Principle Hardware Engineer

Actalent; United States; Hybrid; USD 73,000 - 121,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental & vision

401(k) Retirement Plan

Life Insurance

Time Off / Leave

Job summary

Actalent is seeking a Principal Hardware Engineer in Newtown, PA for a contract-to-hire role. This senior technical leader will own the design, architecture, development, and full lifecycle of advanced high-speed hardware products, with emphasis on PCIe and Ethernet-based systems.

You will mentor junior engineers, influence cross-functional teams, and drive architecture decisions while delivering robust, high-performance hardware solutions.

Qualifications

• 15+ years of hardware engineering experience.
• Senior technical leadership in hardware architecture and direction.
• Extensive experience in high-speed communications hardware (PCIe, Ethernet).
• Hands-on EMI/EMC design experience.
• Ownership of full product development lifecycle.
• Leadership without formal people management responsibilities.

Responsibilities

• Lead end-to-end design and development of advanced hardware products, focusing on high-speed communications systems (PCIe and Ethernet).
• Own hardware lifecycle from concept to release, including architecture, design, testing, validation, and qualification.
• Define architecture decisions for mixed-signal systems (analog/digital/high-speed interfaces).
• Provide technical leadership and set hardware design direction across projects.
• Mentor junior/mid-level engineers and guide troubleshooting and development processes.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to ensure on-time product delivery.
• Design hardware for high-speed digital systems and address PCIe, Gigabit/10 Gigabit Ethernet challenges.
• Lead EMI/EMC design activities and perform EMC troubleshooting and mitigation.
• Oversee product qualification testing to ensure performance and regulatory compliance.
• Ensure robustness in signal/power integrity, reliability, and manufacturability.
• Drive continuous improvements to existing hardware platforms.

Skills

High-speed design

PCIe & Ethernet

EMI/EMC design

Lifecycle ownership

Mentorship

Job description

Job Title: Principal Hardware Engineer

Job Description

The Principal Hardware Engineer serves as a senior technical leader responsible for the design, architecture, development, and full lifecycle ownership of advanced high-speed hardware products. This role focuses on driving hardware engineering excellence, leading complex product development initiatives, and enhancing existing high-speed communications solutions. The engineer will provide technical leadership and mentorship to junior and mid-level engineers while guiding architecture decisions and influencing cross-functional teams. The position emphasizes deep, hands-on hardware expertise and technical leadership rather than formal people-management responsibilities.

Responsibilities

• Lead the end-to-end design and development of advanced hardware products, with a focus on high-speed communications systems using PCIe and Ethernet-based architectures.
• Own the full hardware product lifecycle from concept and architecture through detailed design, development, qualification testing, validation, and product release.
• Define and drive hardware architecture decisions for complex mixed-signal systems, including analog, digital, and high-speed interfaces.
• Provide technical leadership across projects, setting direction for hardware design approaches and ensuring engineering best practices.
• Mentor junior and mid-level hardware engineers, offering guidance on design methodologies, troubleshooting, and product development processes.
• Influence cross-functional teams by collaborating closely with other engineering disciplines and stakeholders to ensure successful product delivery.
• Design hardware for high-speed digital systems and address the specific design challenges associated with PCIe, Gigabit Ethernet, 10 Gigabit Ethernet, and higher-speed networking architectures.
• Lead EMI and EMC-related product design activities, including designing for EMI compliance, performing EMC troubleshooting, and implementing mitigation strategies.
• Oversee and participate in product qualification testing activities to ensure compliance with performance, reliability, and regulatory requirements.
• Ensure robust hardware designs that meet product requirements for signal integrity, power integrity, reliability, and manufacturability.
• Continuously improve existing hardware platforms by driving enhancements to performance, reliability, and feature sets.
• Serve as a recognized engineering leader within project teams, championing sound technical decisions and high-quality hardware engineering standards.

