform consistency, modularity, scalability, reuse, and technology standardization.
Own verification and validation strategy, systems integration, certification, functional safety, compliance, and release approval.
Lead global laboratories, HIL testing, product validation, and engineering assurance.
Drive field reliability, warranty learning, root cause analysis, and corrective action processes.
Provide technical leadership from concept through launch, sustainment, and end-of-life planning.
Partner with Manufacturing, Quality, Supply Chain, and Customer Success to improve product performance and customer satisfaction.
Build and lead a world-class global Systems Engineering organization through talent acquisition, succession planning, leadership development, and mentoring.
Own organization design, resource planning, engineering KPIs, budget planning, and continuous improvement.
Partner with Product Management to evaluate technology investments, product portfolio decisions, and architecture alternatives balancing cost, performance, quality, manufacturability, and customer value.
Represent Fluence with executive leadership, customers, certification agencies, suppliers, and industry organizations.