Hardware Engineer Job Description Template

Hardware engineers collaborate.

Odds are, you have hardware engineers to thank for many of the items you use all day every day — in your workplace, inside your home, and on the road. These highly skilled tech workers work closely with software engineers to dream up, develop, test, manufacture, and regularly update computer products. If you’re in the market for a hardware engineer, you likely know how sought-after these specialists are. One way to stand out from the competition is to craft a thorough hardware engineer job description that appeals to the values and enthusiasms of tech talent with the credentials to fill this important role.

Demand for hardware engineers is expected to grow by 5% over the next decade. Between the continued global proliferation of smart products and devices and the persistent scarcity of workers with the STEM skills to fill needed engineering roles, the United States is on track to experience a shortfall of 300,000 engineers by the end of the decade. Employers are already feeling the pressure to secure top performers, driving them to offer increasingly competitive salaries and benefits packages. Some employers in tech and manufacturing are even aggressively recruiting foreign workers by securing H1B visas and other types of foreign worker sponsorship to fill engineering posts.

However, you choose to recruit hardware engineering applicants, the template below can be tweaked to reflect the qualities that make your workplace special, enumerate your position’s specific job requirements, and highlight your company’s most appealing perks and benefits. For more ideas about what to include in your job description, you can read through other employers’ job posts for hardware engineers.

Hardware engineers collaborate.

Hardware Engineer Job Description

Intro Paragraph: Your job description should begin with a concise overview of the open position and a brief description of an ideal candidate. Writing this summary will help you to focus on the most critical qualities you are seeking in a hardware engineer.

You might phrase it as follows: “We are looking for a hardware engineer to join our innovative design team. The ideal candidate has a passion for effective problem solving and efficient project management, as well as previous experience working in a research and development or manufacturing environment.”

About Our Workplace: Use this section of your hardware engineer job description to highlight what sets your workplace apart from the competition. This is also the perfect place to summarize your organizational mission and values and explain what makes your workplace special. Do you run a large research institute or a small cutting-edge startup? Do you utilize a team approach to innovation and problem-solving or does your organization encourage autonomy and individual ingenuity?

One of the best ways to craft this section is to ask two or three of your staff engineers to offer their own short summation of what they like best about working for your organization. The more clearly you can communicate the elements that make your work setting stand out, the more likely you are to attract applicants who will succeed in it.

Hardware Engineer Job Responsibilities: The following list of day-to-day job responsibilities may differ significantly depending on the size of your engineering staff, the scope of your operations, and the area of engineering or product development the position will focus on. Here are some examples:

  • Develop new products and product updates that meet the needs of end users by considering input from internal and external stakeholders and market forces.
  • Manage and implement innovations in the manufacturing processes of product components, including processors, circuit boards, memory storage cards, processors, and routers.
  • Develop computer-integrated products and research possible applications for computer-enhanced product development.
  • Manage the steps of the hardware design and development lifecycle, including budgeting, production cost maintenance and reduction, and deadline management.
  • Participate in development meetings with software engineers and other internal stakeholders to further organizational sales goals and enhance user experience.
  • Revise, test, and troubleshoot network architecture and computer hardware.
  • Analyze test results and revise elements of product development accordingly, including pre-product launch beta testing.
  • Build and optimize Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGA) firmware.
  • Create schematics, draft blueprints, and design prototypes for new products and components.
  • Draft manufacturing and production specifications and documentation for products, components, and systems.
  • Develop quality assurance reviews to assess and address potential design flaws and manufacturing process challenges and inefficiencies.
  • Engage in professional development opportunities to keep current with technological advances, as well as governmental and sector-specific regulations and best practices.

Work Hours and Benefits: Next, you’ll want to include the required hours and the salary range and benefits that come with this position. To determine a fair offer for your city or town, you can use a salary tool like Monster’s, which allows you to input job title and location to calculate estimates for low, median, and high salaries.

One of the best ways to use this section of your hardware engineer job description is to emphasize benefits and perks that are most likely to appeal to applicants in this highly competitive field, such as project-targeted bonuses, student loan repayment, tuition reimbursement, and professional development opportunities.

Hardware Engineer Skills/Qualifications: Be aware that some candidates are less likely to apply for positions if they don’t think they have every listed qualification. Exhaustive lists of required skills and experiences can be especially detrimental if you are looking to strengthen your diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives and attract women applicants and candidates from underrepresented groups, a problem that persists in the field of engineering and can negatively affect innovation and efficiency. For this reason, you may want to limit the number of required skills you include or divide your requirements between “required” and “optional” qualifications. You may want to include:

  • Knowledge of programming, computer hardware and software design, and engineering principles
  • Familiarity with one or more of the most widely used computer programming languages, such as JavaScript, Python, Java, and SQL, and particularly hardware descriptive languages (HDSs) like C and C++
  • Ability to work collaboratively and communicate effectively with professionals from a range of technical and nontechnical backgrounds
  • Ability to anticipate, detect, and address problems with product design and manufacturing processes with an eye toward quality improvement and increased efficiency
  • Product and project management skills, including budgeting and deadline management
  • Analytical and problem-solving skills
  • Continuous/process improvement mindset
  • Ability to thrive in a team environment
  • Curiosity and innovative spirit
  • Customer focus
  • Attention to detail
  • Multitasking

Education, Experience, and Licensing Requirements:

  • BS in computer engineer or similar field from an ABET-accredited college program, master’s degree a plus
  • Previous hardware engineering, product development, and manufacturing experience a plus
  • Certified Hardware and Technology Engineer (CHTE) certification
  • CompTIA A+ certification

Call to Action: End your hardware engineer job description with a “call to action” that encourages qualified applicants to “apply now” by filling out an online application.

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