Senior Firmware Engineer

Nottingham Spirk has an immediate opening for a Senior Firmware Engineer. The ideal candidate is located in the Cleveland metro area or willing to relocate to Northeast Ohio. About Us Nottingham Spirk is a Cleveland, Ohio-based, design services consultancy. Founded in 1972, Nottingham Spirk (NS) helps corporate innovators grow their businesses by partnering with them from design to delivery, to create remarkable product innovations, medical devices, consumer product packaging, and more. With every discipline needed for your project in-house, we help our client-partners disrupt their industries, improve the lives of consumers, and change the world. With 1,500 issued patents and counting – and a 95% commercialization rate – the things we create make it to market. Summary The Senior Firmware Engineer is a hands‑on technical leader responsible for architecting and delivering embedded firmware for innovative products across a wide range of industries. This role spans the full development lifecycle—from early concept and prototyping through validation, manufacturing support, and product launch—and is ideal for an engineer who enjoys solving complex technical problems and bringing real products to market. A key aspect of this position is working closely with development partners to ensure firmware is robust, scalable, and production‑ready. In addition to core firmware responsibilities, this role contributes to broader engineering efforts as needed to support project success. This is a dynamic, fast‑paced role involving multiple concurrent projects across a diverse product landscape, including connected devices, edge AI systems, and products spanning consumer, industrial, defense, and medical applications. The role also includes direct technical interaction with clients, requiring strong communication and collaboration skills. We value engineers with strong fundamentals, sound technical judgment, and the ability to adapt quickly across technologies, product categories, and development environments. This role works closely with electrical, mechanical, software, design, and manufacturing teams to bring products from concept to commercialization. Key Responsibilities Technical Leadership & Architecture Provide technical leadership in firmware development across all phases of a project, both internally and in client‑facing contexts. Define and own firmware architecture, including requirements, specifications, and implementation from prototype through production. Help identify technical risks, tradeoffs, and implementation strategies early in development. Support firmware bring‑up, system integration, and validation through production. Embedded Firmware Development Design and implement embedded firmware and device‑side networking for a wide range of products. Plan and implement secure device architectures, including OTA firmware/software update strategies. Develop and integrate APIs and services to enable device functionality and system interoperability. Connected Systems & Integration Architect and implement IoT systems spanning device firmware through cloud platforms. Integrate products with cloud ecosystems such as AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud. Enable integration with consumer ecosystems (e.g., Alexa, Google Assistant, Apple HomeKit) where required by the product. Cross‑Functional Collaboration Collaborate closely with hardware engineers on system design, including microcontrollers, processors, wireless modules, sensors, and motion systems. Work effectively with internal multidisciplinary teams and external development partners. Communicate technical concepts, solutions, and company capabilities to both technical and non‑technical stakeholders. Environment Dynamic, collaborative, and hands‑on engineering environment. Multiple concurrent projects with meaningful technical variety. High ownership and visibility from concept through launch. Close collaboration across firmware, hardware, software, design, and manufacturing. Emphasis on practical, production‑ready engineering solutions. Travel Limited domestic and international travel as needed to support clients, partners, and project activities. Qualifications Education Bachelor of Science or Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering or equivalent. Experience 10+ years of engineering product development experience. 5+ years of embedded C development experience. Required Strong C programming skills with extensive embedded systems development experience. Proven expertise in debugging complex embedded systems, including issues across firmware, hardware, and system integration boundaries. Ability to collaborate with hardware teams to define optimal system architectures. Experience establishing firmware development practices, coding standards, and reusable platform architectures. Proficiency with lab and debugging tools (oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, spectrum analyzers, protocol analyzers, power analyzers). Experience developing connected or wireless embedded systems. Experience with ARM‑based microcontrollers/processors and associated toolchains. Hands‑on experience with wireless technologies (Bluetooth, Wi‑Fi, cellular, Zigbee). Familiarity with low‑power design techniques for battery‑powered devices. Strong understanding of embedded communication protocols such as SPI, I2C, UART, CAN, USB, and Ethernet. Ability to read and interpret hardware schematics. Strong documentation and communication skills. Track record of delivering high‑quality work on schedule. Familiarity with standard peripheral serial communication protocols. Familiarity with security‑related aspects associated with embedded systems. The ability and desire to “flex” between military, medical, consumer, and industrial product types. Due to compliance with U.S. export control laws and regulations, candidate must be a U.S. Person, which is defined as a U.S. citizen, a U.S. permanent resident, or have protected status in the U.S. under asylum or refugee status. Desired Experience with Zephyr RTOS, embedded Linux or Yocto. Experience with edge AI or embedded ML. Familiarity with smart home ecosystems and standards. Knowledge of networking protocols (TCP/IP, MQTT, FTP). Experience with UI frameworks such as Qt. Working knowledge of embedded security principles, including secure communications, authentication, key handling, and secure update mechanisms. Familiarity with regulatory and certification processes (FCC, Industry Canada, carrier certifications). Prior experience in a firmware lead or project leadership role. Experience in a design services or consulting environment. Total Compensation Salary Range: $100,000 - $149,000. This range includes base salary, bonus potential, and benefits. The actual salary offered depends on numerous factors including but not limited to local labor costs, the position’s qualifications in relation to candidate’s job‑related knowledge, relevant employment experience, education, certifications, and skills. Benefits Flexible, comprehensive benefit package. Fun, team‑based culture. Opportunity to learn and grow. And dog‑friendly environment. EOE, Including Disability/Vets Nottingham Spirk participates in E‑Verify. #J-18808-Ljbffr