Director of Engineering (Innovation Center)

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LG NOVA

LG Electronics' North America Innovation Center (a.k.a., LG NOVA) in Santa Clara, California has an ambitious vision to become the nerve center of global innovation. Aiming to create the future of LG with the focus on disruptive and exponential growth areas such healthcare, cleantech, AI, LG NOVA's mission is to create and launch new LG ventures by working with global corporations, startups, governments, and technology stakeholders using open /outside-in innovation. We are currently seeking the newest innovator as an Engineering Director in Santa Clara, CA. This is a hybrid position.

The Opportunity

Engineering Director
LG NOVA is seeking a highly experienced and dynamic Director of Engineering in the San Francisco Bay Area to lead and manage a team of 5-10 engineers. The goal for this position is to help NOVA develop robust engineering capabilities (mostly non-hardware), leveraging both internal resources and external partners to enable us to respond quickly to the needs of our unique process to create and spin out new start-up ventures. This position will directly report to the Head of LG NOVA with a dotted line to the Head of Business Incubation. The Director will be responsible for delivering proof of concepts (PoCs) and prototypes, mostly for software and platform solutions, working closely with the Business Incubation team. This role requires a deep technical background, proven leadership, and the ability to translate business needs into technical solutions.

• Lead and manage a team of 5-10 engineers, providing guidance, mentorship, and professional development.
• Collaborate with the Business Incubation team to understand new business opportunities and translate them into technical requirements.
• Oversee the design, development, and delivery of PoCs and prototypes for new software and platform solutions.
• Ensure high-quality, scalable, and innovative solutions are developed within specified timelines and budgets.
• Foster a culture of innovation, creativity, and collaboration within the engineering team.
• Provide technical expertise and direction in system architecture, design, and coding practices.
• Track and report progress to senior leadership, identifying risks and implementing mitigation strategies.
• Stay current with emerging technologies and trends to ensure the team is utilizing the latest advancements in software development.
• Identify high quality external development and design partners to contract with and bolster NOVA's ability to support new business incubation and spinout process.
• Work with both Business Incubation and Ecosystem team leads, entrepreneurs-in-residence (EIRs) to understand and address their needs as they create new business ideas and concepts.
• Drive complex technical innovation in area of expertise. Showcase best in class SW engineering best practices by exhibiting them.
• Function as a role model and help set a high bar for NOVA engineering culture and values and drive adoption of engineering best practices.
• Build an energetic and capable engineering team with can-do mentality.
• Work with relevant stakeholders to build project goals and deliver on time
• Provide oversight for, resolve and escalate engineering project risks and team issues.
• Communicate project/team updates to upper management and collaboration parties efficiently.
• Provide performance feedback in timely fashion including monthly, quarterly, and annual feedback
• Facilitate engineering communication to each other within a project, cross-team, and management

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent practical experience in engineering or computer science. Master's degree or PhD in computer science or relevant technical field is a plus.
• Minimum 15+ years relevant work experience including 5+ years of experience with software development in one or more programming languages (e.g., Python, C, C++, Java, JavaScript).
• 3+ years of experience in a technical leadership role (>5 technical team members) in a product organization.
• Proven track record in developing PoCs and prototypes, particularly in fast-paced and innovative environments.
• Strong technical skills in software development and architecture, with hands-on experience in one or more programming languages.
• Exceptional problem-solving abilities and a passion for driving innovation and excellence.
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills, with crisp, positive and can-do communication style and the ability to work effectively with cross-functional teams and stakeholders, including promptness in responding to requests from other teams and stakeholders.
• Deep experience with software architecture and both front and back-end development.
• Strong technical acumen and broad knowledge of current and emerging technologies (Cloud, Mobile, IoT, AI, ML, Embedded, DSP, etc.) preferred to support effective technical evaluations.
• Experience in soliciting, hiring, working with and managing contracted engineers, developers, and engineering firms.
• Proven capability to align and negotiate with key stakeholders within an organization, and have a strong sense of team accountability.
• Comfortable with ambiguity and uncertainty; the ability to adapt nimbly and lead others through complex situations.
• Active listening skills and ability to dissect problems in an organized manner and competing priorities

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience working in new business incubation or startup environments.
• Familiarity with cloud platforms, AI/ML, or emerging technologies is a plus.
• Experience with agile methodologies and rapid development cycles.

Location

• This position will work out of the LG NOVA office in Santa Clara, California. Travel may be up to 10~20%.
• This position is a hybrid position. (In-office on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, while remote on Monday and Friday.)
• This position is a regular full-time position