FAE - Principal Field Applications Engineer (Customer Facing/Design-Win Focused)

Microchip Technology Inc; Austin (TX); On-site; USD 120,000 - 160,000; Full time

Job summary

Microchip Technology Inc is looking for a Principal-level Field Applications Engineer in Austin, Texas. This role requires 10+ years of experience in technical customer-facing roles, ideally involving embedded solutions. The successful candidate will act as a trusted advisor, helping customers with product delivery, support, and new opportunities. Ideal candidates should have a strong background in embedded C/C++, RTOS, and customer engagement. Must excel in both technical architecture and relationship management.

Qualifications

• 10+ years in a customer-facing technical role, such as Field Applications Engineer.
• Proven ability to communicate complex technical concepts clearly.
• Strong experience with embedded system design.
• Build credibility and trust with customer engineering teams.

Responsibilities

• Act as a primary technical interface to customers.
• Proactively identify new opportunities for design wins.
• Translate customer requirements into embedded system architectures.
• Present and iterate on technical solutions with customer teams.

Skills

Embedded C/C++

Microcontrollers and system architecture

RTOS-based firmware development

Serial interfaces (I2C, SPI, UART, USB)

Firmware update and bootloader design

Git-based workflows

Schematic capture

Component selection

Board bring-up and debugging

Proficiency with lab tools (oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, debuggers)

Job description

We are seeking a Principal-level Field Applications Engineer with a rare combination of deep embedded design expertise and extensive customer-facing experience. This role is ideal for someone who has spent 10+ years working directly with customers in a technical capacity—whether in sales engineering, field applications engineering, customer solutions, or technical consulting—and who thrives on owning an embedded solution from first customer conversation through production and long-term support.

This is neither a pure development role nor a pure sales role. You will act as a technical lead, architect, and trusted advisor, helping customers define requirements, win internal buy‑in, and successfully deliver production‑grade embedded software.

Key Responsibilities

• Act as a primary technical interface to customers, owning relationships from initial engagement through product launch.
• Proactively identify new opportunities for design wins by understanding customer roadmaps, pain points, and business drivers.
• Translate customer requirements into complete embedded system architectures.
• Present and iterate on technical solutions with customer engineering and management teams.
• Partner closely with sales to drive design wins to revenue, while independently leading the technical strategy.

Embedded System Architecture & Design

• Architect end‑to‑end embedded solutions, including hardware, firmware, and supporting tools.
• Design production‑level hardware (schematic design, component selection, design for manufacturability).
• Develop production‑level embedded firmware applications in C/C++ for microcontroller‑based systems.
• Implement RTOS‑based designs, bootloaders, firmware update mechanisms, and peripheral drivers.
• Adapt and extend reference designs to meet customer‑specific requirements.

Implementation, Debug & Support

• Own the technical success of customer projects through system bring‑up and debugging.
• Root‑cause analysis of hardware and firmware issues.
• Bug fixes and feature enhancements throughout the product lifecycle.

Support customers post‑design win with:

• Production readiness.
• Sustaining engineering.
• Feature expansion and roadmap alignment.

Requirements / Qualifications

Customer‑Facing Experience (Critical)

• 10+ years in a customer‑facing technical role, such as Field Applications Engineer, Sales Engineer, Customer Solutions Engineer, or Embedded Systems Consultant.
• Proven ability to communicate complex technical concepts clearly to diverse audiences.
• Build credibility and trust with customer engineering teams.
• Balance multiple customer engagements simultaneously.

Embedded Technical Expertise

10+ years of hands‑on embedded system design experience.

• Strong experience with:
  • Embedded C/C++
  • Microcontrollers and system architecture
  • RTOS‑based firmware development
  • Serial interfaces (I2C, SPI, UART, USB, etc.)
  • Firmware update and bootloader design
  • Git‑based workflows
• Hardware design experience including:
  • Schematic capture
  • Component selection
  • Board bring‑up and debugging
• Proficiency with lab tools (oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, debuggers).

Soft Skills & Mindset

• Comfortable operating in ambiguity and defining solutions from incomplete requirements.
• Strong sense of ownership and accountability.
• Self‑directed, proactive, and comfortable working with minimal supervision.
• Enjoys both technical depth and customer interaction.
• Able to prioritize across multiple opportunities while maintaining technical excellence.
• Able to act as a team leader with help drive large designs from concept through production.

Nice‑to‑Have (Differentiators)

• CI/CD for embedded firmware.
• Experience with embedded Linux.
• Secure boot and secure firmware update.
• Networking (wired or wireless).
• Python for automation or tooling.
• Experience supporting products through volume production.

Travel Time

0% – 25%

Physical Attributes

Hearing, Seeing, Talking, Works Alone, Works Around Others

Physical Requirements

90% Sitting, 10% Standing/Walking

Equal Employment Opportunity

Microchip Technology Inc. is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, race, color, religion, national origin, disability, protected Veteran status, age, or any other characteristic protected by law.

For more information on applicable equal employment regulations, please refer to the Know Your Rights: Workplace Discrimination is Illegal Poster.