Senior Electrical Engineer, Satellite Hardware & Bring-Up

GCS Recruitment; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 140,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

GCS Recruitment is seeking a hands-on Electrical Engineer to thrive in the lab, solving problems where failure isn't an option, working on advanced satellite communication hardware built around custom silicon and high-speed digital architectures.

You will transform newly manufactured boards into flight-ready hardware through bring-up, validation, root-cause analysis and relentless debugging, tackling issues from boards that won’t boot to power rail quirks.

Qualifications

• 8+ years of hardware-focused engineering experience.
• Design and debugging of complex PCBs.
• Bring-up, validation and root-cause analysis expertise.
• Familiarity with DDR, PCIe, JESD204, 25G Ethernet and SerDes-based architectures.
• Hands-on use of high-speed test equipment.

Responsibilities

• Lead first-time bring-up of complex satellite electronics and high-performance digital hardware.
• Power-on, debug and validate newly fabricated boards.
• Investigate and resolve electrical, signal integrity, power integrity, and system-level issues.
• Execute validation plans covering functionality, performance, reliability, and high-speed interfaces.
• Drive hardware improvements by partnering with design engineers on future revisions.
• Support integration and test activities across multidisciplinary engineering teams.
• Deliver thoroughly validated hardware ready for downstream system and antenna testing.
• Influence next-generation designs through hands-on engineering feedback.

Skills

Hardware bring-up

PCB debugging

Signal integrity

Power integrity

SerDes architectures

Oscilloscopes

Logic analyzers

Protocol analyzers

25G Ethernet

Tools

High‑speed test equipment

Lab automation (Python)

Job description

We're looking for a hands-on Electrical Engineer who thrives in the lab and enjoys solving problems where failure isn't an option.

This is an opportunity to work on advanced satellite communication hardware built around custom silicon, high-speed digital architectures, and complex phased-array systems. You'll be responsible for transforming newly manufactured boards into flight-ready hardware through bring-up, validation, root-cause analysis, and relentless debugging.

If you're the engineer who gets called when a board won't boot, a high-speed link won't train, or a power rail doesn't behave as expected, we want to talk to you.

What You'll Own

• Lead first-time bring-up of complex satellite electronics and high-performance digital hardware.
• Power-on, debug, and validate newly fabricated boards.
• Investigate and resolve electrical, signal integrity, power integrity, and system-level issues.
• Execute validation plans covering functionality, performance, reliability, and high-speed interfaces.
• Drive hardware improvements by partnering directly with design engineers on future revisions.
• Support integration and test activities across multidisciplinary engineering teams.
• Deliver thoroughly validated hardware ready for downstream system and antenna testing.
• Influence next-generation designs through hands-on engineering feedback.

The Hardware

You'll work with:

• Dense multilayer PCB designs
• Custom ASIC-based platforms
• High-speed serial interfaces
• Advanced communication systems
• Large-scale phased-array electronics
• Multi-gigabit networking architectures
• Mission-critical hardware operating in demanding environments

What We're Looking For

Required

• 8+ years of hardware-focused Electrical Engineering experience.
• Demonstrated experience designing and debugging complex PCBs.
• Strong expertise in board bring-up, validation, and root-cause analysis.
• Deep familiarity with:
  • DDR
  • PCIe
  • JESD204
  • Ethernet (25G+)
  • SerDes-based architectures
• Extensive hands-on use of:
  • Oscilloscopes
  • Logic analyzers
  • Protocol analyzers
  • High-speed test equipment
• Experience supporting products from concept through manufacturing.

Preferred

• Satellite, spacecraft, launch vehicle, aerospace, defense, or other mission-critical hardware experience.
• Phased-array, radar, communications, or RF systems exposure.
• ASIC, SoC, or FPGA-based hardware platforms.
• Python-based lab automation.
• Experience working in fast-paced development environments where hardware ships quickly and ownership is expected.

Ideal Backgrounds

We'd especially love to hear from engineers who have worked on:

• Satellite systems
• Broadband space networks
• Spacecraft avionics
• Launch vehicle electronics
• Flight hardware
• Defense communications systems
• Advanced networking hardware
• High-performance computing platforms

GCS is acting as an Employment Business in relation to this vacancy.