Sr Hardware Engineer

We are the movers of the world and the makers of the future. We get up every day, roll up our sleeves and build a better world -- together. At Ford, we’re all a part of something bigger than ourselves. Are you ready to change the way the world moves?

As a Hardware Engineer in Ford’s Advanced Networking Group, you will own signal integrity and hardware robustness for high‑speed in‑vehicle communication links. This team identifies and develops optimal networking technologies for Ford’s next‑generation electrical architecture—introducing new solutions and enhancing existing ones—to reduce overall system cost while ensuring electrical robustness for automotive use.

You will author Layer 1–2 networking specifications and design verification documents used across all Ford vehicle programs, lead hardware design reviews, and perform simulations and lab validation for network interfaces. Depending on experience and qualifications, this position may be filled at the Senior Hardware Engineer level.

• Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering or an equivalent technical discipline.

• 5+ years of progressive experience in electronic hardware design, with significant focus on complex high‑speed digital and mixed‑signal designs.

• 2+ years of experience with SI simulation and/or PCB design tools such as Altium Designer, Mentor Graphics, Cadence Allegro, Siemens Hyper Lynx, Cadence Sigrity, Ansys HFSS/SIwave, Polar Instruments, etc.

• 2+ years of hands‑on experience with electrical test equipment; proficient with oscilloscopes, vector network analyzers (VNA), time domain reflectometers (TDR), and circuit board rework.

• Familiarity with industry‑standard automotive communication interfaces (e.g., CAN, LIN, Ser Des, PCIe, Ethernet).

• Proficiency in transmission line theory, S‑parameters, bit error rate (BER) testing, crosstalk, characteristic impedance, eye diagrams, and time‑domain analysis.

• Strong understanding of EMC/EMI principles in automotive applications.

• Background in high‑reliability electronics designed for high‑volume production, including use of DFMEA and worst‑case analysis (WCA) to develop robust designs.

• PhD with 3+ years of relevant hardware/SI experience, or Master’s degree with 7+ years of relevant hardware/SI experience.

• 5+ years of experience with SI simulation and PCB design tools.

• In‑depth knowledge of transmission line and electromagnetic theory.

• Automotive networking experience (e.g., 10
  
  BASE‑T1S, 100/1000
  
  BASE‑T1, Multi‑Gig T1, GMSL/FPD‑Link, CAN FD, LIN).

• Deep understanding of typical vehicle EE architectures and automotive development processes.

• Experience with networking hardware, network architectures/topologies, data rates, configurations, and protocols.

• Experience with EMC/EMI standards and testing (e.g., Ford FMC 1278, ISO 7637 series, CISPR 25, CISPR 12).

• Experience capturing and authoring requirements and technical specifications.

• Experience using vehicle diagnostic tools to troubleshoot, analyze, and resolve network issues.

• Experience working with automotive standards organizations such as IEEE, SAE, Automotive Ser Des Alliance (ASA), and the OPEN Alliance.

• Self‑starter who takes ownership of loosely defined goals, drives clarity where needed, and collaborates effectively across functions to deliver results.

You may not check every box, or your experience may look a little different from what we've outlined, but if you think you can bring value to Ford Motor Company, we encourage you to apply!

As an established global company, we offer the benefit of choice. You can choose what your Ford future will look like: will your story span the globe, or keep you close to home? Will your career be a deep dive into what you love, or a series of new teams and new skills? Will you be a leader, a change maker, a technical expert, a culture builder…or all of the above?

No matter what you choose, we offer a work life that works for you, including:

• Immediate medical, dental, vision and prescription drug coverage

• Flexible family care days, paid parental leave, new parent ramp‑up programs, subsidized back‑up child care and more

• Family building benefits including…