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Principal R&D Engineer, Active Implantable Medical Devices
Location: Houston, TX Area (Relocation Available)
Industry: Medical Devices / Medical Technology
Employment Type: Full-Time
Compensation: $170,000 to $200,000 base salary, plus bonus (subject to confirmation)
About the Opportunity
We are partnering with an established medical technology organization seeking an accomplished Principal R&D Engineer to provide technical leadership in the development of advanced active implantable medical devices and next-generation therapeutic technologies.
This is a senior-level individual contributor opportunity for an experienced engineer who enjoys working at the intersection of product innovation, clinical applications, and complex systems engineering.
The successful candidate will play a critical role in translating clinical needs into innovative medical device solutions, defining system architecture, evaluating emerging technologies, and advancing product concepts through technical feasibility and early-stage development.
The ideal candidate will bring experience with sophisticated implantable electronic systems, electrical stimulation technologies, or other complex therapeutic medical devices, along with the ability to lead multidisciplinary engineering efforts.
This opportunity offers significant technical ownership and the ability to influence product direction while working alongside engineering, clinical, and product development professionals.
Key Responsibilities
Provide technical leadership for complex medical device research and development initiatives, particularly active implantable devices and electronically driven therapeutic technologies.
Define system architecture and technical direction across electrical, mechanical, software, sensing, and integrated device systems.
Translate clinical requirements, physician feedback, and unmet patient needs into actionable engineering specifications and product concepts.
Lead technical feasibility assessments, evaluate design alternatives, and identify critical technical risks.
Collaborate with R&D, clinical, regulatory, quality, and external engineering partners to advance new product development.
Guide multidisciplinary engineering teams through complex technical decisions without requiring direct managerial authority.
Drive systems-level integration and ensure alignment between hardware, software, electronics, and overall product functionality.
Support design reviews, risk management, technical investigations, and resolution of complex system-level challenges.
Evaluate emerging technologies and contribute to intellectual property development and long-term innovation strategy.
Provide technical oversight of external engineering partners and support successful integration of developed components and systems.
Required Qualifications
Bachelor's degree in Biomedical Engineering, or a related technical discipline.
8+ years of experience in medical device research, development, or product engineering.
Experience developing complex medical devices, including active implantable systems, electronically driven therapeutic technologies, or comparable sophisticated medical devices.
Demonstrated expertise in systems-level product development, technical architecture, and complex engineering problem-solving.
Experience advancing medical device technologies through feasibility, development, verification, validation, and commercialization.
Ability to translate clinical insights and therapeutic requirements into practical engineering solutions.
Experience working in FDA-regulated medical device development environments.
Strong technical leadership skills with a demonstrated ability to influence cross-functional engineering teams.
Excellent communication, technical documentation, and stakeholder management capabilities.
Preferred Qualifications
Advanced degree in Engineering or a related scientific discipline.
Previous experience operating at the Principal Engineer, Senior Principal Engineer, or equivalent technical leadership level.
Experience with electrical stimulation (e-stim), implantable pulse generators (IPGs), or related therapeutic technologies.
Experience developing implantable electronic systems incorporating stimulation circuitry, sensing technologies, embedded software, power management, or wireless communication.
Experience with complex Class II or Class III medical devices.
Familiarity with medical device design controls, risk management, verification and validation, and applicable regulatory requirements.
Experience collaborating directly with physicians, clinical researchers, or medical professionals to develop innovative therapeutic technologies.
Experience guiding external development partners and multidisciplinary engineering teams.
Experience evaluating emerging technologies and contributing to intellectual property development.
Why Consider This Opportunity?
This position is ideally suited for a technically accomplished engineer who wants to remain deeply involved in engineering innovation while influencing strategic product decisions.
Rather than a traditional people-management role, this opportunity emphasizes technical ownership, complex problem-solving, system architecture, and cross-functional leadership.
You will have the opportunity to contribute to the development of advanced therapeutic technologies, tackle challenging engineering problems, and help shape products designed to improve patient outcomes.
This is an opportunity to make a meaningful technical impact within an established medical technology organization while continuing to grow as a senior engineering leader.
Interested in Learning More?
If you are an experienced medical device R&D professional with a passion for innovation, complex engineering challenges, and technical leadership, we would welcome the opportunity to connect.
Apply today or reach out directly for a confidential conversation to learn more about the position and organization.