Director of Engineering (EE, Firmware, Software & Cloud)

• Act as the chief technical authority across Willow’s end-to-end stack: Electrical Engineering (PCBA design, power management, sensors), Firmware (RTOS, low-power BLE), Software (iOS/Android), and Cloud (AWS/GCP, APIs, analytics).
• Remain actively engaged in technical execution: drive system-level architecture, lead design reviews (schematics, layout, firmware architecture, API design), and jump in to troubleshoot complex technical bottlenecks.
• Define and enforce technical standards, code quality metrics, hardware test procedures, and secure software development lifecycles (SDLC).

Team Management & Organizational Growth

• Manage, recruit, and mentor a high-performing, multi-disciplinary engineering team across EE, firmware, cloud, and mobile disciplines.
• Build a culture of accountability, innovation, technical rigor, and cross-functional collaboration.
• Establish career paths, performance management, and continuous learning programs for engineering staff.

External Vendor & Partner Orchestration

• Direct and manage external development partners, offshore software agencies, specialized design houses, and hardware manufacturing partners (JDM/ODM/CM).
• Negotiate statements of work (SOWs), manage vendor budgets, track technical deliverables, and ensure external code/hardware designs meet internal standards.
• Establish clear handoff protocols between external development partners and internal sustaining/operations teams.

Cross-Functional Collaboration & Execution

• Partner closely with Product Management, Quality Assurance, Regulatory Affairs, and Operations to translate product requirements into executable technical roadmaps and project timelines.
• Ensure engineering practices comply with relevant regulatory requirements (e.g., FDA medical device software controls, ISO 13485, IEC 60601, HIPAA, and data privacy standards).
• Balance technical debt, performance, cost of goods sold (COGS), feature velocity, and product reliability.

• Education: Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or a related technical field.
• Experience: 12+ years of progressive engineering experience in connected consumer hardware, IoT, or medical devices, with at least 5+ years in engineering leadership (Director level or above).

• Multi-Domain Mastery: Demonstrated technical depth across all four required core domains:

• Electrical Engineering: Mixed-signal PCB design, low-power battery management, sensor integration, BLE design, and RF compliance.
• Firmware: Embedded C/C++, RTOS, microcontroller architectures (e.g., Nordic, STM32), and low-level communication protocols (I2C, SPI, UART).
• Software & Cloud: Mobile application architecture (iOS/Android), cloud platforms (AWS/GCP), microservices, RESTful APIs, and IoT device management.
• Hands-On Capability: Proven ability to remain technical-able to read schematics, evaluate codebases, review system interfaces, and guide architectural decisions without relying solely on delegated oversight.
• Vendor Management: Deep experience managing third-party engineering vendors, offshore development teams, and contract manufacturers through full product lifecycles (NPI through mass production)., * Experience in regulated medical devices (FDA 510(k), IEC 62304 software lifecycle) or high-reliability consumer health technologies.
• Proven track record of delivering successful, high-volume consumer IoT products from concept through mass manufacturing.
• Familiarity with data security, encryption standards for connected hardware, and healthcare privacy compliance (HIPAA/GDPR).

Willow is a platform for products that help improve the lives and health of women. We are a mission-driven team of experienced inventors, mothers, and fathers dedicated to making a difference in women’s lives. The Willow Wearable Breast Pump, selected as one of TIME’s 25 Best Inventions in 2017 and 2018 CES Innovation Award for Wearable Technologies, is the first solution in our platform.