ABOUT THE ROLE
We are seeking an exceptional Director of Quality and Reliability to lead and scale our Quality and Reliability (Q&R) function across all phases of our technology and product development lifecycle—from early R&D through engineering validation, ramp, and high-volume manufacturing. This is a critical leadership role with broad cross-functional influence, and tasked with building a world-class reliability engineering organization.
The ideal candidate will bring deep technical expertise across silicon reliability, photonics, advanced packaging, and system-level reliability, as well as demonstrated leadership in developing and managing high-performance teams and quality systems at scale. This individual will play a pivotal role in ensuring our products meet the highest standards of reliability and customer satisfaction from concept through end-of-life.
ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
- Build and lead a team of reliability and quality engineers capable of supporting complex, multi-disciplinary technology platforms.
- Define and implement a comprehensive Quality Management System (QMS) aligned with industry standards and best practices.
- Drive reliability strategy and execution across the full product lifecycle—from R&D to high-volume production—ensuring design for reliability (DfR), qualification, and ongoing monitoring.
- Establish and track reliability goals, metrics, and KPIs to ensure product performance and customer satisfaction.
- Partner closely with cross-functional teams in engineering, manufacturing, operations, and supply chain to integrate quality and reliability into all aspects of product development and delivery.
- Develop and maintain reliability models, FMEAs, HALT/HASS, accelerated life testing protocols, and failure analysis capabilities.
- Lead root cause investigations and corrective/preventive action programs (CAPA) for quality or reliability issues.
- Stay abreast of industry standards, trends, and best practices to continuously improve Q&R processes and tools.
- Interface with customers and partners to ensure Q&R requirements are met or exceeded.
- Establish and lead the Supplier Quality Assurance (SQA) strategy for all component types—semiconductors, photonic devices, mechanical parts, PCBs, interconnects, and assemblies.
- Define and manage supplier qualification, audit, and monitoring processes to ensure conformance with quality, reliability, and compliance standards.
- Collaborate with supply chain and engineering teams to ensure that supplier materials meet design and performance requirements throughout the product lifecycle.
- Drive continuous improvement initiatives with suppliers, including yield improvement, process capability enhancement, and reduction of field issues.
- Oversee supplier scorecards, incoming inspection protocols, and corrective action programs for non-conforming materials.
QUALIFICATIONS
- PhD in Electrical Engineering, Materials Science, Applied Physics, or a related field is strongly preferred.
- 15–20+ years of experience in quality and reliability engineering roles, including 5–10+ years in leadership positions.
- Deep technical knowledge in semiconductor reliability, photonics, advanced packaging, and system-level reliability.
- Proven experience building and scaling Q&R functions in fast-paced technology environments.
- Strong command of industry standards (JEDEC, Telcordia, MIL-STD, etc.), reliability testing, and statistical analysis methods.
- Excellent leadership, communication, and cross-functional collaboration skills.
- Experience working with global supply chains and high-volume manufacturing environments is a plus.
LOCATION: Santa Clara, CA
For California Location:
As an early stage start up, we offer an extremely attractive total compensation package inclusive of competitive base salary, bonus and a generous grant of our valuable early-stage equity. The target base salary for this role is approximately $210,000.00 - $240,000.00. The base salary offered may be slightly higher or lower than the target base salary, based on the final scope as determined by the depth of the experience and skills demonstrated by candidate in the interviews.
