Manager, Industrial Controls Engineering

Symbotic; Wilmington (MA); Remote; USD 144,000 - 211,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Travel opportunities

Job summary

Symbotic is seeking a Manager, Industrial Controls Engineering to lead and scale a high-performing team responsible for industrial control systems powering our warehouse automation platform. You will champion engineering excellence, resource planning, and cross-functional collaboration across Engineering, Product, Software, Manufacturing, and Customer Operations.

You will oversee PLC/HMI development, deployment, and sustainment, while driving continuous improvement and robust validation

Qualifications

• Requires management experience and a strong track record in leading engineering teams.
• 8+ years total experience with a focus on automation, controls, and industrial systems.
• Experience delivering complex automation projects across hardware and software.
• Experience with Rockwell PLC platforms (ControlLogix/GuardLogix).
• Knowledge of networking, control architectures, and safety standards.
• Experience with HMI platforms (Ignition, FactoryTalk).
• Familiarity with NPI, sustaining engineering, and deployment programs.

Responsibilities

• Lead, coach, and develop a growing team of Industrial Controls Engineers.
• Establish performance plans and competency frameworks for engineers.
• Drive workforce and succession planning and organizational development.
• Ensure delivery of reliable PLC/HMI solutions and maintainable control systems.
• Oversee complex technical initiatives, troubleshooting, and escalations.
• Translate strategy into technical roadmaps and execution plans.
• Support deployment of new control capabilities and feature enhancements.

