Systems Engineer

Job Title: Staff Systems Engineer

Job Description

The Staff Systems Engineer leads the definition, development, integration, and verification of complex engineering systems across the full product lifecycle. In this role, you work closely with cross-functional teams to translate customer and stakeholder needs into robust system architectures and requirements, ensuring technical integrity, performance, and compliance from concept through deployment. You provide technical leadership, drive system-level decisions, and support both product development and sustaining activities in a highly regulated environment, with a strong focus on medical devices and EMC testing.

Responsibilities

• Lead system-level architecture definition, requirements development, and design trade studies for complex products and platforms.
• Analyze customer and business requirements and translate them into clear, testable system and subsystem requirements.
• Develop and maintain system specifications, interface control documents (ICDs), and other design documentation with high rigor and accuracy.
• Ensure full traceability from requirements through design, implementation, verification, and validation across the product lifecycle.
• Plan and execute system integration, verification, and validation activities, including defining test strategies, procedures, and acceptance criteria.
• Support and perform system testing, troubleshooting, root cause analysis, and issue resolution for complex electromechanical and software-intensive systems.
• Collaborate closely with software, hardware, mechanical, manufacturing, and quality teams to ensure system performance and compliance with requirements.
• Serve as a technical authority and mentor for junior engineers, providing guidance on systems engineering best practices and technical decisions.
• Lead and participate in technical reviews, including requirements reviews, design reviews, and readiness reviews, ensuring design quality and risk mitigation.
• Make informed engineering decisions that balance performance, cost, risk, and schedule constraints.
• Support proposal development, technical planning, and preparation and delivery of technical presentations to internal stakeholders and customers.
• Work collaboratively with engineering, manufacturing, program management, quality, and suppliers to drive successful product development and delivery.
• Interface directly with customers to clarify requirements, resolve technical issues, and support delivery and acceptance activities.
• Support production, field support, and sustaining engineering activities, including issues related to manufacturing and fielded systems.
• Create and maintain detailed documentation, recognizing that approximately 60% of the role focuses on documentation and 40% on testing and hands-on activities.
• Lead and support EMC testing activities, including IEC 60601-1 EMC testing for medical devices, ensuring compliance with relevant standards.

Essential Skills

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering (Systems, Electrical, Mechanical, Software, or a related field).
• Typically 7–10 years of relevant systems engineering experience.
• Strong systems thinking and problem-solving skills applied to complex, multi-disciplinary systems.
• Ability to work across disciplines and communicate clearly with both technical and non-technical stakeholders.
• Proven experience managing complex technical trade-offs involving performance, cost, risk, and schedule.
• High attention to detail and strong documentation rigor throughout the product lifecycle.
• Experience with full product development lifecycle from concept through production and sustainment.
• Demonstrated experience leading system architecture and integration activities for complex systems.
• Proficiency with requirements management and system modeling tools.
• Hands-on experience with system integration, verification, and validation methodologies.
• Experience working with complex electromechanical and/or software-intensive systems.
• Familiarity with configuration management and change control processes.
• Strong in medical devices, including understanding of regulated development practices.
• Direct experience with IEC 60601-1 EMC testing for medical devices.
• Ability to work independently and lead technical efforts and initiatives.

Additional Skills & Qualifications

• Master’s degree in Engineering or a related field is preferred.
• Experience in regulated industries such as aerospace, defense, medical, or industrial automation.
• Experience in customer-facing technical roles, including requirements clarification and technical issue resolution.
• Experience supporting manufacturing operations and fielded systems, including troubleshooting and sustaining engineering.
• Experience planning and supporting EMC test campaigns and interpreting test results.
• Comfort presenting technical information to diverse audiences, including customers and internal leadership.

Work Environment

The role operates in a combination of office and laboratory environments, supporting both documentation and hands-on engineering activities. You will work extensively with requirements management and system modeling tools, as well as test and measurement equipment used for system integration, verification, validation, and EMC testing, including IEC 60601-1 for medical devices. Approximately 60% of your time focuses on documentation, requirements, and design artifacts, while about 40% involves testing, troubleshooting, and hands-on work with complex electromechanical and software-intensive systems. The position involves close collaboration with cross-functional teams such as software, hardware, mechanical, manufacturing, quality, and program management. Occasional travel may be required to customer or manufacturing sites to support integration, testing, and fielded systems. The environment supports focused technical work, detailed documentation, and structured reviews typical of regulated product development.

This is a Contract position based out of Goleta, CA.

The pay range for this position is $72.00 - $88.00/hr.

Eligibility requirements apply to some benefits and may depend on your job classification and length of employment. Benefits are subject to change and may be subject to specific elections, plan, or program terms. If eligible, the benefits available for this temporary role may include the following:
• Medical, dental & vision
• Critical Illness, Accident, and Hospital
• 401(k) Retirement Plan – Pre-tax and Roth post-tax contributions available
• Life Insurance (Voluntary Life & AD&D for the employee and dependents)
• Short and long-term disability
• Health Spending Account (HSA)
• Transportation benefits
• Employee Assistance Program
• Time Off/Leave (PTO, Vacation or Sick Leave)

This is a fully onsite position in Goleta,CA.

This position is anticipated to close on May 5, 2026.

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

At Actalent, diversity and inclusion are a bridge towards the equity and success of our people. DE&I is embedded into our culture through:

• Hiring diverse talent
• Maintaining an inclusive environment through persistent self-reflection
• Building a culture of care, engagement, and recognition with clear outcomes
• Ensuring growth opportunities for our people

Actalent is an equal opportunity employer.

About Actalent

Actalent is a global leader in engineering and sciences services. For more than 40 years, we’ve helped visionary companies advance their goals. Headquartered in the United States, our teams span 150 offices across North America, EMEA, and APAC—with four delivery centers in India led by 1,000 extraordinary employees who connect their passion with purpose every day.

Our Bangalore, Hyderabad, Pune, and Chennai delivery centers are hubs of engineering expertise, with core capabilities in mechanical and electrical engineering, systems and software, and manufacturing engineering. Our teams deliver work across multiple industries including transportation, consumer and industrial products, and life sciences. We serve more than 4,500 clients, including many Fortune 500 brands. Learn more about how we can work together at actalentservices.com.

Salary : $72 - $88