Lead Electrical Engineer – Hardware Design
📍 Location: Cincinnati, Ohio
🏢 Work Arrangement: Onsite
💼 Employment Type: Full-Time, Permanent
🕒 Schedule: 4/10 – Four 10-Hour Days Per Week
🛡️ Security Clearance: Active Clearance Not Required; Ability to Obtain a Secret Clearance Required
✈️ Travel: Occasional
🚚 Relocation Assistance: May Be Considered for an Exceptional Candidate
🚫 Visa Sponsorship: Not Available
👥 People Management: Not Required
Design Mission-Critical Electronics for Extreme Environments
A leading aerospace and defense organization is seeking a Lead Electrical Engineer – Hardware Design to lead the design, development, testing and qualification of ruggedized electronic systems for advanced ordnance applications.
This is a hands-on senior technical leadership position operating in a fast-paced product-development environment. The successful candidate will combine strong analog, digital and power-electronics design capabilities with technical project leadership, structured problem-solving and the ability to guide products from requirements definition through design, qualification and production support.
The role requires someone capable of working independently with minimal supervision while also collaborating across multidisciplinary engineering teams. The Lead Electrical Engineer will manage several technical priorities simultaneously, mentor other engineers and serve as a primary technical interface with internal and external customers.
Key Responsibilities
Analog and Digital Hardware Design
Design analog and digital circuitry for ruggedized aerospace and defense electronics.
Develop circuits using analog building blocks such as:
Differential amplifiers
Operational amplifiers
Low-dropout regulators
Analog filters
Data converters
Signal-conditioning circuits
Design with digital building blocks such as logic gates, flip-flops, timers and related components.
Develop power-conversion and power-conditioning solutions involving:
AC/DC conversion
DC/DC conversion
DC/AC conversion
Linear power supplies
Switching power supplies
Apply sound engineering practices for EMI suppression, ESD protection and short-circuit protection.
Support component selection, design trade studies and hardware architecture decisions.
Ensure designs can perform reliably in demanding vibration, shock, temperature and humidity conditions.
Circuit Analysis and Verification
Perform circuit-tolerance analyses using hand calculations and SPICE-based simulation tools.
Evaluate component tolerances, environmental effects and worst-case operating conditions.
Define verification methods and acceptance criteria for electrical performance.
Analyse test data and determine whether hardware meets requirements.
Identify technical risks early and develop appropriate mitigation strategies.
Document analysis methods, assumptions, results and engineering recommendations.
Requirements and Compliance
Develop, refine and manage electrical and hardware requirements.
Translate customer and system-level requirements into implementable hardware designs.
Maintain traceability between requirements, design outputs and verification activities.
Assess technical compliance throughout the development lifecycle.
Support internal and customer reviews of requirements and compliance evidence.
Ensure design decisions and changes are appropriately documented.
Testing and Qualification
Develop comprehensive test plans, procedures and reports covering:
Brassboard testing
Design verification
Environmental qualification
Product-performance testing
Firing-properties testing
Failure investigation and corrective-action verification
Lead and direct laboratory and field-test activities throughout the product-development lifecycle.
Coordinate testing with systems, mechanical, manufacturing, quality and test-engineering teams.
Troubleshoot hardware using oscilloscopes, function generators, digital multimeters and other standard laboratory equipment.
Review test results, investigate anomalies and recommend corrective actions.
Ensure testing is appropriately controlled, repeatable and thoroughly documented.
Technical Project Leadership
Lead large-scale technical projects from initial concept through completion with minimal supervision.
Coordinate technical activities across multiple engineering disciplines.
Manage several projects and priorities simultaneously.
Establish technical plans, milestones, risks and resource requirements.
Track engineering progress and communicate concerns before they affect cost, schedule or performance.
Provide technical direction without requiring formal people-management authority.
Make well-supported engineering decisions in a dynamic environment with changing customer priorities.
Design Reviews and Customer Interface
Prepare materials for and lead formal design reviews throughout the product-development lifecycle.
Present technical designs, analyses, risks, verification results and recommendations.
Serve as a primary technical interface for internal stakeholders and external customers.
Respond clearly and professionally to technical questions and design concerns.
Coordinate the resolution of review actions and technical issues.
Support final technical presentations and customer acceptance activities.
Failure Investigation and Root-Cause Analysis
Lead investigations into hardware failures, nonconformances and test anomalies.
Apply structured problem-solving tools such as:
8D
Fishbone diagrams
Cause-and-effect analysis
Fault isolation
Corrective and preventive action methodologies
Reproduce failures, analyse evidence and identify defensible root causes.
Develop, implement and verify effective corrective actions.
