Principal Sr - RF Design

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The Senior Principal Engineer – RF Design serves as a globally recognized technical expert and thought leader for automotive radar antenna and RF design. This role defines RF technology strategy and architecture, leads complex designs from concept through production, drives cross-organizational innovation, and provides technical guidance to engineering teams, customers, suppliers, and senior leadership. 

Your Responsibilities 

Provide enterprise-level technical leadership for RF and antenna design used in next-generation automotive radar systems, translating product and platform needs into differentiated, production-ready solutions. 

Key Responsibilities: 

• Define and drive RF and antenna technology strategy, roadmaps, design standards, and architecture across products, platforms, and global engineering teams. 

• Lead complex antenna and RF designs from advanced concept and trade studies through validation, industrialization, launch, and series production. 

• Serve as the senior technical authority for antenna architecture, EM simulation, RF performance, design verification, root-cause analysis, and resolution of critical technical issues. 

• Identify and advance new RF technologies and methods that improve product performance, scalability, manufacturability, quality, and cost. 

• Influence system, electrical, mechanical, software, and manufacturing decisions to ensure robust end-to-end radar performance and compliance with requirements. 

• Lead technical design reviews, risk assessments, worst-case analyses, DFMEAs, test strategies, and technical documentation with appropriate traceability. 

• Partner globally with customers, suppliers, universities, research organizations, and internal manufacturing teams to solve complex problems and accelerate innovation. 

• Develop organizational capability by mentoring engineers, sharing technical knowledge, establishing best practices, and supporting competency development across the RF community. 

• Strengthen company intellectual property and external technical reputation through invention disclosures, patents, technical publications, conference participation, and industry engagement. 

Who we are looking for 

Education 

• Master’s degree or PhD in Electrical Engineering, RF/Microwave Engineering, Electromagnetics, or a related field; equivalent advanced technical experience may be considered. 

Experience 

• 12+ years of relevant engineering experience, or an equivalent combination of education and experience, including leadership of complex RF or antenna development. 

• Globally recognized expertise in RF engineering, antenna theory, microwave design, electromagnetic simulation, FMCW radar systems, and antenna measurement methods. 

• Demonstrated record of significant contribution to new technology development and successful deployment of designs into production. 

• Proven ability to lead or influence global, cross-functional, and cross-organizational teams without relying on direct authority. 

• Demonstrated technical mentorship, knowledge sharing, and development of engineering capability across teams. 

• Record of innovation through patents, invention disclosures, technical publications, conference contributions, or recognized industry leadership. 

Your preferred qualifications 

• Expert proficiency with HFSS or comparable 3D electromagnetic simulation tools. 

• Proficiency in MATLAB, Python, or similar scripting and data-analysis tools. 

• Deep knowledge of automotive radar applications, RF hardware architectures, antenna-in-package or antenna-on-PCB design, and production validation. 

• Working knowledge of automotive development standards, including functional safety methods aligned with ISO 26262. 

• Established network and technical credibility with customers, suppliers, universities, research institutes, or relevant industry communities. 

At Magna, we believe that a diverse workforce is critical to our success. That’s why we are proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We hire on the basis of experience and qualifications, and in consideration of job requirements, regardless of, in particular, color, ancestry, religion, gender, origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability or gender identity. Magna takes the privacy of your personal information seriously. We discourage you from sending applications via email or traditional mail to comply with GDPR requirements and your local Data Privacy Law.

As part of our commitment to a fair, consistent, and efficient recruitment process, we may use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to assist in the initial screening of applications submitted through our Workday system. These tools help identify qualifications and experience that align with the role requirements. Please note that AI is used solely to support our recruiters. Final decisions are always made by the hiring manager and the hiring team. Importantly, no applicant data is shared externally through these AI tools. All information remains securely within our systems and is handled in accordance with our privacy and data protection policies.

If you have any questions or concerns about this process, feel free to contact our Talent Attraction team.