Project Lead (Engineering Manager)

About the Opportunity

We are recruiting for a Project Lead with a solid engineering or product development background in Electronics, Embedded Systems, Systems Engineering, Mechanical or IoT domains to lead and drive the development, integration, and manufacture of a cutting-edge IoT platform. This permanent, full-time position is based in Adelaide CBD with a hybrid work model requiring attendance 3 to 4 days per week in the office. Candidates currently residing in Adelaide or willing to relocate are encouraged to apply.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead engineering projects from initiation through development, testing, and manufacturing for both internal and external clients.
• Manage and coordinate a multidisciplinary team of approximately 3-4 members encompassing electronics, firmware, mechanical engineering, and manufacturing specialists.
• Supervise hardware and firmware integration, ensuring embedded systems function cohesively and comply with product specifications.
• Oversee project schedules, budget allocations, resources, milestones, and technical risk management, while maintaining transparent communication with stakeholders.
• Utilize systems engineering principles including requirements definition, system architecture, verification, and validation to support robust product development.
• Define and drive product strategy by anticipating challenges, managing dependencies, and ensuring technical decisions align with long-term product goals.
• Continuously seek process improvements to enhance development efficiency, product quality, and smooth transition from engineering prototypes to manufacturing.

Required Qualifications and Skills

• Educational or professional background in electronics, embedded systems, firmware, hardware, mechanical engineering, or manufacturing.
• Demonstrable experience leading engineering projects, product development efforts, or diverse technical teams.
• Strong understanding of embedded systems, hardware-software integration, and the entire product development life cycle.
• Experience managing timelines, budgets, prioritization of technical risks, and competing project priorities.
• Knowledge of systems engineering concepts such as requirements analysis, architectural design, and validation and verification processes.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management capabilities to unify technical teams and guide decision-making.
• Proactive commercial awareness with the ability to move beyond individual tasks to overall project ownership.

Preferred Experience

• Background in IoT product development, sensor technologies, wireless communication, and low-power device applications.
• Familiarity with microcontrollers, printed circuit board (PCB) design, firmware development, and debugging tools.
• Proficiency with embedded software languages such as C and C++.
• Knowledge of manufacturing procedures and product industrialization processes.
• Experience with Design Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (DFMEA), Process Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (PFMEA), and risk-based design approaches.
• Track record of successfully transitioning products from development phases into production environments.

Ideal Candidate Profile

The ideal applicant will likely have begun their career as an Electronics, Embedded, Firmware, Hardware, or Mechanical Engineer and progressed into roles including project leadership, project or technical management, or product management. This is not a conventional project manager role as it requires strong technical acumen to understand engineering challenges, question assumptions, and steer teams toward optimal results. The candidate must think strategically about product feasibility, manufacturing, and delivery while coordinating multiple workstreams and taking responsibility for overarching project outcomes.