Build the Software Foundation Behind Autonomous Systems

Leidos is seeking a Firmware Systems Manager to lead and develop a team of engineers building the low-level software that connects sensors, hardware, and mission software across autonomous maritime systems.

This is a hands-on engineering leadership role for someone with a strong background in embedded software or firmware who is ready to take on broader responsibility for people, engineering process, and technical execution. The successful candidate does not need to be the most senior firmware expert in the room, but should understand how disciplined software engineering practices translate into reliable embedded systems.

You will work closely with software, hardware, systems engineering, integration, and program teams to ensure firmware is developed, reviewed, tested, controlled, integrated, and released using sound engineering practices.

Responsibilities

Firmware & Software Engineering Leadership

• Provide technical guidance and day-to-day leadership for engineers developing bare-metal and low-level embedded software.
• Support development of firmware architectures, interfaces, drivers, and hardware/software integration approaches.
• Maintain a working understanding of microcontroller-based systems, real-time behavior, hardware interfaces, and embedded C/C++ development.
• Participate in and facilitate software and firmware design reviews and technical peer reviews.
• Help engineers investigate and resolve complex hardware/software integration issues.
• Promote maintainable, testable, and well-documented firmware designs.

Software Development Process

• Establish and reinforce disciplined software development practices across firmware efforts.
• Ensure effective use of source control, branching strategies, configuration management, and controlled software releases.
• Promote effective peer review and pull-request workflows, including appropriate review of design and implementation changes.
• Support development and improvement of CI/CD pipelines, automated builds, static analysis, unit testing, and other automated quality checks.
• Promote appropriate use of Software-in-the-Loop (SIL), Hardware-in-the-Loop (HIL), bench testing, and automated integration testing.
• Ensure firmware baselines, dependencies, build environments, and released artifacts are reproducible and appropriately controlled.
• Work with engineering teams to continuously improve development, integration, verification, and release processes.

People & Team Leadership

• Directly manage and develop firmware and embedded software engineers.
• Conduct regular one-on-one meetings, coaching, performance discussions, and career development activities.
• Help engineers grow both technically and professionally while building greater ownership and independence.
• Participate in hiring, onboarding, staffing, and development of the firmware team.
• Foster a collaborative engineering culture built around accountability, technical rigor, continuous learning, and constructive peer review.
• Report to the division-level Software/Firmware Engineering Manager.

Program & Cross-Functional Execution

• Work closely with Software Engineering, Systems Engineering, Hardware Engineering, Integration & Test, and Program Management.
• Help translate system and hardware requirements into executable firmware development activities.
• Coordinate firmware development and integration activities across projects.
• Identify technical, process, schedule, and integration risks and work with engineering teams to resolve them.
• Support technical reviews, integration events, demonstrations, and customer deliverables.

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, Software Engineering, or a related technical discipline.
• 5+ years of experience developing embedded software, firmware, or closely related software systems.
• Experience providing technical leadership, mentoring engineers, leading small teams, or coordinating engineering activities.
• Proficiency with C/C++ and familiarity with embedded software development.
• Experience working with microcontrollers, hardware interfaces, peripherals, drivers, or similar low-level systems.
• Working knowledge of modern software engineering practices including:
  • Git or comparable source-control systems
  • Configuration management and software release practices
  • Peer review / pull-request workflows
  • Continuous Integration / Continuous Delivery (CI/CD)
  • Automated build and test environments
  • Unit, integration, SIL, and/or HIL testing
  • Software design and technical reviews
• Experience debugging software and hardware/software integration problems.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. Government SECRET security clearance.

Preferred Qualifications

• Prior experience as an engineering lead, technical lead, team lead, or first-line manager.
• Experience developing embedded software for autonomous systems, robotics, maritime systems, or other complex electromechanical platforms.
• Experience with STM32 or similar microcontroller families.
• Familiarity with JTAG/SWD, logic analyzers, oscilloscopes, and embedded debugging techniques.
• Experience implementing or improving CI/CD and automated testing for embedded systems.
• Experience developing SIL/HIL environments or automated hardware test infrastructure.
• Familiarity with requirements management, software configuration management, and formal software release processes.
• Experience with real-time operating systems (RTOS) or bare-metal embedded development.
• Familiarity with high-reliability or safety-focused software development practices.
• Experience working in classified or regulated engineering environments.

SUBSEAMSS

If you're looking for comfort, keep scrolling. At Leidos, we outthink, outbuild, and outpace the status quo — because the mission demands it. We're not hiring followers. We're recruiting the ones who disrupt, provoke, and refuse to fail. Step 10 is ancient history. We're already at step 30 — and moving faster than anyone else dares.

Original Posting:

Pay Range:

The Leidos pay range for this job level is a general guideline only and not a guarantee of compensation or salary. Additional factors considered in extending an offer include (but are not limited to) responsibilities of the job, education, experience, knowledge, skills, and abilities, as well as internal equity, alignment with market data, applicable bargaining agreement (if any), or other law.