Essential Skills

• 15+ years of hardware engineering experience, with a strong preference for 1520+ years and multiple complete product development cycles.
• Demonstrated progression into sr technical leadership roles, including leading technical direction and architecture for complex hardware products.
• Extensive experience designing high-speed communications hardware that utilizes PCIe, Gigabit Ethernet, 10 Gigabit Ethernet, and higher-speed networking architectures.
• Deep understanding of the design challenges associated with high-speed digital systems, including signal integrity and timing considerations.
• Proven technical leadership experience, including mentoring junior and mid-level engineers and influencing cross-functional engineering teams.
• Hands-on EMI and EMC product design experience, including designing for EMI compliance, EMC troubleshooting, and mitigation activities.
• Comprehensive full product development lifecycle experience, demonstrating ownership from concept and architecture through design, development, qualification testing, validation, and product release.
• Strong experience in complex hardware development, with direct responsibility and ownership of product-level designs.
• Experience with product qualification testing and compliance activities for hardware products.
• High-speed networking hardware experience, specifically in Ethernet-based products and PCIe-based systems.

Additional Skills & Qualifications

• Mixed-signal design experience, including analog design, digital design, and mixed-signal architectures, expected for principal-level candidates.
• Experience in telecommunications, networking, industrial electronics, or commercial hardware products environments.
• Exposure to embedded software is viewed positively, particularly when combined with strong hardware expertise, although it is not required.
• Familiarity with FPGA technologies is beneficial, provided the primary strength remains in hardware design and product ownership.
• Demonstrated ability to serve as a recognized engineering leader without relying on formal people management authority.
• Track record of successfully guiding multiple hardware products through development, qualification, and release.

Work Environment

The role operates in a professional engineering environment focused on advanced hardware and high-speed communications product development. The Principal Hardware Engineer works closely with cross-functional teams of hardware specialists and other engineering disciplines to deliver complex, Ethernet- and PCIe-based products. The environment emphasizes rigorous product qualification, EMI/EMC compliance, and full lifecycle ownership from concept through release. Work is primarily office and lab-based, involving design activities, hardware bring-up, troubleshooting, and collaboration on product architecture and validation. The culture values deep technical expertise, hands-on problem solving, and mentorship, encouraging experienced engineers to lead by example and elevate overall engineering excellence.

Job Type & Location

This is a Contract to Hire position based out of Newtown, PA.

Pay and Benefits

The pay range for this position is $70.00 - $88.00/hr.

Individual compensation offered for this position within this range will depend on many factors, including qualifications, skills, relevant experience, job knowledge, geographic location, internal equity, and other pertinent job-related factors.

Eligibility requirements apply to some benefits and may depend on your jobclassification and length of employment. Benefits are subject to change and may besubject to specific elections, plan, or program terms. If eligible, the benefitsavailable for this temporary role may include the following:Medical, dental & visionCritical Illness, Accident, and Hospital401(k) Retirement Plan Pre-tax and Roth post-tax contributions availableLife Insurance (Voluntary Life & AD&D for the employee and dependents)Short and long-term disabilityHealth Spending Account (HSA)Transportation benefitsEmployee Assistance ProgramTime Off/Leave (PTO, Vacation or Sick Leave)

Workplace Type

This is a hybrid position in Newtown,PA.

Application Deadline

This position is anticipated to close on Oct 16, 2026.

About Actalent

Actalent is a global leader in engineering and sciences services and talent solutions. We help visionary companies advance their engineering and science initiatives through access to specialized experts who drive scale, innovation and speed to market. With a network of almost 20,000 consultants and 5,000 clients across the U.S., Canada, Asia and Europe, Actalent serves many of the Fortune 500. We are proud to be an Engineering News-Record (ENR) Top 500 Design Firm for our engineering design services and a ClearlyRated Best of Staffing® winner for both client and talent service.

The company is an equal opportunity employer and will consider all applications withoutregard to race, sex, age, color, religion, national origin, veteran status, disability,sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information or any characteristic protectedby law.

If you would like to request a reasonable accommodation, such as the modification oradjustment of the job application process or interviewing process due to a disability,please email [e-mail] for other accommodation options.

San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance:

Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, for all positions located in thecity and county of San Francisco, we will consider for employment qualified applicantswith arrest and conviction records.

Massachusetts Lie Detector:

It is unlawful in Massachusetts to require or administer a lie detector test as acondition of employment or continued employment. An employer who violates this lawshall be subject to criminal penalties and civil liability.

Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI):

We may use Artificial Intelligence (AI) to support parts of our hiring process,including sourcing, screening, and evaluating candidates. AI helps assess applicationsand qualifications, but final decisions are made by our hiring team. By applying, youacknowledge and agree that your application may be reviewed using AI tools.