Product Quality Tech Lead

Product Quality Tech Lead

Location: San Jose, CA (4 days onsite)

We are partnering with a leading semiconductor company to hire a Product Quality Tech Lead to join a high-impact team working on next-generation optical engines, co-packaged optics (CPO), and AI networking products. This is a senior leadership role at the center of product development, qualification, manufacturing, and customer deployment.

The position is ideal for someone with deep expertise in product quality, reliability, and failure analysis, combined with the ability to lead cross-functional programs across engineering, operations, and supplier ecosystems. You will play a critical role in shaping reliability strategy from early design through production ramp and field performance.

The Role

You will own product quality and reliability across the full lifecycle, from concept through production and field deployment, helping to ensure robust performance in advanced optical and networking hardware.

Key responsibilities include:

• Lead product quality and reliability strategy for optical engines, CPO, and AI networking products across development, qualification, manufacturing, and field deployment
• Drive early reliability risk reduction through Design for Reliability (DfR), DFMEA, and structured risk assessment
• Define and lead formal qualification plans at component, assembly, module, and system levels
• Develop and execute accelerated life test strategies, including lifetime modeling, activation energy extraction, and use-condition extrapolation
• Establish and scale statistical process control (SPC) across critical manufacturing, assembly, and test processes
• Lead failure analysis, root-cause investigations, and corrective actions for development, qualification, production, and field issues
• Apply statistical tools such as JMP and Minitab to analyze process, qualification, and reliability data and support data-driven decisions
• Partner closely with PIC, IC, packaging, assembly, test, manufacturing, supplier quality, and systems teams to improve robustness and manufacturability
• Define quality metrics, release criteria, and executive review frameworks to support readiness and business decisions
• Lead and mentor a high-performing quality and reliability team
• Drive resolution of customer quality escalations, including field failures, corrective action plans, customer communications, and cross-functional recovery efforts

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Materials Science, Physics, Mechanical Engineering, or a related technical field
• 15 years of experience in quality, reliability, product assurance, or failure analysis within photonics, semiconductors, optical interconnects, or high-performance networking hardware
• 7 years of experience leading teams and cross-functional quality or reliability programs
• Strong background in optical engines or modules, silicon photonics, or related technologies
• Deep expertise in DFMEA, Design for Reliability, qualification planning, SPC, accelerated life testing, lifetime modeling, activation energy extraction, and failure analysis
• Proficiency with JMP and Minitab, with strong command of statistical methods such as DOE, process capability analysis, regression, and trend analysis
• Experience across the full product lifecycle, including NPI, qualification, ramp, and field support
• Demonstrated success working across PIC, assembly, packaging, test, IC, manufacturing, supplier quality, and systems teams
• Strong communication and leadership skills, including experience managing customer-facing quality issues and escalations

Preferred Experience

• Direct experience with co-packaged optics (CPO)
• Experience in AI networking, optical interconnect, or other advanced high-speed hardware environments
• Experience supporting complex manufacturing and supplier ecosystems
• Proven ability to build or scale quality and reliability processes in fast-moving product organizations
• Track record of driving quality improvements in highly cross-functional, technically demanding environments
• Additional Information
• This is a senior leadership role with significant cross-functional visibility and influence
• Candidates must be willing to work onsite in San Jose 4 days per week
• Relocation support is available
• Visa sponsorship can be considered for the right candidate

We are committed to submitting suitable candidates for this vacancy to our client ASAP, for more information contact Maria Mercado at PER Recruitment or send your CV at maria.m@per-international.com