Lead Engineer - Washington DC, United States - National Geographic Society

Description

How You'll Contribute

The Explorer Engagement group develops, elevates, and empowers our network of National Geographic Explorers. These empowerment activities are led by a series of teams within Explorer Engagement, including Explorer Programs, International, and the National Geographic Exploration Technology Lab. Reporting to the Senior Director of National Geographic Society's Exploration Technology Lab (the "Lab"), the Lead Engineer takes a lead role in electrical system design and embedded software and firmware development. In addition, the Lead Engineer manages a small but powerful team of R&D engineers with a mix of electrical and mechanical skills, who produce products for, and provide guidance to, our global network of National Geographic Explorers to advance their work in the areas of science, exploration, storytelling, and education. This position is a critical leadership position with the Exploration Technology team responsible for a diverse portfolio of engineering projects and will be responsible for systems design leadership, and are expected to be a subject matter expert on, and contribute to, a wide array of engineering tasks - from bug fixes, feature improvements, hardware and software testing plans, and new technology builds. The Lab's technology focus areas include the creation and maintenance of a variety of sensor-based systems; from bespoke remote data collection and transmission hardware, to camera traps and acoustic recording systems, animal-born devices and attachments, and unique housing and control systems for media grade camera systems. Your Impact Responsibilities Include Embedded Systems Engineering (50%):

• Designs embedded systems from an architectural level down to a component level, including conceptual design, prototyping, firmware and software development, and testing.
• Provides expertise in audio and video system development
• Leads the engineering team in hands-on design, development, and testing of electronic and mechanical components and systems, with a focus on early-stage technology development for electromechanical sensor systems in challenging terrestrial and marine environments.
• Responsible for overseeing the integration of electrical, mechanical, firmware, and software components into systems and subsystems.
• Works with Operations to develop test methods and supports fast, iterative prototyping.
• Creates documentation capturing system designs, project iterations, architecture changes, and testing plans.
• Provides technical field support for Exploration gear and supports product field deployments, as needed.

Project Management and Technical Leadership (50%):

• Manages engineering projects, tracking overall system development progress and the completion of individual and other team member's tasks.
• Empowers, inspires, and guides team members toward achieving their greatest potential through mentorship and 1:1 technical support.
• Leads integration of electrical, mechanical, embedded systems, and software engineering components.
• Provides expert advice supporting Explorers' technology needs and advises leadership decisions around engineering-based prioritization and work distribution.
• Leads design reviews of product systems and components to ensure product specifications are met.
• In coordination with the leadership team removes roadblocks to keep the engineering team adhering to project schedules.
• Promotes innovation, collaboration, communication, and incubation to foster great ideas as a team.
• Cultivates a culture of inclusion, respect, empowerment, and accountability, while strongly promoting innovation and incubating and implementing great ideas.
• Demonstrates a personal commitment to diversity, equity, leadership, performance, and inclusion within the Lab.
• Authority on solving technical challenges and determining the technical feasibility of products and projects.

What You'll Bring Educational Background Bachelor's degree in STEM, Electrical/Mechanical Engineering emphasis. Advanced Degree preferred. Minimum Years And Type Of Experience

• 7+ years of experience as an Embedded Engineer, with at least 3 years of experience in creating MOTS or R&D electro-mechanical sensor systems.
• 3+ years of experience in prototyping embedded hardware sensor systems, engineering mentorship, and team leadership within an engineering team.
• 1+ years of engineering project management.
• Experience in developing sensor systems for harsh environments is preferred.
• Career focus on early-stage sensor technology development is required, experience designing for a production environment is optional.

Necessary Knowledge and Skills

• Demonstrated leadership in analyzing technology development and deployment plans to identify risks and weak spots, and find solutions to improve efficiency.
• Ability to identify weak spots in a process to quickly identify a solution and improve efficiency.
• Proficient in Python, C, C++,, Labview, and MATLAB code development .
• Skilled in embedded software and firmware development, especially for 16- or 32- bit microcontrollers and embedded Linux systems.
• Familiar developing in Mainline Linux, ROS, ARM/x64 Linux systems
• Experience writing and maintaining design and test documentation.
• Demonstrated leadership role in testing design and process management
• Hands-on experience with all phases of development, including system architecture, requirements analysis, prototype design, product design, assembly, debug, and testing.
• Knowledge and handling of agile-based project and program management methodology and techniques.
• Ability to mentor a high-functioning team and oversee diverse activities while meeting deadlines and delivering quality results.
• Strong multitasking skills and attention to detail.
• Ability to travel 1-3 times per year for technology deployments

Supervision 2+ staff member Salary Information As a leading nonprofit organization, National Geographic Society offers competitive salary and total rewards to attract, develop, and retain an innovative and dynamic workforce. The salary range for this position starts at $158,000. Job Designation Resident - Our Resident category recognizes that certain staff need to be physically present at Base Camp to do their work. Some Resident staff must always be onsite to do their jobs, while others may only need to be physically present some of the time. Some Resident staff may need to come into Base Camp every day, some may need to come in to meet looming deadlines and to get work done, and others may require a more unique schedule. The days Resident staff come into the office will be determined by their teams and workflow, and they should work with their supervisors to determine their specific schedule. And throughout the year, their schedule can be adjusted based on cyclical work cycles, deadlines, and/or ebbs and flows of work. As a guideline, Resident staff will be in the office between 3-5 days a week. Candidates must be legally authorized to work in the United States. This position is not eligible for visa sponsorship. W e encourage you to apply even if your experience is not a 100% match with the position. We are looking for someone with relevant skills and experience, not a checklist that exactly matches the job description. We want to help you grow and in return, you help us grow into a stronger, more inclusive organization. #J-18808-Ljbffr