Functional Safety Manager - Aerospace, Defense & Government

Job Title

Functional Safety Manager - Aerospace, Defense & Government

Role Summary

The Functional Safety Manager will lead customer-facing and cross-functional safety engagements for programmable logic and adaptive compute platforms in the Aerospace, Defense & Government (ADG) market. The role ensures compliance with avionics and safety standards throughout program lifecycles and supports customer certification activities for mission-critical, long-life systems.

This position works with defense contractors and aerospace partners to enable DO-254, DO-178C, and AC 20-152A certification activities, provides technical guidance, and contributes safety-related inputs to product and safety roadmaps.

Experience Level

Senior — typically requires 5+ years of relevant aerospace/defense hardware or software safety and certification experience.

Responsibilities

Primary responsibilities include program leadership, technical safety assurance, and customer engagement for ADG safety certification efforts.

• Lead execution of Functional Safety programs focused on ADG enablement and customer design wins.
• Oversee software (microcode) safety and certification efforts aligned with RTCA DO-178C.
• Manage compliance with AC 20-152A for FPGAs.
• Develop and decompose safety requirements with full bidirectional traceability.
• Drive hardware safety analyses (FMEA, FMECA, FMEDA, FTA, CCA, DFA, FFI).
• Ensure verification activities meet DO-254 and DO-178C objectives.
• Release and maintain ADG safety package deliverables for customers.
• Oversee tool assessment and qualification per DO-330.
• Mentor engineering teams on safety and design assurance practices for ADG requirements.
• Translate customer use cases, mission and regulatory requirements, and safety analyses into FPGA safety collateral as part of product lifecycle management.
• Support engagements with sensitive or controlled program constraints and engage senior technical and business stakeholders.
• Provide customer-driven feedback into FPGA product safety roadmaps and share ADG market and regulatory insights with internal teams.

Requirements

Must-have technical experience and skills; preferred items are noted where applicable.

• Must-have: 5+ years aerospace/defense hardware or software safety & reliability experience.
• Must-have: 5+ years of hands-on DO-254 certification experience (DAL A/B preferred).
• Must-have: 5+ years experience with DO-178C, DO-330, AC 20-152A, IEC 61508, and ISO 26262.
• Experience supporting aerospace, defense, or government programs and working directly with customers in a technical or advisory capacity.
• Experience performing or directing hardware safety analyses and verification activities to meet avionics safety objectives.
• Nice-to-have: Background in FPGA/ASIC/SoC architecture and verification.
• Nice-to-have: Familiarity with FAA/EASA or MIL-STD safety processes and AS9100 quality management systems.
• Nice-to-have: Experience leading multi-year, safety-critical programs in the ADG space; experience in industrial automation or automotive market segments is a plus.

Education Requirements

Required: Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Electrical, Aerospace, Computer Engineering, or a related field. Preferred certifications: safety certifications such as FSCP and TÜV FS Professional. (Education and certification items were present in the original qualifications.)

About the Company

Company: Altera

Headquarters: Bengaluru, Karnataka, India

Altera provides leadership programmable solutions for applications ranging from cloud to edge, unveiling limitless AI possibilities. Their extensive product portfolio includes FPGAs, CPLDs, Intellectual Property, development tools, and System on Modules aimed at accelerating innovation in various fields.