Senior Staff Hardware Test Engineer

Palo Alto Networks; Santa Clara (CA); On-site; USD 140,000 - 185,000; Full time

Job summary

Palo Alto Networks is seeking a Senior Test Engineer for their Technical Operations team in the Santa Clara area. You will build advanced test platforms for network device manufacturing and implement test strategies in collaboration with contract manufacturers and internal teams.

The role emphasizes testing excellence, design-for-testability, and leadership in hardware debug and fixture development, with travel up to 10% and strong cross‑functional collaboration across supply chain, product

Qualifications

• 8+ years electronics manufacturing testing experience.
• Experience with PCBA design lifecycle from design review to manufacturing.
• Proficiency with lab equipment (DMM, oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, TDR).
• Experience using PCBA EDA tools (OrCAD, KiCAD, Allegro, Altium).
• Familiar with interfaces such as I2C, SPI, SMBUS, PCIe, USB, memory controllers.
• Strong Linux setup and network configuration for test stations.
• Experience managing vendors and resource planning.
• Excellent troubleshooting skills.

Responsibilities

• Design, develop and implement test strategies for new products across PCBA and system levels.
• Drive DfT and test coverage analyses from early prototype stages with HW/SW teams.
• Support board bring-up, validation and hardware debug guides for CM during NPI and production.
• Lead continuous process improvements to optimize test yields and throughput.
• Collaborate across supply chain, HW/SW engineering and manufacturing.
• Travel domestically up to 10% and communicate clearly with stakeholders.

Skills

Electronics testing

PCBA lifecycle

Lab equipment

Linux environment

Vendor management

Troubleshooting

Test strategy

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

BS/MS in Electronics/Electrical Engineering

Tools

OrCAD

KiCAD

Allegro

Altium Designer

Oscilloscope

DMM

TDR

Jira

Job description

Our Mission

At Palo Alto Networks®, we’re united by a shared mission—to protect our digital way of life. We thrive at the intersection of innovation and impact, solving real-world problems with cutting-edge technology and bold thinking. Here, everyone has a voice, and every idea counts. If you’re ready to do the most meaningful work of your career alongside people who are just as passionate as you are, you’re in the right place.

Our Mission

At Palo Alto Networks®, we’re united by a shared mission—to protect our digital way of life. We thrive at the intersection of innovation and impact, solving real-world problems with cutting‑edge technology and bold thinking. Here, everyone has a voice, and every idea counts. If you’re ready to do the most meaningful work of your career alongside people who are just as passionate as you are, you’re in the right place.

Who We Are

In order to be the cybersecurity partner of choice, we must trailblaze the path and shape the future of our industry. This is something our employees work at each day and is defined by our values: Disruption, Collaboration, Execution, Integrity, and Inclusion. We weave AI into the fabric of everything we do and use it to augment the impact every individual can have. If you are passionate about solving real-world problems and ideating beside the best and the brightest, we invite you to join us!

We believe collaboration thrives in person. That’s why most of our teams work from the office full time, with flexibility when it’s needed. This model supports real‑time problem‑solving, stronger relationships, and the kind of precision that drives great outcomes.

Job Summary

Your Career

At Palo Alto Networks, we build the world’s most advanced cybersecurity platforms. The Technical Operations team is responsible for the manufacturing capabilities to build our next‑generation network firewalls. As a senior test engineer, you will be responsible for building advanced test platforms for network device manufacturing and implementation of test strategies in collaboration with our contract manufacturers and vendors, and work internally across different functional groups, from Supply Chain Operations to Product Development. You are a technical leader in your field, with a deep understanding of underlying architectures of network devices.

Your Impact/Role

• Responsible for ensuring our products ship with the highest quality through extensive and complete testing
• Evaluate and contribute to product designs for test coverage and serviceability by participating in PRD, System Design, Diagnostic, Schematic and Layout Reviews
• Design, develop and implement test strategies for new products, covering structural and functional testing for PCBA and System level
• Drive DfT (Design for Testability) and functional test coverage analyses from early Prototype design stages with HW/SW design engineering
• Participate in Board bring up and validation and creating hardware debug guides and provide debug support to CM from NPI and through Production
• Development of high stress testing platforms, demonstrate understanding of bandwidth loading, environmental and electrical factors on CPU based PCBA architectures
• Manage the development of test fixtures and hardware requirements
• Excellent understanding of electronics manufacturing and service requirements
• Improve CM performance through iterative yield analysis and isolation of key failure manufacturing defects
• Lead failure analysis, drive root cause activities and implement effective fixes across manufacturing and repair facilities of complex electronic components and PCBA
• Drive continuous process improvement strategies to optimize test yields and throughput
• Build and scale manufacturing/service test lines and ensure the smooth operation of the test lines in manufacturing and repair
• Participate in cross‑functional project teams, collaborate with supply chain and HW/SW engineering
• Ability to travel domestically up to 10% of the time
• Excellent communication skills and able to work independently

Qualifications

Required Experience

• 8+ years of electronics manufacturing testing experience
• Experience with PCBA Design Life Cycle from Design Review to Manufacturing
• Experience using common lab equipment such as DMM, Oscilloscopes, Logic Analyzers, TDR, etc.
• Experience with PCBA EDA Tools such as OrCAD, KiCAD, Allegro, Altium Designer, etc.
• Familiar with interfaces like I2C, SPI, SMBUS, PCIe, USB, Memory Controller, etc.
• Experience working in a Linux environment and ability to set up test stations with network configurations.
• Experience with vendor management, performance management and resource planning
• Excellent troubleshooting skills

Preferred Experience

• Experience with ICT and Boundary Scan test (desired)
• BS/MS in Electronics/Electrical Engineering
• Experience with Jira for bug tracking for accurate documentation (desired)
• Experience developing with scripting and programming languages, e.g. Python (desired)
• Knowledge of RF/Wireless technologies and related test systems (desired)

Compensation Disclosure

The compensation offered for this position will depend on qualifications, experience, and work location. For candidates who receive an offer at the posted level, the starting base salary (for non‑sales roles) or base salary + commission target (for sales/com‑missioned roles) is expected to be the annual range listed below. The offered compensation may also include restricted stock units and a bonus. A description of our employee benefits may be found here.

• /yr

Our Commitment

We’re trailblazers that dream big, take risks, and challenge cybersecurity’s status quo. It’s simple: we can’t accomplish our mission without diverse teams innovating, together.

We are committed to providing reasonable accommodations for all qualified individuals with a disability. If you require assistance or accommodation due to a disability or special need, please contact us at [e-mail].

Palo Alto Networks is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity in our workplace, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran status, race, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or other legally protected characteristics.

All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.

Is role eligible for Immigration Sponsorship? No. Please note that we will not sponsor applicants for work visas for this position.