Principal Engineer Software Test Release

We are CARIAD, an automotive software development team with the Volkswagen Group. Our mission is to make the automotive experience safer, more sustainable, more comfortable, more digital, and more fun. To achieve that we are building the leading tech stack for the automotive industry and creating a unified software platform for over 10 million new vehicles per year. We’re looking for talented, digital minds like you to help us create code that moves the world. Together with you, we’ll build outstanding digital experiences and products for all Volkswagen Group brands that will transform mobility. Join us as we shape the future of the car and everyone around it.

​Role Summary:

The Principal Engineer, Software Test & Release is a senior individual contributor within the Hardware Platform Development team, responsible for building and operating software test capabilities that de-risk ECU/HPC bring-up, system integration, and production release readiness. This role blends hands-on software development (automation frameworks, tooling, CI integration) with deep embedded validation on real hardware, benches, HIL setups, and in-vehicle environments.

Operating with high autonomy, the Principal Engineer, Software Test & Release drives test strategy, improves observability and diagnostics, and partners across hardware, systems, manufacturing, and suppliers to deliver robust, repeatable validation and high-confidence software releases.

Role Responsibilities:

​Validation Strategy, Quality Gates & Program Readiness

• Define platform-level validation strategy across ECU/HPC variants and vehicle programs, aligned to EVT/DVT/PVT milestones.
• Establish release readiness criteria, quality gates, and escalation mechanisms that reduce defect escape and schedule risk.
• Drive alignment on requirements-to-test traceability and evidence needed for stakeholder sign-off.

SW Test Automation, Observability & Infrastructure

• Own the evolution of automation frameworks and reusable test libraries for BSP/base software, drivers, and platform services.
• Improve observability (logs, traces, metrics) and build scalable lab execution (power cycling, flashing, data capture).
• Integrate validation into CI/CD with reliable regression, flake management, and actionable reporting.

HW/SW Integration Validation (Bench, HIL, Vehicle)

• Lead system integration test planning and execution across benches, HIL, and in-vehicle environments for hardware platforms.
• Validate platform behaviors across vehicle networks and interfaces (CAN/CAN-FD, DoIP, Ethernet, USB/UART as applicable).
• Drive root-cause analysis with cross-functional owners and ensure robust fixes validated through targeted regression.

Release Qualification & Supplier Delivery Management

• Qualify release candidates and supplier drops; define regression scope, triage workflows, and acceptance thresholds.
• Partner with build/release and configuration management on versioning, artifact integrity, signing, and reproducibility.
• Provide clear go/no-go recommendations with risk framing and mitigation options.

Technical Leadership, Mentorship & Continuous Improvement

• Mentor engineers regarding test architecture, debugging, and quality-by-design practices across HW and SW teams.
• Define and track quality metrics (coverage, pass rate, flakiness, defect escape) and drive targeted improvements.
• Influence architecture decisions to improve testability, reliability, and long-term maintainability.

​General Skills:

• Strong systems-level debugging across HW/SW boundaries (boot chain, drivers, middleware, diagnostics, and vehicle networks).
• Hands-on software development ability (Python and/or C/C++) to build test tools, harnesses, and automation for embedded platforms.
• Ability to translate HW platform requirements and failure modes into efficient, repeatable test strategies and actionable defect reports.
• Clear, structured communication with cross-functional teams (hardware, systems, manufacturing, suppliers, and brands) to drive issues to closure.
• Ownership mindset with strong prioritization; drives predictable execution across EVT/DVT/PVT cycles and frequent software drops.

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