Director/Sr. Director of Engineering – Automotive Software

Qualcomm; San Diego (CA); On-site; USD 207,600 - 311,400; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive salary

Annual discretionary bonus program

Opportunity for RSU grants

Job summary

A leading tech firm is seeking a Director/Principal level Customer Project Engineer for their Automotive Software Platform team. This role includes overseeing the entire lifecycle of automotive software projects with responsibilities such as managing project requirements, schedules, and ensuring quality standards. Ideal candidates will have extensive engineering experience, proficiency in programming languages, and strong leadership skills. This position offers a competitive salary ranging from $207,600 to $311,400, along with a comprehensive benefits package.

Qualifications

• 8+ years of Software Engineering or related work experience.
• 7+ years of Software Engineering or related work experience for Master's degree holders.
• 6+ years of Software Engineering or related work experience for PhD holders.
• 4+ years of work experience with programming languages such as C, C++, Java, Python.

Responsibilities

• Oversee and coordinate entire lifecycle of automotive software projects.
• Lead and manage automotive software engineering projects from conception to completion.
• Anticipate customer needs and translate them into requirements.

Skills

C/C++

Java

Python

Project Management

Problem-Solving

Education

Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Information Systems, Computer Science, or related field

Master's degree in Engineering, Information Systems, Computer Science, or related field

PhD in Engineering, Information Systems, Computer Science, or related field

Job description

Company: Qualcomm Technologies, Inc.

Job Area: Engineering Group, Engineering Group > Software Engineering

Seeking highly skilled and motivated Director/Principal level Customer Project Engineer for the Automotive Software Platform team. In this role you will oversee and coordinate the entire lifecycle of automotive software projects from concept to completion, including analyzing project requirements, preparing schedules, coordinating team tasks, and ensuring projects meet quality standards and are completed on time. You will interface directly with the OEM’s engineering executives and Qualcomm’s senior technical and business leadership.

You Will

• Develop a deep understanding of the OEM’s roadmap, vehicle and backend architecture, requirements, and constraints.
• Lead and coordinate all technical aspects of business acquisition, delivery execution, and post‑SOP maintenance.
• Represent the “voice of the customer” in internal forums, escalating needs and driving alignment across Qualcomm engineering, product management, program management, and sales.

Key Responsibilities

Technical Leadership

• Act as the chief technical counterpart to the OEM’s engineering leadership for all ADAS and related programs.
• Serve as the main technical point of contact covering SoC, platform software, tools, and system integration topics.
• Work with Software Product (SP) PE internally and manage external customer deliverables, expectations, and escalations.
• Lead and manage automotive software engineering projects from conception to completion.
• Prepare, schedule, coordinate, and monitor the assigned engineering projects.
• Build and maintain strong, trusted relationships with the customer’s engineering executives, architects, and program leads.
• Anticipate customer needs and translate them into Qualcomm platform requirements, features, and solutions.
• Lead the technical workstreams for RFIs/RFQs and advanced engagement discussions with the OEM.
• Define technical solution proposals based on Qualcomm’s product portfolio, including SoCs, BSP, Platform Software, and reference platforms.

Program Execution & Delivery

• Provide overarching technical leadership for all active programs with the OEM, across all phases (concept, development, validation, SOP, and maintenance).
• Coordinate and synchronize Qualcomm internal engineering teams (HW, SW, systems, safety, security, tools, test) to meet customer milestones.
• Drive resolution of critical technical issues, ensuring timely escalation and clear communication to both customer and Qualcomm management.
• Support design reviews, technical workshops, joint debugging sessions, and on‑site integration activities as needed.
• Coordinate with customers and other stakeholders to ensure the Software delivery meets project requirements.
• Identify, analyze, and mitigate project risks and issues.
• Implement and manage project changes and interventions to achieve project outputs.
• Monitor and report on project progress, problems, and solutions.
• Ensure that all engineering work meets standards and customer specifications.

Voice of the Customer & Internal Alignment

• Represent the customer’s priorities, constraints, and pain points in internal reviews, roadmap discussions, and management meetings.
• Provide structured feedback to product management and engineering on gaps, competitive pressure, and future requirements.
• Ensure internal stakeholders understand customer commitments, program risk, and required trade‑offs.

Technical Thought Leadership & Mentoring

• Act as a technical role model: hands‑on, detail‑oriented, and able to deep‑dive into complex system issues when required.
• Guide and mentor cross‑functional Qualcomm teams working on the customer, helping them prioritize and solve problems effectively.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Information Systems, Computer Science, or related field and 8+ years of Software Engineering or related work experience.
• Master’s degree in Engineering, Information Systems, Computer Science, or related field and 7+ years of Software Engineering or related work experience.
• PhD in Engineering, Information Systems, Computer Science, or related field and 6+ years of Software Engineering or related work experience.
• 4+ years of work experience with programming languages such as C, C++, Java, Python, etc.

Preferred Qualifications

• Extensive experience in software engineering, including project management and leadership roles.
• Strong background in automotive systems engineering with focus on:
• Compute platform architecture (SoC, GPU/DSP, accelerators)
• Embedded SW stacks (OS such as QNX/Linux/Android, middleware, frameworks, toolchains)
• Solid understanding of automotive safety and quality frameworks (e.g., ISO 26262, ASPICE, cybersecurity standards) and their impact on architecture and execution.
• Proven experience as a customer‑facing technical leader, such as chief engineer, system architect, technical program lead, or equivalent.
• Demonstrated ability to lead cross‑functional teams without direct authority in a complex matrix organization.
• Strong problem‑solving skills, data‑driven and structured, with ability to remain calm and decisive under pressure.
• Willingness to travel regularly to customer and Qualcomm sites (domestic and international).
• Strong understanding of engineering principles and practices.
• Proven track record of successfully managing and delivering complex software projects.
• Excellent communication, leadership, and organizational skills.
• Ability to work effectively in a fast‑paced, dynamic environment, independently with minimal supervision.
• Experience with software development methodologies and tools.

Pay Range And Other Compensation & Benefits

$207,600.00 - $311,400.00

The above pay scale reflects the broad, minimum to maximum, pay scale for this job code for the location for which it has been posted. Salary is only one component of total compensation at Qualcomm. We also offer a competitive annual discretionary bonus program and opportunity for annual RSU grants (employees on sales‑incentive plans are not eligible for our annual bonus). In addition, our highly competitive benefits package is designed to support your success at work, at home, and at play. Your recruiter will be happy to discuss all that Qualcomm has to offer – and you can review more details about our US benefits at this link.

Qualcomm is an equal opportunity employer. If you are an individual with a disability and need an accommodation during the application/hiring process, rest assured that Qualcomm is committed to providing an accessible process. You may e‑mail disability‑[e-mail] or call Qualcomm’s toll‑free number found here. Upon request, Qualcomm will provide reasonable accommodations to support individuals with disabilities to be able participate in the hiring process. Qualcomm is also committed to making our workplace accessible for individuals with disabilities. (Keep in mind that this email address is used to provide reasonable accommodations for individuals with disabilities. We will not respond here to requests for updates on applications or resume inquiries).

Qualcomm is an equal opportunity employer; all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, Veteran status, or any other protected classification.

Qualcomm expects its employees to abide by all applicable policies and procedures, including but not limited to security and other requirements regarding protection of Company confidential information and other confidential and/or proprietary information, to the extent those requirements are permissible under applicable law.