Director, Applications Engineering

Job Title

Director, Applications Engineering

Role Summary

Lead a team of Application Engineers that partners with customers to integrate Interface IP (PCIe, high-speed SerDes, and related IP) into ASIC/SoC designs. Own team execution, technical quality, customer success, cross-functional alignment, and escalation management to deliver predictable, high-quality outcomes across multiple customer programs.

Experience Level

Senior — requires extensive industry experience; posting indicates approximately 20+ years of relevant experience.

Responsibilities

Primary responsibilities include team leadership, customer technical support for IP integration, and driving cross-functional improvements to processes and product quality.

• Lead, hire, onboard, coach, and manage performance of Application Engineering team members to deliver strong customer outcomes.
• Prioritize work, allocate resources, and manage execution across multiple customer engagements and internal deliverables; establish operating rhythms and accountability.
• Own customer escalations for Interface IP integration; drive structured debug and resolution with R&D, Product, and Program teams.
• Define and standardize best practices for pre-silicon integration reviews, signoff checklists, and milestone-based customer engagement.
• Lead initiatives to apply AI-enabled flows to accelerate pre-silicon IP integration, debug, and customer engagement processes.
• Drive cross-functional feedback loops to improve product quality, documentation, collateral, and enablement based on field learnings.
• Track and report key metrics (milestone health, issue trends, response times, customer satisfaction) and continuously improve team processes.
• Stay current on relevant standards and market trends and translate them into team readiness and customer guidance.
• Travel occasionally to support strategic customer engagements, executive reviews, and critical milestones.

Requirements

Must-have technical and leadership skills; items listed as nice-to-have where applicable.

• Must-have: ~20+ years of experience in SoC/ASIC development, applications engineering, design, verification, or silicon/IP bring-up with a record of customer-facing technical leadership.
• Must-have: Strong project and program management skills: planning, risk management, escalation leadership, and executive communication.
• Must-have: Proven people leadership: set vision and operating rhythm, hire and develop inclusive high-performing teams, and drive execution across multiple programs.
• Must-have: Technical depth in at least one domain such as Front-End (RTL/SystemVerilog, CDC/RDC, lint, verification), Back-End (synthesis, STA, place & route, signoff), or Analog/Mixed-Signal design and integration.
• Must-have: Strong understanding of SoC tape-out flows and milestones (integration, verification signoff, timing closure, handoff) and experience supporting customers through tape-out schedules.
• Must-have: Strong verbal and written communication and collaboration skills in English.
• Nice-to-have: Experience with high-speed protocols such as PCIe and Ethernet; High-Speed SerDes development or support.
• Nice-to-have: Experience applying AI/automation to engineering flows or customer support processes.
• Other: Willingness to travel occasionally for customer engagements.

Education Requirements

Bachelor's or Master's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or a related technical field is specified.

About the Company

Company: Synopsys

Headquarters: Mountain View, California, USA

Synopsys is a leading company in electronic design automation (EDA) and semiconductor IP solutions. It provides tools and services for designing and verifying complex semiconductor devices and systems. The company plays a pivotal role in the semiconductor industry, helping engineers innovate and deliver higher-quality products faster. Synopsys is committed to advancing technology standards and offers a range of software and hardware solutions to its clients globally.