RF Systems Architect

Forefront RF; Cambridge; Hybrid; GBP 65,000 - 85,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive salary and pension contributions

Company Share Option Scheme

25 days holiday + bank holidays

Weekly company lunches

Flexible work hours and remote work options

Private medical insurance

Life assurance x 4

Income protection

Healthshield Cash plan

Heka flexible benefits platform

Job summary

Forefront RF, located in Cambridge, is expanding its CTO team with an RF Systems Architect who will be pivotal in aligning RF design, algorithms, software, and tests into a coherent system architecture. The ideal candidate will thrive on breakthrough technologies and possess a strong background in RF systems development, as well as the capability to collaborate across multiple disciplines. This role includes responsibilities in technical leadership and validation strategy. Excellent benefits and a competitive salary are offered.

Qualifications

• Strong background in RF systems, RFICs, or RF module development in a commercial product environment.
• Proven experience working across multiple disciplines: RF design, algorithms, embedded software, and validation/test.
• Hands-on understanding of RF measurements, hardware/system debugging, and real-world non-idealities.

Responsibilities

• Own the end-to-end RF system architecture, ensuring coherence across design and technical specifications.
• Act as the technical bridge between RF design, algorithm development, embedded software, and test teams.
• Define how the system is validated, including simulation coverage and measurement plans.

Skills

RF systems development

Cross-disciplinary collaboration

System architecture definition

RFIC and RF module development

Problem-solving skills

Job description

About Us

Forefront RF is a fabless semiconductor company developing breakthrough RF technology that radically simplifies RF front‑end architectures for mobile and connected devices. Our long‑term vision is to empower anyone to treat global connectivity as a commodity, effortlessly adding it to any device. We lead through innovation, solving our customers' toughest challenges and enabling them to stay ahead by pushing the boundaries of RF design.

Our Values

• One team: We listen, share, and build solutions together. Collaboration is at the heart of how we work. We support one another, embrace challenges and fun, and celebrate collective success.
• Innovation with intent: We operate at the forefront of technology, building innovative pathways to the future that meets real customer needs
• Solutions driven: We develop world leading manufacturable products that deliver effortless connectivity.
• Customer focused: We act with integrity, hold ourselves accountable, and are guided by a deep commitment to deliver customer focused solutions.
• Sustainable: We design for longevity and reuse - leveraging globally connected RF technology to extend product lifecycles and reduce waste

Role Overview

As we move from core technology development toward customer qualification and productisation, system‑level architectural clarity has become critical. We are therefore expanding the CTO team with an RF Systems Architect who will play a central role in aligning RF design, algorithms, software, and test into a coherent, validated system architecture.

Key Responsibilities

System Architecture & Technical Coherence:

• Own the end‑to‑end RF system architecture, from RFIC blocks and tuning through control, software interfaces, calibration, and test
• Translate product and technical specification requirements (e.g. 3GPP) into clear system and sub‑block specs, making design choices that support buildability, test, and reuse
• Define and execute system analyses and feasibility studies aligned with Forefront RF's technology roadmap

Cross-Disciplinary Integration:

• Act as the technical bridge between RF design, algorithm development, embedded software, and test teams.
• Clarify ownership and interfaces, and ensure assumptions made in one area are understood and verifiable in others.

Validation Strategy & Correlation:

• Define how the system is validated, including simulation coverage, measurement plans, and coverage of key corner cases.
• Lead review and resolution of gaps between simulated and measured system performance.

Technical Risk Identification & Reduction:

• Proactively identify system‑level risks and trade‑offs, and drive alignment on mitigation plans.
• Support the CTO with a clear view of architectural uncertainties that affect schedule, yield, or customer performance.

Support to Productization & Customer Readiness:

• Ensure the system architecture supports customer use cases and integration needs.
• Contribute to customer‑facing technical material and support system‑level technical discussions with customers & partners.

Technical Leadership & Culture:

• Set the standard for clear, system‑level engineering thinking and decision making.
• Promote structured technical reviews, clear documentation, and evidence‑based decision making.

Requirements

About you:

You're excited by the opportunity to work with breakthrough technologies.

Technical Skills:

• Strong background in RF systems, RFICs, or RF module development in a commercial product environment
• Proven experience working across multiple disciplines: RF design, algorithms, embedded software, and validation/test
• Demonstrated ability to reason at system level, balancing performance, complexity, risk, and manufacturability
• Experience defining system architectures, performance budgets, and RF specifications
• Hands‑on understanding of RF measurements, hardware/system debugging, and real‑world non‑idealities

People Skills:

• Excellent system‑level analytical and problem‑solving skills
• Ability to communicate complex technical concepts clearly across disciplines
• Comfortable challenging assumptions and driving constructive technical debate
• High sense of ownership for technical correctness and system integrity
• Pragmatic mindset: focused on what can be built, tested, and delivered

Nice to have:

• Experience with mobile RF front‑ends and relevant standards (e.g. 3GPP, MIPI)
• Exposure to NPI, manufacturing, or production test considerations
• Prior experience in a fabless semiconductor or start‑up environment

Benefits

• Competitive salary and pension contributions
• Company Share Option Scheme
• 25 days holiday + bank holidays
• Weekly company lunches
• Flexible work hours and remote work options
• Private medical insurance
• Life assurance x 4
• Income protection
• Healthshield Cash plan
• Heka flexible benefits platform

We believe in equal opportunities

We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, colour, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, non‑disqualifying physical or mental disability, national origin, veteran status, or any other basis covered by appropriate law. All employment is decided on the basis of qualifications, merit, and business need.