Director, Test Engineering

NetApp; San Jose (CA); Hybrid; USD 196,000 - 293,000; Full time

Job summary

NetApp seeks a Director of Test Engineering to lead its PCBA manufacturing test organization, driving strategy, automation, and quality across NPI and sustaining operations. You will oversee ICT, BST, FVT, and ESS programs, partner with multiple engineering disciplines, and push for continuous process improvement in a global environment.

The role reports to the VP of Ops Engineering, manages a team located in multiple regions, and focuses on improving test coverage, cost, and operational

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or closely related technical discipline.
• Minimum of 15 years in engineering, manufacturing test engineering, product validation, or related technical functions.
• Minimum of 8 years of people leadership experience, including management of managers and technical teams.

Responsibilities

• Define and execute PCBA manufacturing test strategy across ICT, BST, FVT, and ESS.
• Lead manufacturing test development and deployment for all NPI programs and sustaining manufacturing operations.
• Drive continuous improvement of sustaining manufacturing test processes, methodologies, automation, and yields.
• Lead and develop a high-performing engineering organization across multiple geographies.
• Partner with Hardware, Firmware, Software, Manufacturing, Quality, Supplier Quality, and Operations teams to ensure robust test coverage throughout the product lifecycle.
• Establish and monitor KPIs related to test coverage, yield, efficiency, quality escapes, and cycle time.
• Drive root cause investigations and corrective actions for test failures and quality issues.
• Oversee test architecture, hardware, software, automation frameworks, fixtures, and data analysis.
• Lead engagement with contract manufacturers, suppliers, and external partners to ensure global test excellence.
• Promote DFT/DFM/DFQ practices across product development programs.
• Set roadmaps, budgets, staffing plans, and resource strategies; present updates to senior leadership.

Skills

Leadership

Strategic thinking

Analytical skills

Executive communication

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

Bachelor's degree in CS/EE/CE

Master's degree preferred

Tools

PCBA test methodologies

Manufacturing test automation

Data analytics

Job description

Own Every Moment at NetApp

At NetApp, your ideas power innovation. We lead in intelligent data infrastructure—delivering unified storage, integrated data services, and solutions that help organizations unlock the full potential of their data, from AI to multicloud.

Ready to innovate and contribute to our path to $10B? Here, you'll collaborate with passionate teams, tackle real-world challenges, and see your impact in how customers transform and grow. If you're ready to bring curiosity, creativity, and drive to every moment, NetApp is where your journey begins. Join teams that innovate to elevate, drive results, and excel together across every function.

Position Summary

The Director, Test Engineering is responsible for leading NetApp's PCBA Manufacturing Test Engineering organization, ensuring products are designed, validated, and manufactured to meet the highest standards of quality, reliability, manufacturability, and operational efficiency. This position leads the engineering team responsible for In-Circuit Test (ICT), Boundary Scan Test (BST), Functional Verification Test (FVT), and Environmental Stress Screening (ESS) across both New Product Introduction (NPI) programs and sustaining manufacturing operations.

Reporting directly to the VP, Ops Engineering, the Director will drive manufacturing test strategy, execution, automation, quality improvements, factory yield optimization, and continuous process improvement initiatives in partnership with engineering, operations, supply chain, and manufacturing partners worldwide.

The Director leads an organization consisting of one engineering manager and a total team of approximately eleven engineers located in San Jose, CA, Wichita, KS, and Taipei, Taiwan, while driving a portfolio of strategic initiatives focused on improving product quality, manufacturing efficiency, test coverage, cost, and operational excellence.

Key Responsibilities

• Define and execute the company's PCBA manufacturing test strategy across ICT, BST, FVT, and ESS.
• Lead manufacturing test development and deployment for all NPI programs, ensuring test readiness, quality objectives, schedule commitments, and successful production ramps.
• Drive continuous improvement of sustaining manufacturing test processes, methodologies, automation, coverage, efficiency, and factory yields.
• Lead and develop a high-performing engineering organization consisting of managers and individual contributors across multiple geographies.
• Partner closely with Hardware Engineering, Firmware Engineering, Software Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, Quality Engineering, Supplier Quality Engineering, and Operations teams to ensure robust test coverage throughout the product lifecycle.
• Establish and monitor key performance indicators related to test coverage, yield performance, test efficiency, quality escape prevention, first-pass yield, cycle time, and manufacturing readiness.
• Drive root cause investigations and corrective actions for manufacturing test failures, yield excursions, and field quality issues.
• Oversee test architecture, hardware, software, automation frameworks, fixtures, instrumentation, diagnostics, and manufacturing data analysis.
• Lead engagement with contract manufacturers, suppliers, and external engineering partners to ensure global manufacturing test excellence.
• Drive a portfolio of continuous improvement initiatives focused on operational efficiency, quality improvement, manufacturing scalability, cost reduction, and test optimization.
• Champion Design for Testability (DFT), Design for Manufacturability (DFM), and Design for Quality (DFQ) practices across product development programs.
• Establish organizational roadmaps, budgets, staffing plans, and resource strategies aligned with business priorities.
• Prepare and present executive-level updates, metrics, risks, recommendations, and strategic plans to senior leadership.

