Applications Engineering Senior Director

Job Description and Requirements

Sr. Director Applications and Product Engineering (Hiring locations:  Sunnyvale, California or Nepean, Canada)

We Are:

At Synopsys, we drive the innovations that shape the way we live and connect. Our technology is central to the Era of Pervasive Intelligence, from self-driving cars to learning machines. We lead in chip design, verification, and IP integration, empowering the creation of high-performance silicon chips and software content. Join us to transform the future through continuous technological innovation.

You Are:

You are a bold, transformative leader with a deep technical foundation in semiconductor engineering. You thrive at the intersection of business strategy, customer engagement, and technical execution, always seeking ways to modernize and scale impact. Your expertise spans silicon development, interface IP technologies—including DDR, HBM, and other high-speed protocols—and you are recognized for your ability to build high-performing global teams. You embrace the challenge of transitioning traditional engineering models to data-driven, AI-augmented paradigms, leveraging technology to deliver repeatable, high-quality outcomes for customers in diverse sectors from HPC to automotive.

As a trusted partner to both internal and external stakeholders, you have the executive presence and communication skills to influence senior leadership, shape long-term engagement models, and drive cross-functional alignment. You are passionate about digital transformation, championing AI adoption to elevate engineering effectiveness and operational discipline. Your leadership style is inclusive and empowering, focused on mentoring and growing the next generation of technical experts. Above all, you are committed to fostering a culture of ownership, continuous improvement, and customer-centric innovation, positioning Synopsys’ interface IP business for its next phase of growth.

What You’ll Be Doing:

• Leading a global product and applications engineering organization, guiding customers through the full SoC journey using Synopsys interface IPs such as DDR, HBM, and other high-speed interfaces.
• Owning execution quality and outcomes for complex, high-visibility customer engagements—from IP configuration and integration to silicon bring-up and production.
• Serving as a trusted partner to customer engineering leadership, shaping collaboration models and long-term technical engagement strategies.
• Driving cross-functional alignment to translate customer challenges into structured technical strategies and influencing IP roadmaps by surfacing systemic pain points and execution bottlenecks.
• Acting as the AI and digital transformation leader, championing adoption of AI tools in daily workflows and defining success metrics for efficiency, quality, and engineer enablement.
• Building, mentoring, and retaining senior technical leaders and next-generation experts across a geographically distributed team, fostering a culture of ownership and continuous improvement.

The Impact You Will Have:

• Scale expertise through AI and disciplined execution, bringing the agentic AI revolution into the real world of engineering at enterprise scale.
• Strengthen customer confidence by delivering consistent, predictable, and high-quality technical outcomes across engagements.
• Elevate organizational maturity by standardizing best practices and modernizing execution models for speed, quality, and repeatability.
• Build the next generation of leaders, enabling the business to scale and innovate.
• Drive transformation initiatives that position Synopsys as a leader in interface IP solutions for high-impact industries.
• Expand Synopsys’ influence and market share through strategic customer partnerships and technical credibility.

What You’ll Need:

• Advanced degree in Electrical Engineering or Computer Science, or equivalent depth of industry experience.
• 10+ years of semiconductor industry leadership experience, with recognized expertise in silicon development, silicon bring-up, and validation—especially across memory and high-speed interface technologies.
• Proven track record of building and leading high-performing global engineering organizations, with demonstrated impact at scale.
• Hands-on experience with SoC development including design, verification, implementation, and interface IP development/integration, particularly around DDR and HBM memories.
• Exceptional executive-level communication and influence skills, with the ability to engage credibly with customers, partners, and internal leadership at the most senior levels.
• Demonstrated success in driving cross-functional strategy and execution, navigating complex stakeholder environments to deliver business-critical outcomes.

Who You Are:

• Strong systems thinker with operational discipline.
• Proven leader in transformation initiatives.
• Exceptional communicator and stakeholder manager at the executive level.
• Passionate about leveraging AI to elevate engineering effectiveness.
• Inclusive mentor and builder of high-performing, diverse teams.

The Team You’ll Be A Part Of:

Join a forward-thinking, global interface IP engineering group committed to delivering high-impact solutions across industries such as HPC, automotive, and beyond. The team is focused on modernizing customer engagement, scaling expertise through AI, and fostering a culture of continuous improvement and technical excellence. Together, you will bridge customer needs, business priorities, and technical execution, advancing Synopsys’ interface IP business to its next phase of growth.

Rewards and Benefits:

We offer a comprehensive range of health, wellness, and financial benefits to cater to your needs. Our total rewards include both monetary and non-monetary offerings. Your recruiter will provide more details about the salary range and benefits during the hiring process.

At Synopsys, we want talented people of every background to feel valued and supported to do their best work. Synopsys considers all applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, military veteran status, or disability.

In addition to the base salary, this role may be eligible for an annual bonus, equity, and other discretionary bonuses. Synopsys offers comprehensive health, wellness, and financial benefits as part of a competitive total rewards package. The actual compensation offered will be based on a number of job-related factors, including location, skills, experience, and education. Your recruiter can share more specific details on the total rewards package upon request. The base salary range for this role is across the U.S.