Senior Engineering Program Manager

At Western Digital, our vision is to power global innovation and push the boundaries of technology to make what you thought was once impossible, possible.

At our core, Western Digital is a company of problem solvers. People achieve extraordinary things given the right technology. For decades, we’ve been doing just that. Our technology helped people put a man on the moon.

We are a key partner to some of the largest and highest growth organizations in the world. From energizing the most competitive gaming platforms, to enabling systems to make cities safer and cars smarter and more connected, to powering the data centers behind many of the world’s biggest companies and public cloud, Western Digital is fueling a brighter, smarter future.

Binge-watch any shows, use social media or shop online lately? You’ll find Western Digital supporting the storage infrastructure behind many of these platforms. And, that flash memory card that captures and preserves your most precious moments? That’s us, too.

We offer an expansive portfolio of technologies, storage devices and platforms for business and consumers alike. Our data-centric solutions are comprised of the Western Digital®, G-Technology™, SanDisk® and WD® brands.

Today’s exceptional challenges require your unique skills. It’s You & Western Digital. Together, we’re the next BIG thing in data.

1. Project Planning and Execution

                •              Develop Comprehensive Project Plans: Create detailed plans outlining timelines, milestones, and deliverables for each phase of the ASIC development lifecycle.

·         Schedule alignment: Ensure alignment of schedules and milestones between teams, including ASIC, Hardware, Firmware, and System Test teams, to support synchronized and timely releases.

                •              Monitor Progress: Regularly track the advancement of tasks across all teams, ensuring adherence to schedules and prompt identification of potential delays by working with project managers.

                •              Adjust Plans as Needed: Adapt project plans in response to evolving requirements, resource constraints, or unforeseen challenges.

2. Cross-Functional Team Coordination

                •              Facilitate Communication: Ensure seamless interaction among Architecture, RTL Design, Physical Design, Verification, Validation, Firmware, and Hardware Development teams.

                •              Organize Regular Meetings: Conduct routine sync-ups to discuss progress, address issues, and align on project objectives.

                •              Resolve Conflicts: Mediate and resolve any inter-team conflicts or dependencies that may arise.

3. Resource Management

                •              Allocate Resources: Ensure teams have access to necessary tools, software licenses, and hardware resources.

                •              Manage Licenses: Oversee the procurement and renewal of software licenses, ensuring compliance and optimal utilization by working with engineering and operations teams.

                •              Maintain Documentation: Manage Confluence pages to keep all project documentation organized and up-to-date.

4. Budget Management (Capex and Opex)

                •              Monitor Expenditures: Track capital expenditures (Capex) for hardware and operational expenditures (Opex) for ongoing costs.

                •              Optimize Spending: Identify opportunities for cost savings without compromising project quality or timelines.

                •              Forecast Future Needs: Anticipate future financial requirements and help with planning budgets accordingly

5. Risk Management

                •              Identify Risks: Proactively recognize potential risks in design, verification, validation, or hardware development.

                •              Develop Mitigation Strategies: Create and implement plans to address identified risks, minimizing their impact on the project.

                •              Monitor and Adjust: Continuously assess risk factors and adjust mitigation strategies, as necessary.

6. Quality Assurance

                •              Ensure Compliance: Verify that all development stages meet industry standards and regulatory requirements.

                •              Oversee Testing: Supervise pre-silicon verification, FPGA validation, and post-silicon bring-up to ensure functionality and performance.

                •              Implement Best Practices: Promote the adoption of best practices in design, testing, and documentation.

7. Stakeholder Communication

                •              Provide Regular Updates: Keep stakeholders informed about project status, milestones achieved, and any issues encountered.

                •              Manage Expectations: Set realistic expectations regarding project timelines, deliverables, and potential challenges.

                •              Gather Feedback: Solicit input from stakeholders to ensure the project aligns with their needs and expectations.

8. Continuous Improvement

                •              Conduct Post-Mortems: After project milestones, analyze what went well and what could be improved.

                •              Implement Improvements: Apply lessons learned to enhance processes and prevent recurring issues.

                •              Encourage Innovation: Foster an environment where team members feel empowered to suggest and implement improvements.

1. Project Planning and Execution

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Engineering, Computer Science, or a related field.

• Experience managing complex projects with detailed timelines and milestones.

• Proficiency in project management tools (e.g., JIRA, MS Project, Confluence).

2. Cross-Functional Team Coordination

• Strong communication skills for coordinating across technical teams.

• Experience organizing and leading regular team meetings.

