Staff Engineer - Development (Instrument Architecture)

What if the work you did every day could impact the lives of people you know Or all of humanity

At Illumina, we are expanding access to genomic technology to realize health equity for billions of people around the world. Our efforts enable life-changing discoveries that are transforming human health through the early detection and diagnosis of diseases and new treatment options for patients.

Working at Illumina means being part of something bigger than yourself. Every person, in every role, has the opportunity to make a difference. Surrounded by extraordinary people, inspiring leaders, and world changing projects, you will do more and become more than you ever thought possible.

Position Summary:

The Staff Systems Engineer -Instrument Architecture will be responsible for providing leadership to cross functional teams to develop industry-leading DNA sequencing cartridges and consumables for clinical applications in an exciting, fast-paced environment. The foundation of all activities for this role is a broad, solid grasp of multiple areas of engineering, physics and molecular biology, and the ability to climb new learning curves quickly. Primary responsibilities include development of system models/budgets, contributing to system & sub-system architecture decisions, managing specifications and requirements, and developing test strategies for critical parameter understanding and verification. A successful candidate will possess strong organizational and communication skills to facilitate successful product development across hardware, firmware, software, consumables, and chemistry teams.

Responsibilities:

• Significantly contribute to developing new architectures for high volume medical device instrumentation that integrate microfluidics, chemistry, and imaging.

• Develop system models that guide design decisions. These can include system tolerance budgets, runtime models, SNR models, performance models, COGS models, etc. Provide mentorship to subsystem engineers in the development of models that guide lower-level design decisions.

• Support architecture definition by working across sub-system design teams to align overlapping design requirements /constraints and drive teams in developing concepts, evaluating risks, and efficiently concluding on a design path.

• Lead teams through complex root-cause analysis in which there are many possible root causes that involve various areas of physics. Mentor others on systematic best practices for problem solving (8D method, fish-bone diagrams, etc.)

• Build the information foundation for successful architecture activity. Create and maintain system requirements, specifications, and functional workflows. Examples include biochemistry workflows, hardware timing diagrams, and assembly process workflows.

• Develop, manage, execute test strategies for Critical Parameter Management which identify the sensitivities and acceptable operating ranges for input parameters relative to output metrics.

• Leverage Design of Experiments for efficient coverage of complex parameter space.

• Own the seams between teams, especially including the definition and documentation of interfaces between hardware, firmware, and software. Culture the ecosystem mindset in practice.

All listed tasks and responsibilities are deemed as essential functions to this position however, business conditions may require reasonable accommodations for additional tasks and responsibilities.

Preferred Requirements:

• Highly motivated to work cross-functionally in the ecosystem of fluidics, liquid handling, precision motion, and biochemistry

• Strong analytical background, with record of using system models to drive decisions.

• Demonstrated track record of rapidly climbing steep learning curves. Enthusiasm for tackling tough problems on an aggressive schedule.

• Experience with definition, setup, characterization, and testing of complex systems, including design of experiments, reliability life tests, and root cause analysis.

• Experience and fluency in scientific computing and simulation, such as Python, MATLAB, or R

• Effective communication and presentation skills (ability to distill complex technical information into product decisions and business recommendations).

Required Experience/Education:

• Engineering, Physics, Biophysics, or related master's degree with 5+ years of experience or Ph.D. with minimum 3 years of experience in instrumentation, or product development.

All listed requirements are deemed as essential functions to this position however, business conditions may require reasonable accommodations for additional tasks and responsibilities.

Illumina believes that everyone has the ability to make an impact, and we are proud to be an equal opportunity employer committed to providing employment opportunity regardless of sex, race, creed, color, gender, religion, marital status, domestic partner status, age, national origin or ancestry, physical or mental disability, medical condition, sexual orientation, pregnancy, military or veteran status, citizenship status, and genetic information.