Embedded Systems Architect

Role: Embedded Systems Architect (W2 Only)

Location: Houston, TX (Hybrid)

Job Description:

Hybrid role - onsite in Houston, TX 4 days per week

We are seeking a highly specialized Embedded Systems Architect to lead the design and implementation of cloud-managed device platforms at scale. This role focuses on defining how connected devices are securely onboarded, provisioned, managed, updated, monitored, and controlled through cloud services, with embedded firmware serving as the foundational layer.

This is a hands-on architecture role spanning device, network, and cloud boundaries. You will own the design of device-cloud interaction patterns, including secure communication, identity and certificate management, remote lifecycle operations, and observability for large fleets of distributed devices.

While strong embedded firmware expertise is essential, the role extends beyond firmware development to include end-to-end device-cloud integration, ensuring secure, scalable, and enterprise-grade device lifecycle management.

Responsibilities

Device-Cloud Architecture:

- Own the end-to-end architecture for cloud-managed device platforms, covering device firmware, connectivity, and cloud integration.

- Define firmware architecture to enable reliable, secure cloud connectivity on constrained devices.

- Establish implementation patterns for embedded systems using C or C++ and Real-Time Operating Systems (RTOS) such as Zephyr.

- Define device-cloud interaction patterns (for example, Azure IoT Hub, Device Provisioning Service, Intune), ensuring scalability, security, and enterprise readiness.

- Lead architecture across key domains:- Device provisioning, identity, and certificate management

- Secure communication (TLS, mutual TLS, SCEP)

- Firmware and configuration update strategies (over-the-air updates)

- Observability, telemetry, logging, and diagnostics

- Remote device control and lifecycle operations

- Ensure alignment between device-side capabilities and cloud platform services, including constraints, protocols, and security models.

- Drive design decisions to optimize performance, reliability, and resource utilization in constrained environments.

Delivery, Execution, and Risk Management:

- Ensure successful end-to-end delivery of embedded and IoT solutions within complex enterprise environments.

- Actively support implementation, troubleshooting, and resolution of complex issues across firmware, connectivity, and cloud integration layers.

- Identify, assess, and mitigate technical risks across device, firmware, and integration components.

- Drive alignment between architecture and implementation, ensuring solutions are delivered as designed and meet quality, performance, and security expectations.

- Lead and support integration with cloud services such as Azure IoT Hub, Device Provisioning Service, and device management platforms.

Technical Leadership:

- Serve as the technical authority for embedded systems and device-cloud connectivity within the engagement.

- Provide hands-on guidance, mentorship, and architectural oversight to engineering teams.

- Establish and promote best practices in embedded development, including real-time constraints, memory management, and performance optimization.

- Support design and implementation decisions, ensuring alignment with architectural principles and system constraints.

- Contribute to engineering standards and best practices within the team or project.

- Balance hands-on involvement with architectural leadership as required.

Stakeholder and Client Engagement:

- Engage with client architects, product owners, and senior stakeholders to understand requirements and shape solution direction.

- Translate business and product requirements into scalable technical architectures and actionable delivery plans.

- Act as a trusted advisor on embedded systems and device-cloud architecture decisions.

- Support solution shaping and pre-sales activities in embedded and IoT domains as needed.

Qualifications:

Embedded Systems and Firmware

- Strong experience in embedded systems development using C or C++.

- Hands-on experience with Real-Time Operating Systems (RTOS) such as Zephyr, FreeRTOS, and ThreadX.

- Proven experience designing and implementing embedded or firmware architectures.

Networking and Secure Device Connectivity

- Solid understanding of networking fundamentals and protocols such as TCP/IP, HTTP, and MQTT.

- Practical experience implementing secure communication in embedded or constrained environments.

- Working knowledge of device identity and certificate-based authentication concepts.

Device-Cloud Integration

- Experience building or integrating cloud-connected devices.

- Strong understanding of core device-cloud interaction patterns.

Architecture and Systems Thinking

- Ability to design systems that span device and cloud components, balancing performance, reliability, and security.

- Demonstrated ability to make technical trade-offs in constrained environments.

Delivery and Execution

- Experience delivering embedded or IoT solutions through implementation and integration phases (not just design).

- Hands-on experience troubleshooting issues across firmware, networking, or integration layers.

- Ability to identify and mitigate technical risks during delivery.

Technical Leadership and Collaboration

- Experience providing technical guidance to engineering teams.

- Experience working in cross-functional environments.

- Ability to communicate technical concepts clearly to both technical and non-technical stakeholders.

Preferred Qualifications

- Experience with Azure IoT ecosystem.

- Experience with certificate lifecycle management at scale.

- Experience with hardware-backed security.

- Experience implementing enterprise networking features.

- Experience integrating devices into enterprise IT environments with strict security requirements.

- Experience implementing over-the-air (OTA) firmware updates.

- Experience with device-side logging, telemetry, and remote diagnostics.

- Experience with collaboration devices, docking stations, or similar enterprise hardware platforms.

- Familiarity with HP Poly or similar voice and video collaboration ecosystems.

- Ability to operate effectively in ambiguous, evolving problem spaces and drive clarity across device, network, and cloud domains.

- Demonstrated ownership mindset with a focus on delivering end-to-end outcomes and proactively resolving gaps.

- Ability to influence technical decisions across cross-functional teams without direct authority.