Hardware Systems Architect

Piper Companies is seeking a Hardware Systems Architect to support a leading organization in the semiconductor and networking industry onsite Monday through Friday in Saratoga, CA. The Hardware Systems Architect role is ideal for a highly experienced electrical engineer who will provide technical leadership for the design, bring-up, and validation of complex, high-speed, high-power hardware platforms used to evaluate next-generation custom ASICs.

Responsibilities of the Hardware Systems Architect:

• Lead architecture and design of complex test and validation boards supporting custom ASIC bring-up and silicon evaluation.
• Own and oversee the full PCB development lifecycle, including schematic capture, layout guidance, manufacturing support, and board bring-up.
• Drive high-speed, high-power PCB design decisions with strong focus on signal integrity (SI), power integrity (PI), and thermal performance.
• Collaborate closely with ASIC design teams to understand chip internals, define test configurations, and validate silicon functionality.
• Provide hands-on support during board bring-up, debugging, and validation activities in the lab.
• Partner with mechanical engineers to ensure mechanical, thermal, and electrical alignment across system designs.
• Mentor and guide other hardware engineers, providing architectural direction and design reviews.
• Support continuous improvement of design methodologies, test strategies, and validation processes.

Qualifications of the Hardware Systems Architect:

• 15+ years of experience in electrical engineering with deep expertise in high-speed, high-power PCB design.
• Proven experience owning full board development lifecycles from concept through bring-up and validation.
• Strong background in signal integrity, power integrity, and thermal analysis for complex hardware systems.
• Hands-on experience with board bring-up, lab testing, and hardware debugging.
• Experience collaborating cross-functionally with ASIC, firmware, and mechanical engineering teams.
• Background in telecom or networking environments, ideally supporting Ethernet switching, data center hardware, or ASIC-adjacent systems.
• Demonstrated ability to provide technical leadership without needing to personally implement every design detail.
• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering or a related discipline.

Compensation for the Senior Hardware Engineer - Systems includes:

• Base salary range: $200,000 – $260,000 depending on experience
• Comprehensive benefits package including medical, dental, vision, 401(k), and paid time off

This job opens for applications on 6/9/2026. Applications for this job will be accepted for at least 30 days from the posting date.

Keywords: Senior Hardware Engineer, Hardware Systems Engineer, Principal Hardware Engineer, System-Level Hardware Design, High-Speed Hardware, Ethernet, PCIe, SerDes, Signal Integrity, Power Integrity, Optical Interfaces, SFP+, QSFP+, FPGA Design, Hardware Architecture, Board Design, Server Hardware, Networking Hardware, Control Interfaces, MDIO, SPI, I2C, JTAG, Product Release

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