Senior Product Test Development Automation Engineer (Linux, ARM SoC)

Company:
Qualcomm Technologies, Inc.

Job Area:
Engineering Group, Engineering Group > Systems Test Engineering

General Summary:

Qualcomm is seeking a Senior Product Test Development Automation Engineer to lead the validation and automation of next-generation ARM-based server hardware platforms. This role is pivotal in ensuring Qualcomm's custom silicon and server solutions meet the highest standards of uptime and thermal reliability, high performance, and scalability for hyperscale deployments. You will drive system-level custom IP hardware testing and automation on Linux and utilize internal SDK tools, collaborating across hardware, firmware, and software covering critical components (not limited to custom CPU, memory, interconnects, power, Remote management interfaces, use case specific synthetic workloads) the candidate for this role combines software development skills (to build automated tests and tools) with hardware engineering expertise (to understand and stress-test server components). The candidate should have experience working on complex systems (often containing custom ARM-based chips) and are comfortable writing code, are capable of methodical problem-solving, have attention to detail, and clear and concise verbal and written communication skills.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead Test Strategy & Execution: Architect, Design, Develop, and automate independently the feature requests and overall comprehensive test plans for new ARM-based server products, from prototype to test production scaling. Define the feature test scenarios; the implication and coverage across subsystem blocks, code the test scenarios, and execute the developed test cases for CPU, memory, PCIe, power/thermal, and system uptime under demanding workloads. Report to management on the results, provide trend analysis, root cause and iterative test improvement actions.

• System Integration & Stress Testing: Direct integrated system tests that exercise hardware, firmware, and OS together. Lead efforts in stress workloads, power cycling, and long-duration soak tests to ensure reliability and uptime. The candidate is responsible for identifying tests and unrooting HW and SW issues early during product development, across early phases of Chip bring-up, Chip sampling to customers, and post commercialization, ensuring that new hardware and firmware combinations are robust and reliable for continuous operation at scale

• Automation Framework Development: Design, implement, and maintain scalable automated test suites and frameworks (C/C++ cross platform across various environments: UEFI, Linux/Unix OSs, BMC automation, Virtualized OS test automation, including Unix shell scripting) to validate hardware and firmware efficiently across multiple platforms on the server platform and ensure the framework is scalable across SoC products. The Candidate will develop in and have C++ familiarity to cross compile test frameworks across differencing Operating environments

• Advanced Debugging & Root Cause Analysis: Perform deep diagnostics and failure analysis across: Hardware and Subsystems / Software and Kernel / Firmware boundaries, support troubleshooting, and devise techniques to quantify and isolate faults - Collaborate with SW and HW design engineers to drive experimentation, debugging, and validate fixes, or workarounds.

• System-Level Soak Testing: Perform extended thermal cycling, high-load endurance tests. Conduct integrated system tests that exercise hardware, firmware, and OS together. This can include booting Linux on new ARM-based servers and running stress workloads (CPU burn-in, memory tests, I/O benchmarks, etc.) to verify end-to-end functionality. Power cycling and long-duration soak tests are used to gauge reliability and uptime. Additionally cover networking and remote management stressors for reliability and robustness

• Global Collaboration with Cross-Functional Teams: Act as a bridge between hardware design, software/firmware, and operations teams. Work with hardware designers, and Project managers to understand new board/SoC features and define test requirements, and with firmware/software developers to ensure coverage of all functionalities. The candidate will also coordinate with manufacturing, data center operations, and product design teams to identify and mitigate product risks

• Quality Metrics & Reporting: Analyze test results data, track key quality metrics (error rates, performance benchmarks, thermal readings, uptime, MTBF, reliability statistics), and generate reports. The candidate will provide data-driven feedback to stakeholders across Core platform HW/SW, HW Designers, and SW Tools. The Candidate will maintain clear test documentation and report on pass/fail trends, including the creation of automated dashboards.

• Continuous Improvement: Identify opportunities to improve test coverage, speed, and efficiency. Such as independently developing new test tools, refining automation for faster execution, or implementing better monitoring of results. Adapt test scenarios and conditions that scale dynamically for Hyperscalers

Minimum Qualifications:
Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Information Systems, Computer Science, or related field and 2+ years of Systems Test Engineering or related work experience.
OR
Master's degree in Engineering, Information Systems, Computer Science, or related field and 1+ year of Systems Test Engineering or related work experience.
OR
PhD in Engineering, Information Systems, Computer Science, or related field.

Preferred Qualifications

• Candidates will have several years of relevant hardware test/validation experience. 3-5 years in system testing or validation in enterprise/server hardware. Experience working in a data center environment is highly preferred

• Hardware Architecture Knowledge: A strong understanding of computer architecture (CPU microarchitecture, memory hierarchy, I/O buses) and system design is fundamental. Candidates to be familiar with ARM Architecture versions and SoC designs

• Knowledge of PCI Express, DDR memory, Ethernet, NVMe, CXL, NUMA, Arm System Ready

• Linux and OS Virtualization - comfortable with Linux system administration, shell scripting, and kernel log analysis. Ability to debug issues at the OS level (e.g. kernel panic analysis, driver logs)

• Understanding of bootloaders, BIOS/UEFI or firmware

• Programming & Scripting: C/C++, Unix shells such as Bash, Python, version control with Git, code review, CI pipelines) is expected

• Test Methodologies & QA Process: Testing methodologies - from unit and integration testing to System stress and regression testing (Benchmarks: Stress-ng, Linpack or SPECint/SPECfp, UEFI benchmarks, Storage stressors is a plus). Experience with Validation Test Plan for hardware and software features, specifying test coverage for each requirement also be adept in defining metrics for quality (e.g. error rates, Mean Time Between Failures)

• Debugging and Analysis Skills: Strong analytical and troubleshooting skills. Utilizing a variety of tools to debug failing tests (dbg, break points - from software debuggers and log analyzers to hardware instruments. Hands-on experience with lab equipment like oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, protocol analyzers (for PCIe, networking) is preferred

• Communication and Leadership: Role liaise across inter-departmental teams, clear communication is essential. Document test results and articulate risks or issues to design, product, and management teams.

Qualcomm is an equal opportunity employer. If you are an individual with a disability and need an accommodation during the application/hiring process, rest assured that Qualcomm is committed to providing an accessible process. You may e-mail or call Qualcomm's toll-free number found here. Upon request, Qualcomm will provide reasonable accommodations to support individuals with disabilities to be able participate in the hiring process. Qualcomm is also committed to making our workplace accessible for individuals with disabilities. (Keep in mind that this email address is used to provide reasonable accommodations for individuals with disabilities. We will not respond here to requests for updates on applications or resume inquiries).

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Pay range and Other Compensation & Benefits:
$107,000.00 - $160,600.00

The above pay scale reflects the broad, minimum to maximum, pay scale for this job code for the location for which it has been posted. Even more importantly, please note that salary is only one component of total compensation at Qualcomm. We also offer a competitive annual discretionary bonus program and opportunity for annual RSU grants (employees on sales-incentive plans are not eligible for our annual bonus). In addition, our highly competitive benefits package is designed to support your success at work, at home, and at play. Your recruiter will be happy to discuss all that Qualcomm has to offer - and you can review more details about our US benefits at this link.

If you would like more information about this role, please contact Qualcomm Careers.