Manager, FPGA Development

Application close date:

At Blue Origin, we envision millions of people living and working in space for the benefit of Earth. We’re working to develop reusable, safe, and low-cost space vehicles and systems within a culture of safety, collaboration, and inclusion. Join our team of problem solvers as we add new chapters to the history of spaceflight! 

The FPGA Manager will lead a team of engineers responsible for developing, implementing, and verifying complex digital designs on Field-Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs) for avionics supporting Blue Origin's lunar lander and transport vehicles. This role requires a strong technical background in FPGA design and verification, combined with proven leadership abilities to manage resources, schedules, and budgets for multiple projects.

• Lead, mentor, and manage a team of FPGA engineers, including conducting performance reviews, setting career development plans, and facilitating ongoing training.
• Provide technical guidance and oversight throughout the entire FPGA development lifecycle, from architecture definition and requirements gathering to implementation, verification, and validation.
• Define and enforce standardized design methodologies, coding standards, and quality assurance processes across all FPGA projects.
• Drive continuous improvement within the team by assessing and evaluating new tools, design techniques, and emerging FPGA technologies. 

• Manage project schedules, budgets, resource allocation, and technical risks to ensure timely and on-budget delivery of FPGA solutions.
• Present project status updates, design reviews, and technical findings to both internal stakeholders and external customers.
• Coordinate with other engineering teams—including hardware, software, and systems engineering—to define requirements and manage interfaces.
• Partner with the FPGA verification team to ensure designs are verifiable and coverage-closable; align design and DV schedules.

• Direct the architecture and design of FPGA-based solutions for high-performance, real-time applications.
• Oversee the implementation of complex digital logic and, where applicable, signal processing algorithms on FPGA platforms.
• Ensure designs meet stringent requirements for performance, area, power efficiency, reliability, and security.
• Drive the selection and evaluation of appropriate FPGA devices, IP cores, and associated toolchains. 

• Education: 
  • Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or a related field.
• Experience:
  • Minimum of 5+ years of experience in FPGA design and verification.
  • Minimum of 2+ years of experience in technical leadership or management.
  • Proven experience delivering complex FPGA solutions for real-world products.
• Technical skills:
  • Deep expertise in digital design, FPGA architecture, and design tradeoffs.
  • Proficiency with Hardware Description Languages (HDLs) such as SystemVerilog/Verilog/VHDL.
  • Expertise with FPGA vendor toolchains (e.g., AMD/Xilinx Vivado, Intel/Altera Quartus).
  • Experience with high-speed digital interfaces (e.g., PCIe, DDR4/5, 10/40/100 GbE) and embedded processors on FPGAs (SoC).
  • Knowledge of standard verification methodologies (e.g., UVM) and tools (e.g., QuestaSim/ModelSim or equivalent).
  • Familiarity with lab bring-up, debugging tools (e.g., ILA), and high-speed test equipment.
• Soft skills:
  • Exceptional leadership, communication, and interpersonal skills.
  • Strong problem-solving, analytical, and critical thinking abilities.
  • Proven ability to work effectively in a cross-functional team environment. 

• Knowledge of specific application areas, such as communications, radar, software-defined radios, or embedded systems.
• Familiarity with version control systems (e.g., Git) and project tracking software (e.g., Jira).
• Knowledge of digital signal processing (DSP) theory and implementation techniques.
• Experience with DO-254 (airborne electronic hardware) or equivalent safety-critical FPGA development processes.
• Aerospace, defense, spaceflight, or other high-reliability / safety-critical FPGA background.
• Experience managing a geographically distributed team.
• Familiarity with formal verification, CDC methodology, and IP reuse strategies.

Base Pay Range for:

Don’t meet all desired requirements? Studies have shown that some people are less likely to apply to jobs unless they meet every single desired qualification. At Blue Origin, we are dedicated to building an authentic workplace, so if you’re excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every desired qualification in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyway. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles.