Principal Reliability Engineer

MED Medtronic Inc; Mounds View (MN); On-site; USD 132,000 - 198,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health, Dental and Vision insurance

401(k) plan with employer match

Tuition assistance/reimbursement

Life insurance

Short-term disability

Employee Stock Purchase Plan

Job summary

Medtronic is a global leader in healthcare technology seeking a Principal Reliability Engineer for the Post Market Quality organization. You will provide technical leadership across risk management, post-market surveillance, and FMEA activities to ensure product reliability and patient safety.

The role emphasizes collaboration with design, manufacturing, and quality teams, mentoring junior engineers, and working on-site most days to foster teamwork and project success.

Qualifications

• Requires a Baccalaureate degree in Science, Technology, Engineering, Math or a related technical discipline with a minimum of 7 years of relevant experience.
• Master's degree with a minimum of 5 years relevant experience.
• PhD with 3 years relevant experience.
• Experience in ISO 14971 risk management.
• Strong technical writing and communication skills.
• Proven ability to lead root cause investigations and perform statistical data analysis.

Responsibilities

• Risk Management: Support risk assessments and hazard analyses based on post-market data.
• Lead Health Risk Assessments to determine potential risk and recommend need for Field Corrective Action (FCA).
• Post-Market Surveillance: Monitor product performance in the field, collect and analyze reliability data, and identify trends and potential issues.
• Root Cause Investigation and Failure Analysis: Lead investigations into product failures and complaints, utilizing root cause analysis techniques to determine underlying causes.
• Support complaint trending and investigations of complaint trend excursions or quality signals from the field.
• Design Control: Assess design and risk impacts of changes; generate, review, and approve FMEAs, test method validations, and verification and validation test reports in compliance with medical device design control requirements.
• Continuous Improvement: Collaborate with design, manufacturing, and quality teams to implement design, process or supplier changes, corrective and preventive actions that enhance product reliability.
• Customer Interaction: Provide technical support to customers and field personnel regarding reliability issues and product performance.
• Coaching: Provide technical mentorship and coaching to junior engineers.

Skills

Risk management

Health risk assessments

Post-market surveillance

Root cause investigation

Failure analysis

Statistical data analysis

Technical mentorship

Cross-functional collaboration

Technical writing

Communication skills

Education

Bachelors degree in Science, Technology, Engineering, Math or related

Master's degree

PhD

Job description

We anticipate the application window for this opening will close on - 11 Sep 2026 Careers that change lives start here.

Medtronic is a global leader in healthcare technology with a Mission to alleviate pain, restore health, and extend life. Our 95,000 employees work across more than 150 countries to put patients first — developing innovative medical technologies that improve the lives of 72+ million patients each year. Your unique talents will help shape the future of healthcare while building a career grounded in purpose, growth, and impact.

A Day in the Life

At Medtronic, we push the limits of what technology can do to make tomorrow better than yesterday and that makes it an exciting and rewarding place to work. We value what makes you unique. Be a part of a company that thinks differently to solve problems, make progress, and deliver meaningful innovations. The Cardiac Surgery Operating Unit develops and delivers innovative surgical solutions that enable surgeons to treat complex heart conditions, including coronary artery disease, structural heart disease, and cardiopulmonary support needs.

Role Overview

In this exciting role as a Principal Reliability Engineer supporting the Post Market Quality organization, you will provide technical leadership across all quality aspects of the commercial portfolio, including Health Risk Assessments, Post Market Surveillance, and Risk Management. You will serve as a key partner to cross functional teams, guiding critical quality decisions that protect patients and ensure sustained product performance. At Medtronic, we bring bold ideas forward with speed and decisiveness to put patients first in everything we do. In-person exchanges are invaluable to our work. We are working onsite a minimum of 4 days per week as part of our commitment to fostering a culture of professional growth and cross-functional collaboration as we work together to engineer the extraordinary. This role will require less than 10% of travel to enhance collaboration and ensure successful completion of projects.

Responsibilities

• Risk Management: Support risk assessments and hazard analyses based on post-market data.
• Lead Health Risk Assessments to determine potential risk and recommend need for Field Corrective Action (FCA).
• Post-Market Surveillance: Monitor product performance in the field, collect and analyze reliability data, and identify trends and potential issues.
• Root Cause Investigation and Failure Analysis: Lead investigations into product failures and complaints, utilizing root cause analysis techniques to determine underlying causes.
• Support complaint trending and investigations of complaint trend excursions or quality signals from the field.
• Design Control: Assess design and risk impacts of changes; generate, review, and approve FMEAs, test method validations, and verification and validation test reports in compliance with medical device design control requirements.
• Continuous Improvement: Collaborate with design, manufacturing, and quality teams to implement design, process or supplier changes, corrective and preventive actions that enhance product reliability.
• Customer Interaction: Provide technical support to customers and field personnel regarding reliability issues and product performance.
• Coaching: Provide technical mentorship and coaching to junior engineers.