Skills

Industrial leadership

Industrial automation

PLC programming

HMI development

Rockwell ControlLogix/GuardLogix

Troubleshooting/root-cause analysis

Electrical schematics reading

Cross-functional influence

Education

Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering

Bachelor's degree in Controls Engineering

Bachelor's degree in Mechatronics Engineering

Bachelor's degree in Automation Engineering

Bachelor's degree in Computer Engineering

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science

Tools

Ignition

FactoryTalk ME/SE

Jira

Rockwell Automation hardware

Job description

Who we areWith its A.I.-powered robotic technology platform, Symbotic is changing the way consumer goods move through the supply chain. Intelligent software orchestrates advanced robots in a high-density, end-to-end system – reinventing warehouse automation for increased efficiency, speed and flexibility.What we needSymbotic is seeking for a Manager, Industrial Controls Engineering to join our Industrial Controls team within our Industrial Controls organization. Your job will be to lead and scale the Industrial Controls function responsible for supporting the implementation of industrial control systems that power our automation solutions.This leader is responsible for building and developing a high-performing team of Industrial Controls Engineers supporting customer implementations, sustaining engineering, technology initiatives, and strategic business objectives. The Manager upholds engineering standards, establishes resource planning processes, and ensures the execution model enables the organization to deliver reliable, scalable, and maintainable control systems while supporting continued business growth.The ideal candidate combines strong people leadership, deep industrial automation expertise, and operational excellence with the ability to influence cross-functional stakeholders across Engineering, Product, Software, Manufacturing, Commissioning, and Customer Operations teams.What we doThe Industrial Controls organization develops, deploys, and supports PLC software, HMI applications, electrical hardware, industrial networks, and engineering tools that power our warehouse automation systems.Industrial Controls Engineering serves as the technical foundation for system functionality, reliability, safety, and performance. The team is responsible for supporting product releases and ensuring successful deployment and sustainment of automation solutions across customer sites.The Manager of Industrial Controls Engineering shapes how the organization implements and scales its controls technologies while driving engineering excellence across the project and product lifecycle.What you'll doLead, coach, and develop a growing team of Industrial Controls Engineers supporting development, implementation, and sustaining engineering activities.Establish performance expectations, career development plans, and technical competency frameworks that support both individual growth and organizational needs.Drive workforce planning, recruiting, succession planning, and organizational development initiatives.Foster a culture of accountability, technical excellence, innovation, safety, and continuous improvement.Mentor engineers and technical leaders while promoting knowledge sharing, collaboration, and engineering best practices.Own engineering execution across Industrial Controls implementation and deployment activities.Establish processes that ensure delivery of high-quality, reliable, and maintainable PLC and HMI solutions.Balance engineering resources against business priorities, customer commitments, and strategic objectives.Provide leadership and oversight for complex technical initiatives, troubleshooting efforts, and escalations.Drive technical decision-making while ensuring consistency with established architectures, standards, and product strategies.Support implementation and deployment of new control system capabilities and enhancement of existing platforms.Champion rigorous validation and testing strategies to ensure system performance, reliability, and safety requirements are met.Drive continuous improvement initiatives that increase engineering productivity and reduce development, commissioning, and support efforts.Partner with Industrial Controls leadership to translate organizational strategy into technical roadmaps and execution plans.Identify technical risks, capability gaps, and opportunities for process and platform improvements.Drive initiatives that improve deployment efficiency, operational performance, and customer outcomes.Influence long-term controls architecture and technology direction to support business growth and platform scalability.Partner with Release Management and cross-functional stakeholders to ensure seamless deployment of control system updates.Communicate engineering status, technical risks, and strategic recommendations to Industrial Controls leadership.Build strong relationships with customers and internal partners to understand challenges, gather feedback, and improve solutions.Support critical customer issues and operational escalations when necessary.What you'll needMinimum of 2 years of management experience and 8 years of total work experience.Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Controls Engineering, Mechatronics Engineering, Automation Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or a related technical discipline.Minimum of 8 years of experience programming PLCs, HMIs, drives, and related industrial control technologies and deploying industrial automation and control systems.Minimum of 3 years of people leadership experience managing Controls Engineers or other highly technical engineering teams.Demonstrated success leading complex industrial automation projects involving hardware, software, and integrated system architectures.Advanced experience with Rockwell Automation PLC platforms including ControlLogix and GuardLogix.Experience developing HMI applications using platforms such as Ignition and FactoryTalk ME/SE.Strong knowledge of industrial networking technologies and control system architectures.Strong troubleshooting and root-cause analysis skills for complex automated systems.Ability to read and interpret electrical schematics, control drawings, and system architecture documentation.Proven ability to drive outcomes through influence, collaboration, and technical leadership.Strong communication, organizational leadership, and stakeholder management skills.Experience in warehouse automation, robotics, material handling, or other complex automated systems preferred.Knowledge of power systems, AC/DC drive architectures, and motion control systems preferred.Experience supporting New Product Introduction (NPI), sustaining engineering, and large-scale deployment programs preferred.Experience with Agile development methodologies, Jira, and modern engineering development processes preferred.Experience providing 24/7 customer support preferred.Master's degree in Engineering, Engineering Management, or a related technical discipline preferred.Our EnvironmentUp to 40% of travel may be required. Employees must have a valid driver's license and the ability to drive and/or fly to client locations and company HQ.Employees may be required to use a personal credit card for business travel expenses, which are reimbursed based on the program guidelines. Eligible employees may receive a corporate credit card based on role and travel requirements, but a personal credit card may be needed during onboarding until the corporate card is issued.#LI-JS1#LI-RemoteAbout SymboticSymbotic is an automation technology leader reimagining the supply chain with its end-to-end, AI-powered robotic and software platform. Symbotic reinvents the warehouse as a strategic asset for the world’s largest retail, wholesale, and food & beverage companies. Applying next-gen technology, high-density storage and machine learning to solve today's complex distribution challenges, Symbotic enables companies to move goods with unmatched speed, agility, accuracy and efficiency. As the backbone of commerce the Symbotic platform transforms the flow of goods and the economics of supply chain for its customers. For more information, visit www.symbotic.com.We are a community of innovators, collaborators and pioneers who embrace our differences, because we know unique perspectives make us stronger and smarter. Every perspective matters. We depend on the collective voices of our employees, customers and community to help guide us as we build a better place to work – for you and the world. That’s why we’re proud to be an equal opportunity employer.We do not discriminate based on race, color, ethnicity, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship status, marital status, disability, gender identity, gender expression, veteran status, or genetic information.The base range for this position in the posted location is $144,000.00 - $211,200.00 however, base pay offered may vary depending on job-related knowledge, skills, and experience. The compensation package includes medical, dental, vision, disability, 401K, PTO and/or other benefits.