Communicate investigation findings to engineering teams, customers and leadership.
Capture lessons learned and incorporate improvements into future designs.
Engineering Documentation and Change Control
Develop clear and accurate technical documentation, including:
Test plans
Test reports
Engineering drawings
Design analyses
Requirements and compliance documentation
Design-review materials
Failure-investigation reports
Create and process Engineering Orders and Engineering Change Proposals.
Support configuration management and formal change-control activities.
Maintain appropriate documentation throughout the product lifecycle.
Ensure technical records meet internal, contractual and regulatory expectations.
Proposal and Team Support
Provide material, labour and technical estimates for Requests for Proposals.
Contribute to technical approaches, schedules, risks and assumptions.
Support programme planning and new-business activities.
Mentor electrical engineers and support their technical development.
Promote effective collaboration, engineering discipline and knowledge sharing.
Required Qualifications
Candidates must meet one of the following education and experience combinations:
Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering or a related technical discipline with at least nine years of relevant experience.
Graduate degree in Electrical Engineering or a related discipline with at least seven years of relevant experience.
At least 13 years of directly relevant professional experience in place of a degree.
Additional required experience includes:
At least five years of experience designing with basic analog building blocks, including differential amplifiers, operational amplifiers, LDOs, filters and data converters.
At least five years of experience designing with digital building blocks, including logic gates, flip-flops and timers.
At least four years of experience with power-conversion concepts, including AC/DC, DC/DC, DC/AC, linear and switching supplies.
At least five years of experience troubleshooting electronic hardware using standard laboratory equipment.
At least four years of experience with schematic-capture or PCB-layout tools such as Altium or PADS.
At least four years of experience leading a large-scale technical project from beginning to completion with minimal guidance.
At least four years of experience preparing for and participating in internal or external design reviews.
At least four years of experience producing formal technical documentation such as test plans, test reports and engineering drawings.
Strong written and verbal communication skills.
Ability to work both independently and within a multidisciplinary team.
Ability to manage several technical priorities simultaneously.
Ability to meet all eligibility requirements for a US Secret security clearance.
Current authorization to work in the United States without employer sponsorship.
An active security clearance is not required at the time of application.
Preferred Qualifications
Experience designing ruggedized electronics for aerospace, defense or ordnance applications.
At least four years of experience working with:
Temperature sensors
MEMS accelerometers
Differential-pressure sensors
Gyroscopes
At least five years of experience with serial communication interfaces such as UART, SPI and I²C.
At least five years of structured root-cause analysis experience.
Experience applying design practices for EMI suppression, ESD protection and short-circuit protection.
At least five years of power-supply and power-conditioning design experience.
Experience designing electronic systems for extreme vibration, shock, temperature and humidity environments.
Experience with energetic-material interfaces and associated testing.
Experience supporting firing-device interfaces, including exploding-foil and low-energy exploding-foil initiators.
Experience working with lead charges, boosters or related energetic components.
Safety and Arming Systems Experience
Highly desirable experience includes:
Designing Electronic Safety and Arming Devices or Ignition Safety Devices.
Applying MIL-STD-1316 and MIL-STD-1901A.
Developing ESAD, ESAF or ISD solutions for defense applications.
Presenting safety-device designs to formal review boards such as:
Air Force Safety Review Board
Fuze and Ignition System Technical Review Panel
Navy Nuclear Weapons System Safety Board
Supporting qualification, compliance and safety-review activities for ordnance electronics.
The Ideal Candidate
The strongest candidate will be able to demonstrate:
End-to-end ownership of complex electrical hardware designs.
Strong analog, digital and power-electronics expertise.
Hands-on circuit analysis, laboratory testing and troubleshooting capabilities.
Experience designing electronics for harsh or extreme environments.
Leadership of multidisciplinary technical projects from concept through qualification.
Confidence leading formal internal and customer design reviews.
Structured investigation and resolution of difficult hardware failures.
Strong technical writing and documentation skills.
Experience mentoring engineers without requiring formal supervisory authority.
The ability to communicate effectively with engineering teams, programme leadership and customers.
Flexibility to respond to changing technical and programme priorities.
Work Environment and Benefits
The position operates within a fast-paced aerospace and defense engineering environment and requires close collaboration across electrical, mechanical, systems, test, manufacturing, quality and programme teams.
Employees work a 4/10 schedule, completing four 10-hour shifts each week. The organization offers a comprehensive benefits package and may consider relocation support for an exceptional candidate.
Equal Opportunity
The organization is an Equal Opportunity Employer and considers qualified applicants without discrimination based on any status protected under applicable federal, state or local law.