• Ability to resolve team dependencies and conflicts effectively.

3. Resource Management

• Familiarity with allocating resources like tools, licenses, and hardware.

• Experience managing procurement and ensuring documentation is up to date.

4. Budget Management

• Experience managing project budgets, including tracking expenses.

• Ability to identify cost-saving opportunities and forecast resource needs.

5. Risk Management

• Ability to identify and mitigate risks in technical projects.

• Experience adjusting plans to address evolving challenges.

6. Quality Assurance

• Familiarity with industry standards and testing processes in development.

• Experience overseeing design validation and compliance.

7. Stakeholder Communication

• Strong skills in providing clear project updates and managing expectations.

• Ability to gather feedback to ensure alignment with goals.

8. Continuous Improvement

• Experience conducting post-project reviews and applying improvements.

• Encourages innovation and better practices within teams.

Soft Skills

• Strategic thinking, adaptability, and team leadership abilities.

Western Digital is committed to providing equal opportunities to all applicants and employees and will not discriminate against any applicant or employee based on their race, color, ancestry, religion (including religious dress and grooming standards), sex (including pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions, breastfeeding or related medical conditions), gender (including a person’s gender identity, gender expression, and gender-related appearance and behavior, whether or not stereotypically associated with the person’s assigned sex at birth), age, national origin, sexual orientation, medical condition, marital status (including domestic partnership status), physical disability, mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, protected medical and family care leave, Civil Air Patrol status, military and veteran status, or other legally protected characteristics. We also prohibit harassment of any individual on any of the characteristics listed above. Our non-discrimination policy applies to all aspects of employment. We comply with the laws and regulations set forth in the "Know Your Rights: Workplace Discrimination is Illegal” poster. Our pay transparency policy is available here.

Western Digital thrives on the power and potential of diversity. As a global company, we believe the most effective way to embrace the diversity of our customers and communities is to mirror it from within. We believe the fusion of various perspectives results in the best outcomes for our employees, our company, our customers, and the world around us. We are committed to an inclusive environment where every individual can thrive through a sense of belonging, respect and contribution.

Western Digital is committed to offering opportunities to applicants with disabilities and ensuring all candidates can successfully navigate our careers website and our hiring process. Please contact us at [email protected] to advise us of your accommodation request. In your email, please include a description of the specific accommodation you are requesting as well as the job title and requisition number of the position for which you are applying.

Based on our experience, we anticipate that the application deadline will be 1/24/25 although we reserve the right to close the application process sooner if we hire an applicant for this position before the application deadline. If we are not able to hire someone from this role before the application deadline, we will update this posting with a new anticipated application deadline.

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Compensation & Benefits Details

• An employee’s pay position within the salary range may be based on several factors including but not limited to (1) relevant education; qualifications; certifications; and experience; (2) skills, ability, knowledge of the job; (3) performance, contribution and results; (4) geographic location; (5) shift; (6) internal and external equity; and (7) business and organizational needs.
• The salary range is what we believe to be the range of possible compensation for this role at the time of this posting.  We may ultimately pay more or less than the posted range and this range is only applicable for jobs to be performed in California, Colorado, New York or remote jobs that can be performed in California, Colorado and New York.  This range may be modified in the future.
• You will be eligible to participate in Western Digital’s Short-Term Incentive (STI) Plan, which provides incentive awards based on Company and individual performance.  Depending on your role and your performance, you may be eligible to participate in our annual Long-Term Incentive (LTI) program, which consists of restricted stock units (RSUs) or cash equivalents, pursuant to the terms of the LTI plan. Please note that not all roles are eligible to participate in the LTI program, and not all roles are eligible for equity under the LTI plan. RSU awards are also available to eligible new hires, subject to Western Digital’s Standard Terms and Conditions for Restricted Stock Unit Awards.
• We offer a comprehensive package of benefits including paid vacation time; paid sick leave; medical/dental/vision insurance; life, accident and disability insurance; tax-advantaged flexible spending and health savings accounts; employee assistance program; other voluntary benefit programs such as supplemental life and AD&D, legal plan, pet insurance, critical illness, accident and hospital indemnity; tuition reimbursement; transit; the Applause Program, employee stock purchase plan, and the Western Digital Savings 401(k) Plan.
• Note: No amount of pay is considered to be wages or compensation until such amount is earned, vested, and determinable. The amount and availability of any bonus, commission, benefits, or any other form of compensation and benefits that are allocable to a particular employee remains in the Company's sole discretion unless and until paid and may be modified at the Company’s sole discretion, consistent with the law.