Technical Project Lead

Seek Thermal; Santa Barbara (CA); On-site; USD 120,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

Seek Thermal in Santa Barbara, CA is seeking a Technical Project Lead to own the technical critical path of new-product programs, guiding design decisions, verifications, and trade-offs across electrical, mechanical, software/firmware, optics, and systems to bring LWIR thermal imaging products from concept to production.

You will coordinate embedded hardware/software programs, ensure design outputs are complete for gates, drive risk mitigation, and represent engineering in supplier engagements

Qualifications

• Hands-on embedded systems depth with independent technical judgment.
• Experience with phase-gate development and PRD/requirements management.
• Familiarity with DV/PV verification and 8D problem-solving processes.
• Proven cross-functional coordination and clear communication across teams.

Responsibilities

• Own the technical critical path of NPD programs through gates and manage the tasks that keep the multidisciplinary team focused.
• Ensure design outputs and review materials are complete and defensible at every gate; provide readiness signals for sign-off.
• Make and document technical trade-offs (e.g., image quality, runtime, cost, architecture) with cross-functional approval.
• Identify early technical risks and drive mitigation across the program.
• Assign engineering tasks, drive status updates, and own design documentation and approvals per design-control process.
• Drive root-cause and corrective actions (8D) for sensor, manufacturing, or integration issues.
• Ensure PRD requirements are testable and verification is defined before design gates; mitigate integration risks early.
• Provide technical deliverables (SOWs, specs) for supplier engagements and represent engineering to customers and leadership.

Skills

Embedded systems depth

Phase-gate development

PRD/requirements management

DV/PV verification

8D problem solving

Cross-functional coordination

Effective communicator

Education

Bachelor's or Master's in Electrical Engineering or related

Tools

Jira

SmartSheets

Job description

Technical Project Lead

Seek Thermal Santa Barbara, California, United States

About this position

As a Technical Project Lead (TPL) at Seek Thermal, you will own the technical critical path of one or more new-product programs—the chain of design decisions, integrations, and verifications that determines whether the product works and ships. You will be accountable for design outputs, design reviews, and technical trade-offs—working alongside program management while coordinating engineering across electrical, mechanical, software/firmware, optics, and systems to bring LWIR thermal imaging products from concept through production. The Technical Project Lead will report directly to the SVP of Engineering.

This is not a remote Position

Responsibilities

• The Technical Project Lead will own the technical critical path of new product development (NPD) programs through phase gates (concept through DV, PV, and production release)—know at all times which technical task gates the program, and keep the multidisciplinary team focused on it.
• Ensure design outputs and design-review materials are complete and defensible at every gate, and provide the technical readiness signal for gate sign-off.
• Make and document technical trade-offs (e.g., image quality, runtime, cost, architecture), with cross-functional approval for scope and design changes.
• Identify technical risks early, assess their critical-path impact, and drive mitigation of technical exposure across the program.
• Assign engineering tasks, drive technical status at program meetings in step with program management, and own design documentation and approvals per Seek’s design-control process.
• Drive root-cause and corrective action (8D) when sensor, manufacturing, or integration failures threaten a milestone
• Ensure PRD requirements are testable and verification is defined before design gates; pull hardware/software integration risks off the critical path early.
• Provide technical deliverables (SOWs, specifications) for supplier engagements and represent engineering with customers, change control boards, and leadership.

Skills knowledge and abilities

• The Technical Project Lead should possess hands‑on embedded systems depth (e.g., RTOS debugging, multicore SoC/MPSoC platforms, I2C/SPI, MIPI CSI, hardware/software co-design) with independent technical judgment.
• Experience developing products under structured quality and development processes (e.g., functional safety, ASPICE, ISO 9001, or similar) within formal design controls.
• Fluency with phase-gate development, PRD/requirements management, DV/PV verification, 8D, RASIC, and planning tools (Jira, SmartSheets).
• Proven technical coordinator of distributed cross‑functional teams and a clear communicator—holds a technical position, escalates cleanly, and commits once decided.
• Preferred: thermal/IR imaging (FPA/ROIC, NUC/AGC, LWIR optics), automotive qualification, semiconductor packaging/yield analysis, Agile/Scrum leadership.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Software Engineering, Mechatronics, Physics, Optical Engineering, or related field.
• 5+ years of engineering experience, including 2+ years owning the technical critical path of embedded hardware/software programs, with at least one shipped sensing or electro‑optical product taken through production.
• Must be a U.S. Person (U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident, or protected individual) as required by ITAR/EAR export control regulations.