Leadership Responsibilities

• Provide leadership, coaching, mentoring, and performance management for managers and engineers.
• Build a culture centered on accountability, technical excellence, innovation, collaboration, and continuous improvement.
• Develop succession plans and organizational capability to support future business growth.
• Foster strong cross-functional partnerships and influence decision-making across engineering and operations organizations.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or a closely related technical discipline.
• Minimum of 15 years of experience in engineering, manufacturing test engineering, product validation, or related technical functions.
• Minimum of 8 years of people leadership experience, including management of managers and technical teams.
• Strong expertise in PCBA manufacturing test methodologies, including ICT, BST, FVT, and ESS.
• Experience supporting both New Product Introduction (NPI) programs and sustaining manufacturing operations.
• Demonstrated success driving manufacturing quality, yield improvement, defect reduction, and operational excellence initiatives.
• Experience working with global manufacturing partners, suppliers, contract manufacturers, and cross-functional engineering organizations.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, decision-making, and organizational skills.
• Excellent verbal, written, and executive communication skills.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master's degree in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or a related technical discipline.
• Experience with enterprise storage systems, networking products, server platforms, or other complex electronic systems.
• Experience implementing manufacturing test automation, data analytics, and advanced diagnostic methodologies.
• Proven track record of leading large-scale engineering transformation and continuous improvement initiatives.
• Lean, Six Sigma, or related continuous improvement certification.

What Success Looks Like

• Successful delivery of manufacturing test solutions for all NPI programs.
• Sustained improvements in factory yield, quality, test coverage, efficiency, and cost.
• Execution of strategic test engineering improvement initiatives.
• Strong organizational capability, employee development, and leadership bench strength.
• Effective partnership across engineering, operations, and manufacturing organizations to support business growth and operational excellence.

Compensation

The target salary range for this position is 196,350 - 292,600 USD. The salary offered will be determined by the candidate's location, qualifications, experience, and education and may be outside of this range. The range is based on 'On Target Earnings’ (OTE) representing the total potential earnings, which is the sum of the base salary and potential commission earned when performance targets are achieved. Final compensation packages are competitive and in line with industry standards, reflecting a variety of factors, and include a comprehensive benefits package. This may cover Health Insurance, Life Insurance, Retirement or Pension Plans, Paid Time Off, various Leave options, employee stock purchase plan, and/or restricted stocks (RSU’s). These offerings are subject to regional variations and governed by local laws, regulations, and company policies. We will provide detailed information about the specific benefits for your region during the recruitment process.

At NetApp, we embrace a hybrid working environment designed to strengthen connection, collaboration, and culture for all employees. This means that most roles will have some level of in-office and/or in-person expectations, which will be shared during the recruitment process.

Equal Opportunity Employer

NetApp is firmly committed to Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) and to compliance with all federal, state and local laws that prohibit employment discrimination based on age, race, color, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, religion, disability or genetic information, pregnancy, protected veteran status, and any other protected classification.

Why You’ll Thrive at NetApp

At NetApp, you won't wait for the perfect moment—you'll make it. The early planning, the extra thought, the bold idea that turns good into great: That's how our people operate and how we continue to push the boundaries of data infrastructure.

NetApp is the trusted partner for organizations transforming data into opportunity. As the only enterprise-grade storage service natively embedded in Google Cloud, AWS, and Microsoft Azure, we empower customers to run everything from traditional workloads to enterprise AI with unmatched performance, resilience, and security.

Our culture

We celebrate mold breakers, bold thinkers, and problem solvers. We reward initiative, impact, and ownership. We provide flexibility so you can balance professional ambition with your personal life. Here, differences are not just welcomed—they drive everything we do.

AI Disclosure

For select roles, some stages of our hiring process may use artificial intelligence tools to help evaluate applications and candidate selection. These tools support—rather than replace—human decision-making.