Head of Engineering (Photonics & Scale-up Focus)

Zero Point Motion; Bristol; On-site; GBP 80,000 - 100,000; Full time

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Private medical insurance

Job summary

A cutting-edge photonics company in Bristol seeks a Head of Engineering to lead the maturation of photonic integrated circuits and associated technologies. This role requires extensive hands-on experience in photonics, Python coding skills, and the ability to manage suppliers and complex engineering challenges. The ideal candidate will drive product readiness while maintaining high standards of quality and operational excellence. Working hours may extend beyond the typical schedule to meet project needs.

Qualifications

• Deep, hands-on photonics experience, particularly with PICs and lasers.
• Technical experience with MEMS sensor systems or ASIC/FPGA.
• Ability to challenge suppliers and understand test data across domains.

Responsibilities

• Deliver PICs, lasers, and detectors from design freeze through scale-up.
• Drive photonic maturity, ensuring stability and yield.
• Manage and challenge external suppliers.
• Be hands-on in testing and debugging across domains.
• Write and maintain Python-based tooling for automation.

Skills

Photonics experience (PICs, lasers, detectors)

Ability to interpret cross-domain data

Supplier management

Python coding

Hands-on lab competence

Tools

Python

Optical testing equipment

Job description

The Head of Engineering owns taking technology from one to scale, with primary ownership of photonic integrated circuits (PICs) and associated light sources and detectors.

This role exists to turn proven concepts into a product that ships reliably, repeatedly, and at high standards. The photonic subsystem is the pacing item: its maturity defines packaging, integration, test strategy, and much of the downstream electronics, firmware, and software.

This is not a generalist engineering role.

This is a photonics-first scale-up role.

The Role

As Head of Engineering, you are accountable for execution reality, with emphasis on photonics.

You own maturing photonic technology into something production-ready. At the same time, you are expected to develop an insanely steep learning curve across adjacent domains (MEMS, electronics, mechanics, firmware, and software) not to reinvent them, but to understand them deeply enough to make correct scale-up decisions.

You take concepts from the Head of R&D and:

• Stress-test them against production constraints

• Translate them into manufacturable designs

• Manage the suppliers and partners needed to make them real

You must be able to interpret test data across non-photonic domains, understand failure modes, and reason about the mechanical, electrical, and software “glue” that holds the system together.

You lead by doing. You set standards by example. You are deeply hands‑on in the lab and in code when it matters.

This role requires intensity. You must be willing to work extended hours and weekends when required.

What You’ll Do

• Own delivery of PICs, lasers, and detectors from design freeze through scale-up.

• Drive photonic maturity: stability, yield, repeatability, and margin.

• Develop rapid working understanding of:

  • MEMS behaviour and test results

  • Electronics performance, noise, and interfaces

  • Mechanical constraints and packaging interactions

  • Firmware and software behaviour at system level

• Without reinventing these domains, unless you have strong, evidence‑backed ideas to improve them.

• Manage and challenge external suppliers across MEMS, electronics, packaging, and test.

• Lead photonics‑centric automation across:

  • Design and layout checks

  • Simulation and modelling

  • Test, characterisation, and calibration

  • Tape‑out, DRC, LVS, and sign‑off

• Be hands‑on in the lab:

  • Optical alignment and characterisation

  • Debugging cross‑domain issues using data

  • Correlating measurements with models

• Write and maintain Python‑based tooling for:

  • Test automation

  • Data analysis

  • Performance tracking and reporting

• Define clear component‑level performance targets and acceptance criteria.

• Work closely with Head of R&D (architecture) and Head of Foundry (process and yield).

Python coding and lab competence are non‑negotiable.

Required Background

You must have:

• Deep, hands‑on photonics experience (PICs + lasers and/or detectors)

• Plus technical experience with either one of the following:

  • MEMS sensor systems

  • ASIC / FPGA

You must have demonstrated:

• Ability to take photonic technology beyond prototype

• Ability to interpret and act on cross‑domain test results

• Ability to work productively with suppliers and partners

• Ability to write and talk confidently and clearly about deep tech

How this role fits

• Reports directly to the CEO

• Owns tape‑out execution for photonic components

• Can be blocked by Head of R&D, Head of Foundry, or CEO

• Main reporter of progress towards product, using this skill for whitepapers, conferences, grant proposals

• External owner of photonic production readiness and performance

Who This Role Is For

This role is for someone who:

• Has deep photonics expertise and wants to make it real at scale

• Learns adjacent domains at extreme speed to make good decisions

• Is comfortable relying on domain experts but can challenge them using data

• Is bullish, demanding, and unwilling to accept sloppy execution

• Has high standards, high integrity, and low ego

• Does not need to reinvent everything to add value

• Is accountable for outcomes, not activity

What success looks like

Photonics maturity & technical control

• Photonic components behave predictably across wafers, runs, operating conditions, and time. Clear understanding of performance margins, sensitivities, and yield drivers for PICs, lasers, and detectors

• Photonics‑related failure modes are understood, monitored, and shrinking – not rediscovered

• Fewer surprises at system integration because the photonic core is stable and well‑characterised

Automation, repeatability & standards

• Automated, repeatable photonics design, test, and release workflows are in place and actively used

• Automation does not degrade quality, standards are preserved or raised as scale increases

• Tape‑out, DRC, LVS, test, and calibration processes are version‑controlled, auditable, and boring (in the good way)

• Manual heroics are being replaced by systems that work every time

Cross‑domain understanding & integration readiness

• MEMS, electronics, firmware, and software issues are caught early because you can interpret the data and ask the right questions

• You do not reinvent adjacent domains but you understand them well enough to:

  • Challenge assumptions

  • Spot inconsistencies

  • Prevent late‑stage integration failures

• The mechanical, electrical, and software “glue” holding the product together is increasingly robust and explicit

Cost, supply chain & leverage

• BOM costs are understood, tracked, and actively driven down without compromising performance or reliability

• Critical components have:

  • Clear cost drivers

  • Identified second sources or credible backup plans

  • Explicit risk registers where second sourcing is not yet viable

• Supplier dependencies are intentional, not accidental

• External suppliers, consultants, and third parties are:

  • Clearly scoped

  • Actively managed

  • Held to demanding technical and delivery standards

Execution & organisational impact

• Suppliers move faster because expectations, interfaces, and acceptance criteria are clear.

• Engineering execution becomes more predictable without becoming slower

• Trade‑offs between performance, cost, risk, and schedule are explicit and evidence‑based

• The team feels pressure but also clarity. There is less thrash and fewer “emergency” surprises

• The technical bar across the organisation is visibly higher:

  • Better experiments

  • Cleaner data

  • Sharper questions

  • Fewer hand‑waviness explanations

Visibility & conviction

• Regular demos presented to the board on product maturity & hitting performance targets

Working with us

• Compensation: Our framework is built on fairness and transparency, with regular reviews to reflect growth and performance.

• Benefits: Share options, pension, and private medical insurance.

• Culture: A deep‑tech rocketship backed by leading investors. We’re building breakthrough technology with real commercial impact. Pace is high. Standards are higher.

Zero Point Motion is determined to foster belonging and empowerment at work. We are committed to providing a work environment where there’s a zero‑tolerance approach to discrimination, and everyone is treated with respect. Equity, diversity and inclusion are central to our mission, and we strongly encourage candidates of all different backgrounds and identities to apply. If you need assistance or an accommodation due to a disability, please contact us.