Staff Engineer , ESSD Validation

As a Staff SSD Validation Engineer at Micron Technology, Inc., you will be responsible for defining and driving comprehensive validation strategies for Micron NAND-based SSD systems and solutions. You will lead development of test plans, test cases, and automation frameworks to validate SSD firmware across functional, system-level, performance, reliability, interoperability, and customer qualification domains. You will serve as a technical leader, driving validation excellence, automation, and innovation while collaborating closely with firmware, hardware, systems, product engineering, and hyperscale customers throughout the product lifecycle.

The ideal candidate will possess deep expertise in NVMe/PCIe technologies, SSD architecture, customer qualification requirements, and automated validation methodologies. This role also requires a strong focus on leveraging Artificial Intelligence (AI) and advanced automation technologies to improve validation productivity, product quality, and time-to-market.

Key Responsibilities

• Define validation strategies, test plans, test cases, and automation frameworks for SSD firmware validation.
• Develop and maintain automated test solutions covering functional, system, performance, reliability, interoperability, and customer qualification requirements.
• Lead validation efforts across all phases of the product lifecycle, including development, qualification, customer enablement, and sustaining activities.
• Demonstrate strong understanding of NVMe, PCIe, OCP Cloud SSD specifications, storage protocols, and customer-specific requirements.
• Partner with Micron's hyperscale and datacenter customers to improve product quality, customer satisfaction, and qualification cycle times.
• Drive issue identification, debug, root cause analysis, and closure through effective collaboration with firmware, hardware, system architecture, and product engineering teams.
• Analyze validation results, identify quality risks, and provide clear recommendations to stakeholders and leadership.
• Communicate validation status, technical risks, mitigation plans, and project progress effectively across organizations.
• Influence and lead cross-functional teams to execute validation strategies and achieve program milestones.
• Operate effectively in ambiguous environments and independently drive high-impact initiatives to completion.
• Mentor engineers and promote technical excellence, automation, and best practices across the validation organization.
• Leverage AI-powered engineering tools and approved enterprise AI solutions to improve test development, debug efficiency, data analysis, and reporting workflows.
• Identify opportunities to apply AI and machine learning techniques for automating validation workflows, failure analysis, anomaly detection, and predictive quality analytics.
• Drive adoption of AI-enabled solutions to reduce manual effort, enhance test coverage, accelerate issue triage, and improve validation throughput.
• Utilize Generative AI tools for code generation, test case development, log analysis, technical documentation, and productivity enhancement while adhering to company policies.
• Champion responsible and ethical AI practices, ensuring compliance with Micron AI governance, security, privacy, and data protection requirements.
• Mentor teams on effective AI adoption, prompt engineering techniques, and AI-assisted engineering workflows to improve organizational productivity and innovation.

Successful Candidates Will Have

Technical Skills

• Bachelor's or Master's Degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or related field.
• Strong programming expertise in Python and test automation framework development.
• Strong Linux and Windows debugging experience.
• Excellent knowledge of storage systems and platform architecture, including CPU, Memory, PCIe, Drivers, Operating Systems, Firmware, and Hardware interactions.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, and debugging skills.
• Experience with large-scale automation environments and continuous validation systems.
• Ability to analyze complex technical data and make informed engineering decisions.

AI & Data-Driven Engineering Skills

• Demonstrated proficiency in leveraging AI tools to improve engineering productivity and technical decision-making.
• Understanding of Generative AI, Large Language Models (LLMs), prompt engineering, and practical AI use cases within engineering workflows.
• Experience using AI-assisted development tools for scripting, debugging, test generation, report creation, and knowledge discovery.
• Knowledge of machine learning fundamentals, data analytics, and AI-enabled automation techniques is highly desirable.
• Ability to critically review and validate AI-generated outputs and apply engineering judgment to ensure technical accuracy.
• Commitment to responsible AI usage, data governance, security, privacy, and ethical AI practices.

Leadership & Professional Skills

• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Strong project planning, execution, and organizational skills.
• Ability to lead multiple priorities and programs simultaneously.
• Ability to influence cross-functional teams without direct authority.
• Strong collaboration and stakeholder management skills.
• Proven mentoring and technical leadership capabilities.
• Results-oriented mindset with the ability to drive execution in fast-paced and ambiguous environments.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience working directly with hyperscale, enterprise, or cloud storage customers.
• Experience applying AI/ML techniques to validation, quality engineering, or system analytics.
• Experience building data-driven dashboards, predictive quality models, or intelligent test orchestration systems.
• Active contributor to automation, innovation, and continuous improvement initiatives within engineering organizations.