Tech Lead – C++ Embedded Systems

Career Area:

Technology, Digital and Data

Job Description:

Your Work Shapes the World at Caterpillar Inc.

When you join Caterpillar, you're joining a global team who cares not just about the work we do – but also about each other.  We are the makers, problem solvers, and future world builders who are creating stronger, more sustainable communities. We don't just talk about progress and innovation here – we make it happen, with our customers, where we work and live. Together, we are building a better world, so we can all enjoy living in it.

Responsibilities

1) Hands-On Engineering & Technical Leadership

• Own and contribute to architecture and detailed design.
• Actively design and contribute to feature development, debugging, and defect resolution.
• Lead and participate in design reviews, code reviews, and technical decision-making.
• Mentor engineers in modern C++, embedded systems, debugging, and profiling.
• Remove technical roadblocks, clarify priorities, and work effectively.
• Foster a learning culture and encourage knowledge sharing.

2) Delivery & Process (SDF & Agile)

• Ensure strict adherence to the Software Development Framework (SDF).
• Guide the team through backlog grooming, planning, integration, and defect triage.

3) Cross-Functional & Cross-Site Collaboration

• Collaborate with systems, controls, sensors, and hardware teams.
• Work with geographically dispersed teams to drive improvements.
• Communicate effectively with product managers and global leadership.

4) Quality, Safety, and Compliance

• Uphold rigorous software quality standards.
• Ensure proper defect management and release discipline.
• Understand safety expectations for machine-impacting software.

Required Technical Skills:

• Strong hands-on C++ experience for embedded development.
• Development experience on Embedded Linux.
• Understanding of embedded systems, concurrency, and performance.
• Experience with design reviews, code reviews, and technical documentation.
• Familiarity with sensors and positioning technologies (GNSS, IMU, laser, optical).
• Strong Git, CI/CD, and modern software practices.
• Exposure to Angular and TypeScript (nice to have).
• Bachelor’s or master’s in computer science, Electronics, or related field.
• 6–9 years of software development experience.
• This position requires working onsite five days a week.

Domain / System Understanding (Preferred)

• System-level understanding of Caterpillar machines.
• Experience with machine control, robotics, or guidance systems.
• Knowledge of industrial safety and field deployment.

Skill Descriptors

Industry Knowledge: Knowledge of the organization's industry group, trends, directions, major issues, regulatory considerations, and trendsetters; ability to apply industry knowledge appropriately to diverse situations.

Level Extensive Experience: 

•  Educates others on own organization in terms of the industry - its market position

•  Compares and contrasts the latest developments and emerging issues in the industry.

•  Raises coworkers' awareness of industry standards, practices and guidelines.

•  Explains the development of industry segments - trends, consequences, key issues.

•  Discusses industry-specific cycles and associated considerations.

Problem Solving: Knowledge of approaches, tools, techniques for recognizing, anticipating, and resolving organizational, operational or process problems; ability to apply knowledge of problem solving appropriately to diverse situations.

Level Extensive Experience: 

•  Ensures capture of lessons to be learned from a problem-solving effort.

•  Organizes potential problem solvers and leads problem resolution efforts.

•  Uses varying problem-solving approaches and techniques as appropriate.

•  Contributes to standard practices for problem-solving approaches, tools, and processes.

•  Analyzes and synthesizes information and devises alternative resolution strategies.

•  Develops successful resolutions to critical or wide-impact problems.

Software Development Life Cycle: Knowledge of software development life cycle; ability to use a structured methodology for delivering and managing new or enhanced software products to the marketplace.

Level Extensive Experience: 

•  Explains how to use multiple, vendor-provided or in-house structured methodologies.

•  Describes tasks, tools and practices for converting software product requirements into a design.

•  Demonstrates experience with all phases and deliverables of the product development methodology.

•  Implements the generic functions, features and facilities of modern structured methods.

•  Explores and evaluates major structured methodologies available in the marketplace.

•  Consults on effective application of structured product development methodologies.

Software Product Testing: Knowledge of software product testing; ability to design, plan, and execute testing strategies and tactics to ensure software product quality and adherence to stated requirements.

Level Extensive Experience: 

•  Has experience with planning and executing full spectrum of tests for multiple products.

•  Provides input to design team to ensure testing considerations are incorporated into system design.

•  Creates test scenarios that ensure all error handling processes perform as expected.

•  Defines, creates, and executes test plans and cases; estimates time, effort and resources required.

•  Explains approaches and tools for functional, reliability, and vulnerability testing.

•  Discusses applications of iterative testing using agile methodologies.

Application Development Tools: Knowledge of application and system development; ability to utilize a variety of specific tools and toolkits for developing applications.

Level Extensive Experience: 

•  Evaluates toolkits used to support major production systems.

•  Resolves issues regarding functions, features and components of multiple toolkits.

•  Provides implementation support on toolkit enhancements or changes.

•  Interprets benefits and drawbacks of procedural and event-driven toolkits.

•  Oversees the evaluation and recommendation of delivery tools and platforms.

•  Coaches others on appropriate uses of all major tools in a toolkit for a specific platform.

Artificial Intelligence: Knowledge of the concepts, technologies and methodologies of artificial intelligence (AI); ability to develop, implement and/or apply artificial intelligence products and services in specific industry domain to achieve business goals.

Level Working Knowledge: 

•  Applies AI‑assisted techniques within vehicle or machine simulation environments to support design, validation, behavior modelling, and scenario-based testing for onboard software. 

• Understands how AI and simulation fit into requirements, architecture, implementation, verification, release, and field support phases.

•  Assists in business requirements analysis in the AI solution design or deployment process.

•  Maintains and/or updates AI systems and equipment on a regular basis.

•  Deploys, develops or operates specific AI products, equipment, systems and/or platforms to achieve certain business goals.

•  Tests and troubleshoots the functionality of AI applications and systems within a specific area.

Programming: Knowledge of relevant programming languages and tools; ability to test, write, design, debug, troubleshoot and maintain source codes and computer programs.

Level Extensive Experience: 

•  Conducts walkthroughs and monitors the quality of development activities.

•  Assesses the impact of new productivity improvement tools on one's own area of responsibility.

•  Compares and contrasts similarities and differences between multiple programming languages.

•  Oversees major developmental efforts adhering to application systems design.

•  Evaluates characteristics and advantages of different programming techniques.

•  Coaches juniors on multiple programming languages.

Technical Troubleshooting: Knowledge of technical troubleshooting approaches, tools and techniques; ability to anticipate, recognize, and resolve technical issues on hardware, software, application or operation.

Level Extensive Experience: 

•  Emphasizes the business impact of failure and the criticality and timing of needed resolution so that problems can be avoided in the future.

•  Creates trouble reports for all issues found and reviews solutions for completeness and correctness.

•  Directs the resolution of communications problems in multi-vendor environments.

•  Resolves a variety of hardware, software, and communications malfunctions.

•  Coaches others on advanced diagnostic techniques and tools for unusual or performance-related problems.

•  Facilitates the distribution of releases reports and correction packages to departments or clients.

Posting Dates:

Caterpillar is an Equal Opportunity Employer.  Qualified applicants of any age are encouraged to apply

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