Nice to Haves – Preferred Qualifications

• Prior experience in the medical device industry across product development, operations, or quality functions.
• Demonstrated expertise in risk management in accordance with ISO 14971.
• Strong technical writing and communication skills, with the ability to clearly explain complex technical topics to non-technical audiences.
• Proven ability to lead root cause investigations, solve complex technical problems, and perform statistical data analysis.

Must Haves – Required Qualifications

• Requires a Baccalaureate degree in Science, Technology, Engineering, Math or a related technical discipline with a minimum of 7 years of relevant experience.
• Master's degree with a minimum of 5 years relevant experience.
• PhD with 3 years relevant experience.
• For Baccalaureate degrees earned outside of the United States, a degree that satisfies the requirements of 8 C.F.R. § 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(A) is required.

Physical Job Requirements

The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by employees assigned to this position, but they are not an exhaustive list of all the required responsibilities and skills of this position. The physical demands described within the Responsibilities section of this job description are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. For Office Roles: While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to be independently mobile. The employee is also required to interact with a computer, and communicate with peers and co-workers. Contact your manager or local HR to understand the Work Conditions and Physical requirements that may be specific to each role.

U.S. Work Authorization & Sponsorship

At Medtronic, we are committed to fostering an environment where employees can thrive and make a meaningful impact. In alignment with our enterprise-wide workforce planning approach, U.S. work authorization sponsorship (H-1B, TN, J, etc.) is offered exclusively for Principal-level roles and above, where specialized expertise aligns with long-term business needs. Roles below the Principal level require candidates to possess unrestricted U.S. work authorization at the time of hire and for the duration of employment.

Benefits & Compensation

Medtronic offers a competitive Salary and flexible Benefits Package A commitment to our employees lives at the core of our values. We recognize their contributions. They share in the success they help to create. We offer a wide range of benefits, resources, and competitive compensation plans designed to support you at every career and life stage. Salary ranges for U.S (excl. PR) locations (USD):$132,000.00 - $198,000.00 This position is eligible for a short-term incentive called the Medtronic Incentive Plan (MIP). The base salary range is applicable across the United States, excluding Puerto Rico and specific locations in California. The offered rate complies with federal and local regulations and may vary based on factors such as experience, certification/education, market conditions, and location. Compensation and benefits information pertain solely to candidates hired within the United States (local market compensation and benefits will apply for others).

The following benefits and additional compensation are available to those regular employees who work 20+ hours per week: Health, Dental and vision insurance, Health Savings Account, Healthcare Flexible Spending Account, Life insurance, Long-term disability leave, Dependent daycare spending account, Tuition assistance/reimbursement, and Simple Steps (global well-being program).

The following benefits and additional compensation are available to all regular employees: Incentive plans, 401(k) plan plus employer contribution and match, Short-term disability, Paid time off, Paid holidays, Employee Stock Purchase Plan, Employee Assistance Program, Non-qualified Retirement Plan Supplement (subject to IRS earning minimums), and Capital Accumulation Plan (available to Vice Presidents and above, or subject to IRS earning minimums). Regular employees are those who are not temporary, such as interns. Temporary employees are eligible for paid sick time, as required under applicable state law, and the Employee Stock Purchase Plan. Please note some of the above benefits may not apply to workers in Puerto Rico. Further details are available at the link below: Medtronic benefits and compensation plans

Equal Employment Opportunity

It is the policy of Medtronic to provide equal employment opportunity (EEO) to all persons regardless of age, color, national origin, citizenship status, physical or mental disability, race, religion, creed, gender, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and/or expression, genetic information, marital status, status with regard to public assistance, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local law. In addition, Medtronic will provide reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals with disabilities.

It is the policy of Medtronic to provide equal employment opportunity (EEO) to all persons regardless of age, color, national origin, citizenship status, physical or mental disability, race, religion, creed, gender, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and/or expression, genetic information, marital status, status with regard to public assistance, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local law. In addition, Medtronic will provide reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals with disabilities.

Contact Information

For updates on job applications, please go to the candidate login page and sign in to check your application status. If you need assistance completing your application please email [e-mail] To request removal of your personal information from our systems please email [e-mail]. For sales reps and other patient facing field employees, going into a healthcare settingis considered an essential function of the job and we expect our employees to comply with all credentialing requirements at the hospitals or clinics they support. This employer participates in the federal E-Verify program to confirm the identity and employment authorization of all newly hired employees. For further information about the E-Verify program, please click here. For updates on job applications, please go to the candidate login page and sign in to check your application status. If you need assistance completing your application please email [e-mail] To request removal of your personal information from our systems please email [e-mail]