Hardware Engineering Manager

Atom Computing; Boulder (CO); On-site; USD 180,000 - 220,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental, vision coverage

Unlimited PTO

401K with company match

Disability insurance

Flexible Spending Account

Dependent care benefits

Life insurance

Daily meals and snacks

Job summary

Atom Computing in Boulder, CO is seeking a Hardware Engineering Manager to lead control systems hardware development from board design through fabrication and integration into instruments.

You will manage a team of hardware engineers, partner with fabrication houses, drive vendor performance, root-cause investigations, and ensure quality standards across the build process; reports to the VP of Control Systems & Software.

Qualifications

• BS, MS, or PhD in Electrical Engineering or Computer Engineering.
• 10+ years of hands-on hardware engineering experience with PCB fabrication and contract electronics assembly.
• 2+ years of people management including hiring and performance reviews.

Responsibilities

• Lead hardware engineers through PCB design, bring-up, and test of control system instruments.
• Manage PCB fab and contract assembly vendors to hit quality and delivery targets.
• Drive root-cause investigations and corrective actions for prototype defects.
• Own hardware roadmap and subsystem delivery for commercial and research projects.
• Collaborate on DFx input to catch manufacturability issues early.
• Partner with physicists and engineers to translate use cases into hardware.

Skills

Leadership

Team mentoring

Vendor management

Design-for-manufacturability

Root-cause analysis

Education

BS/MS/PhD in Electrical or Computer Engineering

Tools

PCB fabrication

Contract electronics assembly

Job description

At Atom Computing, we build quantum computers using arrays of optically trapped neutral atoms that will empower customers to achieve unprecedented computational breakthroughs. Join a world-class team of scientists, engineers, and business professionals to advance the state-of-the-art in quantum computing.

We are seeking a Hardware Engineering Manager to lead the development of control systems hardware from board design through fabrication, assembly, bring-up, and integration into working instruments. This role combines people leadership with deep technical expertise in PCB fabrication and assembly, including a strong understanding of manufacturing capabilities, common failure modes, and design-for-manufacturability considerations.

In this role, you will lead engineers responsible for hardware design and bring-up while serving as a key partner to fabrication houses and contract manufacturers. Success means translating engineering designs into reliable, high-quality hardware — driving vendor performance, troubleshooting manufacturing issues, and maintaining strong quality standards throughout the build process.

This position reports to the VP of Control Systems & Software.

Responsibilities

• Lead and mentor a team of hardware engineers responsible for PCB design, bring-up, and test of quantum control system instruments.
• Build and drive strong relationships with PCB fabrication and contract assembly vendors including managing quoting and lead times, and partnering to consistently hit quality and delivery targets.
• Lead root-cause investigation and corrective action when prototype boards come back with defects.
• Manage the product roadmap and subsystem delivery schedules for both commercial and research projects.
• Partner with design and test engineers on Design for Manufacturability (DFM) input during the design phase, catching manufacturability issues before a board ever reaches a vendor.
• Work closely with Atom Computing's quantum physicists, optical engineers, and hardware engineers to understand use cases and deliver hardware that addresses their needs.

Experience & Education

• BS, MS, or PhD in Electrical Engineering or Computer Engineering
• 10+ years of experience as a hardware engineer, including significant hands-on work with PCB fabrication and contract electronics assembly vendors specifically.
• 2+ years managing a team of engineers, including hiring, coaching, and performance management.

Required Qualifications

• Demonstrated ability to lead a team delivering complex hardware projects from design through manufacturing.
• Deep working knowledge of PCB fabrication and assembly processes, capabilities, and common failure modes.
• Comfort working in a low-to-mid-volume, high-complexity build environment with applications to precision instruments, aerospace, photonics, or similar.
• Demonstrated experience with root-cause and corrective-action processes for hardware quality issues.

Preferred Qualifications

• Existing relationships with PCB fab houses or contract assembly shops in the Boulder area.
• Analog electronics design experience.
• RF electronics / software-defined radio experience.

$180,000 - $220,000 a year

Atom Computing provides a wide variety of perks and benefits, including

• fully paid medical, dental, and vision insurance for our employees and their dependents
• unlimited paid time off
• 401K company matching
• short- and long-term disability
• FSA
• dependent care benefits
• life insurance
• drinks, snacks, and catered team lunches in our offices, every day!

The base salary range for this position is between $180,000 - $220,000 annually, commensurate with experience. In addition to salary, we offer an annual bonus and equity in the company.