ECAD Solutions Architect - Hardware Engineering Ops Role

The Hardware Engineering Ops ECAD Customer Success Team works hand in hand with Apple’s engineers, training and educating them and advancing the CAD design environment for hardware design teams. As the ECAD Workflow & Solutions Architect, you would be the strategic partner and technical expert for the hardware design community. The role focuses on architecting, optimizing, and advancing workflows for electrical design teams, driving efficiency, innovation, and adoption of new technologies, including Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, across ECAD workflows. Apple is looking for a self-starter who keeps learning, works independently, and enjoys solving new, challenging problems.

Key responsibilities

• Act as the primary point of contact and trusted advisor for hardware engineers and PCB designers, solving complex workflow and tool challenges.
• Work with design teams to understand their needs, identify problems, and turn them into actionable solutions.
• Champion standard processes in ECAD design, data management, and collaboration.
• Collaborate with design teams, IT, and tool developers to define, design, and implement next-generation ECAD workflows and tooling requirements.
• Look for automation, optimization, and efficiency gains across the ECAD design lifecycle.
• Contribute to the strategic roadmap for ECAD tools and infrastructure.
• Evaluate new technologies and industry trends and assess their fit within Apple’s design environment.

Experience and education required

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science or Electrical Engineering.
• 3+ years of hands-on experience in ECAD design or a related hardware engineering field.
• Expertise with industry-standard ECAD tools (for example Cadence Allegro/OrCAD, Mentor Graphics Xpedition, Altium Designer) and their design flows.
• Exceptional problem-solving, analytical, and diagnostic abilities.
• Outstanding communication, presentation, and interpersonal skills, with the ability to influence partners at all levels.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities with a high degree of autonomy in a fast-paced environment.

Preferred

• Ability to drive integration of AI/ML into ECAD processes, such as design rule checking, component selection, layout optimization, data analysis, and predictive modeling.
• Experience as a solutions architect, workflow consultant, or technical lead in an ECAD-focused role.
• Outstanding written and verbal communication and presentation skills for all levels of an organization.
• Familiarity with PLM/PDM systems and version control (for example Git).
• Understanding of cloud computing principles in engineering environments.

Technical skills

• ECAD tools and design flows (Cadence Allegro/OrCAD, Mentor Xpedition, Altium Designer)
• Workflow architecture and automation
• PCB design and hardware engineering
• AI/ML integration into ECAD processes (preferred)
• PLM/PDM systems and version control, such as Git (preferred)
• Cloud computing principles (preferred)

Soft skills

• Trusted advisor mindset and relationship building
• Problem solving and analytical thinking
• Communication and presentation to all levels
• Cross-functional collaboration with design teams, IT, and tool developers
• Self-starter with autonomy and a drive to keep learning
• Adaptability in a fast-paced environment