Sanctuary Computer: Senior Firmware Engineer

Introduction to Sanctuary Computer

Sanctuary Computer is a progressive and creative collective headquartered in New York City that engages in a variety of innovative projects. As a worker-owned organization, they emphasize collaboration and community in their approach to technology and product development, prioritizing shared profits and open source work. Their projects stretch across diverse domains, including brands, communities, IoT devices, and cross-platform applications.

Job Overview

Sanctuary Computer is currently in search of a Senior Firmware Engineer to support their Internet of Things (IoT) teams. This role is a contract position that allows for significant flexibility, as the company welcomes talent from anywhere in the world to join their mission. The ideal candidate should embrace ownership of their work, showing initiative and capability to troubleshoot and resolve complexities in firmware operations without needing constant supervision.

Responsibilities

As a Senior Firmware Engineer, you will be entrusted with several important tasks, including:

Owning firmware architecture decisions across various active product platforms, ensuring that your inputs create a solid foundation for the engineering processes.
Bringing up new hardware revisions and integrating peripheral drivers with minimal ramp time, which involves efficient onboarding of fresh hardware into operational protocols.
Monitoring the behavior of deployed firmware in the field to quickly address issues, embodying a sense of urgency and discipline when it comes to shipping fixes.
Designing and implementing wireless connectivity flows, enabling functionalities like pairing, over-the-air (OTA) updates, and ensuring fleet health.
Re-evaluating and validating firmware behavior across different hardware variants, ensuring robustness under edge cases.
Integrating new components, such as sensors and actuators, into existing firmware architectures, thus enriching product capabilities.
Participating in code reviews and maintaining high standards for code quality, style, correctness, and long-term maintainability.
Keeping meticulous track of project scope, timelines, and technical risks, proactively surfacing potential issues before they escalate into larger problems.
Communicating directly with clients to align deliverables, ensuring any changes in project scope are well-managed and agreed upon in real-time.

Qualifications

The ideal candidate for this position should possess a variety of skills and competencies, including:

Must-Have Competencies:

Proficiency in C/C++ programming at the register level, demonstrating a command over memory layout, interrupt handling, and real-time constraints.
Prior experience in shipping embedded firmware through design verification testing (DVT) into mass production, showcasing your understanding of the firmware's real-world applications.
Capability to independently bring up new hardware, integrating components such as bootloaders, board support packages (BSP), and peripheral drivers.
A strong background in Real-Time Operating Systems (RTOS), with hands-on experience in designing and debugging scheduling, priority inversion, and power state management under real constraints.
Experience in working with low-level bus protocols like I2C, SPI, and UART, showing your proficiency beyond just framework calls.
Ability to manage your workflow autonomously, setting accurate estimates, identifying risks early, and delivering work without needing reminders.
Prior client-facing experience, wherein you have had to communicate technical trade-offs directly to non-engineers in a clear and concise manner.

Nice-to-Have Competencies:

Familiarity with ESP32 firmware development at the IDF level, rather than just Arduino wrappers.
Hands-on experience with wireless stacks, particularly in areas such as OTA update pipelines and fleet-scale recovery for devices.
Experience with Linux embedded systems, especially using tools like Yocto and Buildroot.
Knowledge in display pipeline integration and UI implementation on resource-constrained hardware environments.
Insights into cloud connectivity experience, particularly with IoT protocols like MQTT under load.
Familiarity with product management instincts to translate vague client needs into specific technical deliverables.

Work Environment

Candidates are preferred to be based in the USA for collaborative work, although this is not a strict requirement. Those with backgrounds in design or creative fields such as art, music, or fashion may find themselves better positioned to meet the organization's standard for design and quality, as the company values diverse interests and hobbies.

Compensation

The compensation for this position is aligned with industry standards, offering a salary range between $150,000 and $200,000 per year based on experience. This pay structure emphasizes the organization's intent to attract quality talent capable of handling the responsibilities associated with the role.

Interview Process

Sanctuary Computer has structured their interview process to facilitate suitable matches between candidates and their team. It begins with an introductory call that allows potential hires to meet team members, followed by a technical exercise aimed at assessing the candidate's skill level and comfort with the required technologies.

Conclusion

Applying for the Senior Firmware Engineer role at Sanctuary Computer means joining a creative collective that is dedicated to meaningful innovation and community engagement. Candidates are encouraged to submit thoughtful applications that include relevant links verifying their experience and identity, as attention to detail in this initial submission is crucial for progressing through the hiring process. The benefits of working here encompass not only a competitive salary but also the opportunity to engage in meaningful projects within a supportive and collaborative environment.

This job offer was originally published on weworkremotely.com