Lead Systems Engineer (Remote | $150–$300/hr)

Synthires; United States; Remote; USD 207,000 - 413,000; Part time

Job summary

Synthires is seeking experienced Principal and Lead Systems Engineers to contribute to an AI training initiative focused on complex engineering workflows. This remote contractor role requires leadership across mechanical, electrical, hardware, software, and manufacturing disciplines.

You will translate objectives into clear requirements, coordinate domain experts, and establish measurable verification and validation plans with defined criteria.

Qualifications

• Substantial professional experience as a Principal/Lead Systems Engineer or in a comparable leadership role.
• Proven experience leading complex multi-disciplinary engineering projects.
• Expertise in requirements engineering, interface management, system integration, and verification & validation.
• English proficiency at B2 level or higher; strong technical communication and documentation skills.

Responsibilities

• Design engineering projects across mechanical, electrical, hardware, software, and manufacturing disciplines.
• Translate objectives into structured requirements, constraints, and measurable acceptance criteria.
• Break projects into tasks with defined inputs, deliverables, dependencies, and responsibilities.
• Develop project frameworks with technical scope, milestones, outputs, and coordination requirements.
• Coordinate contributions from multidisciplinary experts to align workstreams across disciplines.
• Manage system-level requirements and interfaces to keep subsystems aligned.
• Identify dependencies, risks, and potential design conflicts.
• Define verification and validation approaches to assess satisfaction of requirements.
• Establish objective evaluation criteria and review technical deliverables for completeness and accuracy.
• Document technical decisions, workflows, and acceptance standards clearly.

Skills

Leadership

Requirements engineering

System integration

Verification & validation

Technical communication

Project management

Education

MS or PhD in Systems Engineering or related field

Tools

MBSE

SysML

Job description

Position: Principal / Lead Systems Engineer

Type: Contractor

Compensation: $150–$300/hour

Location: Remote

About the Opportunity

We are seeking experienced Principal and Lead Systems Engineers to contribute to an AI training initiative focused on complex, real-world engineering workflows.

In this role, you will apply your expertise in multidisciplinary engineering leadership, requirements development, and system integration to design realistic engineering projects and technical tasks. You will translate project objectives into clear requirements, coordinate contributions from domain experts, and establish measurable technical objectives and evaluation criteria.

Key Responsibilities

• Design realistic engineering projects involving multiple technical disciplines, including mechanical, electrical, hardware, software, and manufacturing engineering.
• Translate high-level project objectives into structured engineering requirements, technical constraints, and measurable acceptance criteria.
• Break complex engineering projects into connected tasks with clearly defined inputs, deliverables, dependencies, and expert responsibilities.
• Develop project frameworks that establish technical scope, milestones, expected outputs, and coordination requirements.
• Coordinate contributions from multidisciplinary engineering experts to ensure alignment across technical workstreams.
• Manage system-level requirements and interfaces to maintain consistency between subsystems and engineering disciplines.
• Identify technical dependencies, integration challenges, project risks, and potential design conflicts.
• Define verification and validation approaches to assess whether engineering solutions meet specified requirements.
• Establish objective evaluation criteria and review technical deliverables for completeness, accuracy, and compliance with project requirements.
• Support engineering reviews and recommend improvements to project execution, integration, and validation processes.
• Document technical decisions, requirements, workflows, and acceptance standards clearly and systematically.

Required Qualifications

• Substantial professional experience as a Principal Systems Engineer, Lead Systems Engineer, or in a comparable technical leadership role.
• Proven experience leading complex engineering projects involving multiple technical disciplines.
• Strong expertise in requirements engineering, interface management, system integration, and verification and validation.
• Experience translating project objectives into technical requirements, constraints, and measurable deliverables.
• Ability to coordinate multidisciplinary teams and manage dependencies across engineering workstreams.
• Strong analytical, organizational, and project management skills.
• English proficiency at B2 level or higher.
• Excellent technical communication and documentation skills.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master's degree or PhD in Systems Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or a related field.
• Experience with model-based systems engineering (MBSE), SysML, or requirements management tools.
• Experience leading engineering projects from initial requirements development through system integration, testing, and final delivery.
• Background in aerospace, automotive, robotics, industrial systems, medical devices, or other complex engineering environments.
• Experience developing engineering workflows, technical evaluation frameworks, or structured acceptance criteria.
• Previous involvement in large-scale multidisciplinary engineering programs.