Director of Engineering

Transcend, Inc. is a fast-growing, Twin Cities-based medical device company transforming the way people experience sleep therapy. Our flagship travel-friendly CPAP device—compact enough to fit in the palm of your hand—and our expanding accessory and software ecosystem help people sleep better, travel easier, and live more fully—wherever their journey takes them. We’re profitable, rapidly growing, and scaling our team to meet growing demand with bold, hands-on leadership.

As Director of Engineering, you’ll lead design, development, and delivery of our sleep and respiratory health technologies—from CPAP devices to mobile apps and accessories. You will be the program owner for new product development—aligning engineering, QA/RA, operations, supply chain, marketing, and external partners around clear plans, milestones, budgets, and risk mitigation strategies—while also rolling up your sleeves to drive technical decisions and solve problems directly.

Reporting to the CEO, you’ll lead a small team of engineers and serve as a key member of the senior leadership team.

• Set technical strategy and engineering priorities aligned with company goals
• Contribute to product roadmap development and company-wide strategic planning
• Build, develop, and retain a high-impact engineering team, fostering a culture of accountability, ownership, and innovation

• Lead NPD efforts across the full lifecycle—from ideation and architecture through verification, validation, launch, and post-market support
• Act as program owner and de facto project manager for major development initiatives, owning schedules, resources, budgets, and deliverables
• Establish and enforce phase-gate processes, design reviews, and executive readouts
• Drive a systems-engineering approach across hardware, firmware, software, and accessories
• Initiate, evaluate, and guide feasibility studies, design concepts, and technology trade-offs for current and future customer needs

• Ensure robust design controls and compliance with FDA, ISO 13485, and applicable global standards
• Anticipate technical and regulatory risks and lead mitigation strategies to ensure safe, effective, and timely delivery
• Support manufacturability, cost-down initiatives, and supplier collaboration
• Develop and protect intellectual property
• Oversee documentation, design history files (DHFs), and engineering change processes

• Partner closely with QA/RA, operations, supply chain, marketing, and commercial teams to ensure alignment of technical execution with business goals
• Manage external design firms, engineering consultants, and contract manufacturers
• Serve as a visible leader in a fast-paced, resource-constrained environment

• Bachelor’s degree in engineering or related field required;
  Master’s or other advanced degree is a plus

• Minimum of 10 years of engineering experience in medical devices or a related field, with 5+ years in a leadership role
• Experience in a high-growth, entrepreneurial or small-company environment strongly preferred
• Proven success leading cross-functional teams and launching electromechanical and connected products in regulated environments

• Demonstrated ability to manage product development across hardware, firmware, and mobile/cloud platforms
• Strong working knowledge of FDA regulations, ISO 13485, design controls, and quality systems
• Ability to manage complex multi-disciplinary programs with urgency and discipline
• Strong communication and stakeholder-management skills
• Track record delivering products on time and to budget across multiple complex projects

We design medical-grade products that feel like consumer electronics. You’ll thrive here if you’re a business-minded, hands-on leader who moves seamlessly between conducting the full orchestra of a product program and personally solving the hardest technical problems on the whiteboard. You’re driven by results, take ownership of product quality and team performance, and:

• Get excited by owning product programs…