Q

Qualcomm

Designs mobile chips and licenses wireless patents

PWB Designer – Senior Lead

Full-TimeUpdated on 10/28/2026
No salary listed
Senior, Expert
Associate's
Bengaluru, Karnataka, India
In Person
Hardware EngineeringBoard & Electronics Design

About the job

Requirements
  • An Associate's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, Mathematics, or a related field and 5 or more years of PCB layout handling or related work experience, or a high school diploma or equivalent and 7 or more years of PCB layout handling or related work experience.
  • Six to nine years of active PWB design experience in high-density electronics packaging.
  • Six to nine years of experience designing consumer-grade mobile phones using latest-generation processor chips.
  • Experience performing Design for Manufacture analysis using Valor and/or CAM350 tools.
  • Design experience with RF, analog, and high-speed digital circuits, including DDR2, DDR3, DDR4, HDMI, PCIe, SATA, MIPI, USB 2 and 3.x, GigE, and ATE platforms such as 93K, uFlex, and iFlex.
  • Strong understanding and demonstrated application of PWB design principles, practices, and standards.
  • Ability to perform complex PWB design tasks requiring extensive knowledge of fabrication and assembly process capabilities and limitations.
  • Experience working with on-board EMI shielding cans.
  • Experience with IDF/EMN file exchange between mechanical and hardware teams.
  • Ability to effectively communicate with project peers and engineering personnel through email, web meetings, and instant messaging, including status reports and illustrative presentation slides.
  • Ability to multitask and meet aggressive schedules in a dynamic environment.
  • Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
  • Leadership skills to help direct and prioritize project tasks, set tasks according to schedule, and communicate milestones and direction to outside team members.
Responsibilities
  • Provide PWB design solutions for a variety of design types, including Product Test Engineering designs, emulator designs, and reference handset designs.
  • Work with teams in the United States and India to provide PWB design solutions for high-performance electronic assemblies for mobile, modem, and IoT products.
  • Use PWB CAD design software daily to perform placement and routing activities that meet mechanical and electrical design constraints and requirements.
  • Exchange electronic files with mechanical and electrical engineers to ensure compliance with fit, form, function, power integrity, and signal integrity requirements.
  • Create fabrication and assembly drawings and work with internal teams and external suppliers to support PWB fabrication and assembly.
  • Interface with internal staff and external partners to execute multidisciplinary projects.
  • Develop solutions to complex problems and propose PWB design trade-offs to the engineering design team for resolution and implementation.
  • Determine design trade-offs needed to meet requirements and produce high-quality, cost-effective PWBs on schedule.
  • Maintain technical coordination with Engineering and Manufacturing and resolve PWB design issues with fabrication and assembly vendors.
  • Participate in and provide input to process improvement, PWB, and DFM checklists and guidelines.
  • Determine assignment objectives and plan, schedule, and arrange activities to accomplish them.
  • Collaborate with internal PWB designers to optimize product development processes and schedule execution.
  • Prepare and deliver design reviews to the project team.
  • Help direct and prioritize project tasks, set tasks according to schedule, and communicate milestones and direction to outside team members.

About the company

Q

Qualcomm

View
cbWebsite

Qualcomm designs the Snapdragon processors and modems inside many Android phones, and it licenses its wireless patents to device makers around the world. It helped commercialize CDMA, the cellular technology behind 3G networks, and its patents cover core parts of the 4G and 5G standards that phones use to connect. The company does not run its own chip factories; contract foundries make its chips, which it sells to makers of phones, PCs, cars, and connected devices. Device makers also pay Qualcomm royalties for using its patented technology, which forms a second business alongside chip sales. Qualcomm was founded in 1985 and is based in San Diego, California.

Company Size

10,001+

Company Stage

IPO

Headquarters

San Diego, California

Founded

1985

Get referred to Qualcomm

See people who can refer or advise you

Simplify Jobs

Simplify's Take

What believers are saying

  • Cars are a second engine: automotive chip revenue rose 61% to $1.59 billion in the June 2026 quarter.
  • Pays for learning: Qualcomm funds tuition assistance and apprenticeships and sells staff discounted shares through a stock purchase plan.
  • Profits support stability: Qualcomm earned $2.21 non-GAAP per share in the June 2026 quarter despite a 4% sales dip.

What critics are saying

  • Apple is walking away: Qualcomm expects Apple revenue to fall about 50% from the September to December 2026 quarter.
  • Data-center deals start thin: in July 2026, management said custom chips will cut chip gross margin 1.5 to 2 points.
  • Cuts keep trickling: Qualcomm filed WARN notices in April 2026 covering 144 layoffs, including 68 in San Diego.

