Software Engineer (MCU)

HS Design, Inc.; Bristol; Hybrid; GBP 40,800 - 53,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Performance-related company-wide bonus

Private healthcare for you and your family

Enhanced maternity and paternity leave

Salary exchange pension scheme

25 days of annual leave

Access to Employee Assistance Programme

Cycle to Work scheme

Death in service (x4 gross salary)

Training and development opportunities

Job summary

HS Design, Inc. in Bristol is looking for an Embedded Software Engineer to develop firmware for medical devices. In this role, you will collaborate with multidisciplinary teams to create safety-critical applications using C/C++. You will be mentored by Senior Engineers and participate in a supportive culture that values teamwork and knowledge sharing.

The position offers a salary up to £53,000 with various perks, including flexible hybrid working, private healthcare, enhanced parental leave, and ample training opportunities.

Qualifications

• Experience developing embedded firmware on MCUs (ARM Cortex‑M or equivalent).
• Solid C and/or C++ skills.
• Experience working in safety-critical development environments.

Responsibilities

• Design and implement MCU firmware.
• Collaborate with hardware, Linux, UI, and test teams.
• Support fault investigation and root-cause analysis.

Skills

C/C++ skills

Embedded firmware development

RTOS experience

MCU families experience (STM32)

Communication protocols (UART, SPI, I²C, CAN)

Education

3-5 years’ experience in embedded systems

Job description

Ensera Design is a world‑class user‑centred innovation and product development consultancy, specialising in the medical and consumer health sectors with offices in Bristol, Colorado and New Jersey. As part of Ensera, we collaborate globally with contract manufacturing facilities in Europe, the USA, and Asia.

We are currently seeking an embedded Software Engineer to join our talented team and contribute to delivering exceptional solutions for our clients.

You’ll join a multidisciplinary team developing a greenfield medical device from the ground up.

Day to day, your focus will be designing and implementing microcontroller‑based systems in embedded C/C++. You’ll sit alongside hardware, Linux, UI and test engineers and have the opportunity to make a genuine contribution to a medical device project.

You’ll have a team of Senior Software Engineers around you who’ll mentor you throughout. Due to the nature of Ensera Design’s work, you’ll have the opportunity to either branch out into other specialisms or go deeper into the one you’re already in.

About you

You're an engineer who has worked across safety‑critical systems and/or medical devices in the past with a desire to develop using embedded C/C++ targeting STM32 ARM microcontrollers or similar platforms. You’ll be a strong communicator with a desire to share knowledge and mentor junior members of the team – you’ll also be mentored by experienced engineers who have grown with the business.

You’ll be interested in working on safety‑critical applications across the full development lifecycle and in accordance with safety and reliability standards such as IEC 62304.

What you’ll do

• Design and implement MCU firmware in line with agreed system and security architecture
• Support MCU subsystems and components
• Develop embedded C/C++ code for real‑time systems
• Collaborate with hardware, Linux, UI, connectivity, and test teams on integration topics
• Define and maintain coding standards and design patterns for MCU software
• Support fault investigation, root‑cause analysis, and corrective actions
• Share knowledge and mentor more junior members of the team

Your skills and experience

You don’t need to tick every box but if you hit most of the essentials, we’d love to hear from you.

• Around 3‑5 years’ experience developing embedded firmware on MCUs (ARM Cortex‑M or equivalent)
• Solid C and/or C++ skills
• Experience with RTOS‑based systems
• Understanding of hardware–software interfaces and peripheral drivers
• Experience working in quality‑controlled or safety‑critical development environments
• Experience with STM32 or similar MCU families
• Bootloader, firmware update, or secure startup experience
• Familiarity with MISRA or similar embedded coding standards
• Experience with communication protocols (UART, SPI, I²C, CAN)
• Exposure to cybersecurity considerations at MCU level

The salary for this role is up to £53,000, in line with our Consultant band (£40,800 to £53,000). Please note we ask you to provide your expected salary within the band as part of your application, this helps us understand how you view your experience against the role’s scope.

Why work with us?

Ensera Design offers interesting and varied work combined with a supportive team culture to provide a stimulating environment where you will have the opportunity to develop and learn from others. We offer flexible working policies where working patterns are agreed with our line managers, taking into account the role, needs of the individual, and the team.

We recognise that we are only as good as our people and we know how important it is to support our team.

We offer:

• Performance‑related company‑wide bonus.
• Flexible hybrid working in line with our core hours (Mon–Thu, 9:30am–12:00pm & 2:00pm–4:00pm; Fri, 9:30am–12:00pm).
• Private healthcare for you and your family.
• Enhanced maternity and paternity leave.
• Salary exchange pension scheme.
• 25 days of annual leave, plus the option to purchase up to one working week and additional days for length of service.
• Access to our Employee Assistance Programme and digital wellbeing platform.
• Cycle to Work & Electric Vehicle Lease schemes.
• Death in service (x4 gross salary).
• Training and development opportunities, including dedicated learning days and regular knowledge‑sharing sessions.
• A free lunch the first Monday of every month alongside our company‑wide meeting.
• Free breakfast every Wednesday, and plenty of opportunities to socialise, including team‑organised activities, summer and Christmas parties, and more.

At Ensera Design we believe that designing for people means including all people, starting with the team behind the work. Our human‑centred design ethos is rooted in empathy, and our values – pull together, find a way, and care – guide us in building a team that reflects the diversity of the world we design for.

We know that different perspectives lead to better ideas, stronger collaboration, and more meaningful outcomes. If you meet the skills and experience for this role, we welcome your application – whatever your background, identity, or path into design. What matters to us is that you share our belief in purposeful, people‑first design.