Sr. Staff Functional Safety Engineer

Job Title

Sr. Staff Functional Safety Engineer

Role Summary

Lead functional safety activities for SiFive products, driving safety planning, analysis, and safety-case development across the product lifecycle for hardware and embedded systems. Work closely with program management, architecture, design, verification, software, cybersecurity, and test teams to ensure safety requirements are captured, implemented, and verified to relevant standards.

Experience Level

Senior — typically 8+ years of hands-on hardware/software engineering experience in the semiconductor industry (posting specifies minimum 8 years).

Responsibilities

Own and coordinate functional safety tasks across programs and interfaces with stakeholders and certification bodies.

• Lead and coordinate functional safety activities in accordance with ISO 26262 (or IEC 61508 where applicable).
• Create and integrate program safety plans and monitor progress to completion.
• Develop and maintain the safety case demonstrating achievement of functional safety objectives.
• Perform and support functional safety analyses for hardware (DFMEA, FMEA, FMEDA, DFA).
• Conduct safety impact analyses for errata and participate in bug-review activities affecting safety.
• Support requirements traceability across FuSa architects, product architects, design and verification teams.
• Support and participate in internal and external functional safety audits and assessments.
• Review and approve functional safety work products and safety documentation.
• Contribute to continuous improvement of functional safety processes and tools.

Requirements

Key must-have skills and experience, plus a few desirable qualifications.

• Must-have: Minimum 8 years hands-on hardware/software engineering experience in the semiconductor industry.
• Must-have: Deep practical knowledge of ISO 26262 or IEC 61508 and experience managing functional safety through the full product lifecycle, including development, testing, and QA for embedded systems.
• Must-have: Experience performing DFMEA, FMEA, FMEDA and DFA for hardware.
• Must-have: Experience working with certification bodies for product functional safety assessments.
• Must-have: Experience with IP development life cycle: HW IP design and verification, ASIC design methodologies, and related development tools and program practices.
• Must-have: Proficiency with industry tools for requirements traceability and project management (examples: Jama, Jira, GitHub).
• Must-have: Strong written and verbal communication skills, attention to detail, and ability to work independently and collaboratively.
• Nice-to-have: Formal safety certification.
• Nice-to-have: Knowledge of ISO 9001 quality management or automotive cybersecurity standard ISO/SAE 21434.

Education Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, Computer Engineering, or a related technical discipline. Formal safety certification is desirable.

About the Company

Company: SiFive

Headquarters: San Mateo, California, United States

SiFive is a pioneering company in the RISC-V ecosystem, focused on transforming the future of computing by delivering high-performance, data-intensive RISC-V solutions. Their compute platforms empower leading technology firms to innovate across various markets, including AI, machine learning, and automotive sectors. SiFive is recognized for its commitment to ongoing innovation and fostering collaboration among talented teams, impacting lives by enabling advanced chip design.