What makes Qualcomm unique

  • Phones are only part of it: handsets were $5.09 billion of $8.50 billion chip revenue in fiscal Q3 2026.
  • Cloud giants buy its custom chips: two hyperscaler design wins start producing revenue in the December 2026 quarter.
  • It owns an AI software layer: Qualcomm completed its Modular acquisition in July 2026 for open generative AI software.

Help us improve and share your feedback! Did you find this helpful?

Benefits

  • Premium-free health coverage
  • Onsite health & fitness centers
  • Retirement programs
  • Disability & life insurance programs
  • Tuition reimbursement
  • Product discounts
  • Flexible time off
  • Parental leave

Growth & Insights and Company News

6 month growth

3%

1 year growth

2%

2 year growth

0%
Yahoo Finance
Oct 27th, 2026
January bonus for 2026 work won't count against $25,560 Social Security earnings limit

Qualcomm chief executive Cristiano Amon told staff the chipmaker will cut jobs worldwide in a "performance-focused reduction" after annual employee reviews, Reuters reported on October 20, 2026, citing an internal memo. Notifications begin in November, and the number of layoffs is unclear. Laid-off workers who start Social Security in January 2027 may worry that final pay will count against the $25,560 earnings limit. Social Security counts wages when the work was done, so bonuses, vacation pay and possibly severance for 2026 work shouldn't count toward 2027. A 2027 W-2 may still list that money, so retirees should get an itemised breakdown from payroll and tell Social Security which payments cover 2026. Above the limit, Social Security withholds $1 for every $2 earned, but it credits withheld months once full retirement age is reached.

Bloomberg
Oct 27th, 2026
Anduril and Qualcomm to build BlueChip laptops designed and assembled in the US

Anduril Industries and Qualcomm are producing laptops designed and assembled in the US, called BlueChip. The computers are meant to supply critical industries through a US-based supply chain.

Yahoo Finance
Oct 23rd, 2026
Qualcomm targets $15B data center sales by fiscal 2029 as handset revenue falls

Qualcomm is entering the data center chip market, with first revenue expected in the December quarter. The company says it has secured two custom chip customers, both global-scale hyperscalers, holds purchase orders from both, and has started making the wafers. Management targets data center revenue of $5 billion in fiscal 2027 and $15 billion in fiscal 2029. These are targets, not results. It closed its acquisition of Modular Inc. on July 29, 2026, to add data center software. The stock returned 4.5% over the past year, against 15.1% for the S&P 500. Revenue fell 4.0% in fiscal Q3 2026, and gross margin dropped to 53.1% from 55.6% a year earlier, as higher memory prices weighed.

CNBC
Oct 23rd, 2026
Indonesia's wealth fund steps in as stocks slide; Qualcomm plans layoffs, Lindt CEO exits

Indonesian stocks saw another round of panic selling this week after reports that index provider MSCI is considering downgrading the country's market status. Danantara, Indonesia's sovereign wealth fund, stepped in to stabilise the market. Its chief executive officer, Rosan Perkasa Roeslani, has called sharp pullbacks long-term buying opportunities. Qualcomm plans a new round of global layoffs, with figures undisclosed. Chief executive officer Cristiano Amon said in an internal memo that the cuts aim to build a stronger performance culture. Its shares have lagged the broader market this year. Lindt chief executive officer Adalbert Lechner stepped down on Monday after nearly 33 years at the company. His predecessor returns on an interim basis. Lindt raised prices about 16% in the first half to offset higher cocoa costs, then cut its full-year guidance twice as consumers pulled back.

Design & Reuse
Oct 22nd, 2026
Qualcomm buys RISC-V startup Akeana to push into AI and data-center chips.

Qualcomm buys RISC-V startup Akeana to push into AI and data-center chips. October 22, 2026 - By dealroom.co What's the deal? Qualcomm has acquired Akeana, a US semiconductor startup that designs processors using the open-source RISC-V architecture. Terms were undisclosed. The deal brings Akeana's technology and engineering team into Qualcomm to expand its push in AI and data centers. Who's Akeana? Founded in 2021 by engineers who previously built server processors at Marvell, the startup raised more than $100 million in August 2024 from investors including Kleiner Perkins, Mayfield, and Fidelity. Its RISC-V designs let companies customise processors for AI systems, computers, and data centers.