Embedded Firmware Engineer

Express Employment Professionals - Cincinnati East; Fremont (CA); On-site; USD 100,000 - 140,000; Full time

Job summary

Express Employment Professionals - Cincinnati East is seeking an Embedded Firmware Engineer to join a small, highly collaborative team developing sophisticated electro/mechanical products. You will work across embedded firmware, hardware, system-level troubleshooting, and architecture, contributing to product development from concept to production.

The role emphasizes ownership, variety, and the ability to grow beyond a single specialty.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or a related technical discipline.
• Professional experience developing embedded firmware for hardware products.
• Strong understanding of embedded systems and hardware/firmware interaction.
• Experience with microcontrollers, peripherals, sensors, communications interfaces, and embedded systems.
• Experience with hardware architecture, electrical schematics, board-level design, or hardware/firmware integration.
• Ability to read and understand electrical schematics and hardware specifications.
• Experience debugging embedded systems using oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, debuggers, or similar equipment.
• Strong programming skills in C/C++ or comparable embedded languages.
• Ability and desire to influence hardware design based on firmware and system requirements.
• Willingness to work across disciplines and take on responsibilities outside a traditional job description.
• Curiosity and interest in expanding into broader software and system architecture.
• Strong problem-solving skills and a hands-on approach.

Responsibilities

• Develop, debug, test, and maintain embedded firmware for sophisticated instrumentation and sensing products.
• Work across the boundary between hardware and firmware, understanding how each influences the other.
• Participate in hardware architecture and design decisions and provide a firmware/software perspective.
• Develop low-level firmware that interfaces directly with microcontrollers, sensors, peripherals, and communications interfaces.
• Troubleshoot issues across the hardware, firmware, and system—not just within the software.
• Read schematics, work with boards and test equipment, and get close to the hardware to understand what's really happening.
• Collaborate with electrical, mechanical, software, and product‑development team members.
• Contribute to product development from concept through development, testing, production, and sustaining engineering.
• Help establish and improve firmware development practices, architecture, testing, and documentation.
• Take on projects and technical challenges outside your primary area of expertise when the needs of the team require it.
• Grow into broader software development, system architecture, and technical leadership responsibilities.
• Help influence the technical direction and architecture of future products.

Skills

Embedded firmware

C/C++

Hardware interaction

Microcontrollers

System-level troubleshooting

Team collaboration

Education

Bachelor's degree in Electrical Eng./CS/related

Tools

Oscilloscopes

Logic analyzers

Debuggers

Job description

We are seeking an Embedded Firmware Engineer to join a small, highly collaborative engineering team developing sophisticated electro/mechanical products. This is not a narrow firmware role. In a small team, everyone wears multiple hats, and we're looking for an engineer who is comfortable moving between embedded firmware, hardware, system‑level troubleshooting, product development, and architecture.

In this role you will work on products where hardware, firmware, software, sensors, and systems all have to work together. You won't simply be handed a defined piece of the product and asked to maintain it. You'll have the opportunity to understand the whole system, contribute across disciplines, and help shape the next generation of technology

You’ll work close to the hardware, contribute to hardware architecture and design decisions, develop embedded firmware, troubleshoot problems at the board and system level, and help shape the technology direction of future products. If you enjoy variety, ownership, and figuring things out—and you’re excited by the opportunity to grow beyond your current specialty—this could be a great fit.

What You’ll Do

• Develop, debug, test, and maintain embedded firmware for sophisticated instrumentation and sensing products.
• Work across the boundary between hardware and firmware, understanding how each influences the other.
• Participate in hardware architecture and design decisions and provide a firmware/software perspective.
• Develop low-level firmware that interfaces directly with microcontrollers, sensors, peripherals, and communications interfaces.
• Troubleshoot issues across the hardware, firmware, and system—not just within the software.
• Read schematics, work with boards and test equipment, and get close to the hardware to understand what's really happening.
• Collaborate with electrical, mechanical, software, and product‑development team members.
• Contribute to product development from concept through development, testing, production, and sustaining engineering.
• Help establish and improve firmware development practices, architecture, testing, and documentation.
• Take on projects and technical challenges outside your primary area of expertise when the needs of the team require it.
• Grow into broader software development, system architecture, and technical leadership responsibilities.
• Help influence the technical direction and architecture of future products.

A Small Team. A Big Scope.
This role is intentionally broad. You'll be part of a small engineering team, which means there aren't separate specialists for every discipline or a rigid handoff between teams. You'll need to be comfortable jumping between priorities, learning new things, and taking ownership wherever your expertise can make a difference.

One day you may be deep in embedded firmware. The next, you could be troubleshooting a board, working with an electrical engineer on a hardware design, investigating a system‑level issue, or helping determine how a future product should be architected. We're looking for someone who likes that. The ideal candidate is technically curious, adaptable, hands‑on, and comfortable saying, “I haven't done that yet, but I'll figure it out.”

What We’re Looking For

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or a related technical discipline.
• Professional experience developing embedded firmware for hardware products.
• Strong understanding of embedded systems and hardware/firmware interaction.
• Experience with microcontrollers, peripherals, sensors, communications interfaces, and embedded systems.
• Experience with hardware architecture, electrical schematics, board‑level design, or hardware/firmware integration.
• Ability to read and understand electrical schematics and hardware specifications.
• Experience debugging embedded systems using oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, debuggers, or similar equipment.
• Strong programming skills in C/C++ or comparable embedded languages.
• Ability and desire to influence hardware design based on firmware and system requirements.
• Willingness to work across disciplines and take on responsibilities outside a traditional job description.
• Curiosity and interest in expanding into broader software and system architecture.
• Strong problem‑solving skills and a hands‑on approach.