Senior Director, IT - Engineering Services at Western Digital

San Jose, California, United States -

Full Time

Start Date

Immediate

Expiry Date

29 May, 26

Salary

287800.0

Posted On

28 Feb, 26

Experience

10 year(s) or above

Remote Job

Yes

Telecommute

Yes

Sponsor Visa

Skills

IT Strategy, Hardware Engineering Support, Firmware Engineering Support, AI Adoption, Product Lifecycle Management, PLM, CAD, EDA, Test Automation, Simulation Tools, High-Performance Compute, Storage Infrastructure, Cloud Integration, Vendor Negotiation, Team Leadership, IT Infrastructure

Industry

Computer Hardware Manufacturing

Description

Company Description At Western Digital, our vision is to power global innovation and push the boundaries of technology to make what you thought was once impossible, possible. At our core, Western Digital is a company of problem solvers. People achieve extraordinary things given the right technology. For decades, we’ve been doing just that. Our technology helped people put a man on the moon. We are a key partner to some of the largest and highest growth organizations in the world. From energizing the most competitive gaming platforms, to enabling systems to make cities safer and cars smarter and more connected, to powering the data centers behind many of the world’s biggest companies and public cloud, Western Digital is fueling a brighter, smarter future. Binge-watch any shows, use social media or shop online lately? You’ll find Western Digital supporting the storage infrastructure behind many of these platforms. And, that flash memory card that captures and preserves your most precious moments? That’s us, too. We offer an expansive portfolio of technologies, storage devices and platforms for business and consumers alike. Our data-centric solutions are comprised of the Western Digital®, G-Technology™, and WD® brands. Today’s exceptional challenges require your unique skills. It’s You & Western Digital. Together, we’re the next BIG thing in data. Job Description We are seeking an experienced Senior Director of IT to lead and modernize IT services supporting our Global Product Engineering Organization within a high-tech and manufacturing environment. Our products involve highly complex data storage hardware and firmware, and while experience across both hardware and software engineering is essential, this role will primarily focus on hardware engineering support. As a trusted partner to Engineering Executive Leadership and Mid-Level Management, the Senior Director will operate at both the strategic and tactical levels. The mission is to accelerate engineering efficiency and innovation through modern technologies, best-in-class practices, and intelligent integration of AI-driven accelerators. This role requires exceptional communication and negotiation skills, with the ability to build and sustain bi-directional partnerships between IT and engineering teams. The successful candidate will also possess a holistic understanding of end-to-end product lifecycle flows, from ideation through design, validation, and manufacturing, as well as strong IT infrastructure experience. Key Responsibilities: Serve as the senior IT leader supporting global hardware and firmware engineering organizations. Partner with engineering executives and managers to define, align, and deliver IT strategies that enable innovation, velocity, and scalability. Modernize engineering technologies, processes, and practices to improve efficiency, quality, and collaboration. Drive AI adoption across engineering workflows where it can meaningfully accelerate design, validation, and decision-making. Champion IT–Engineering partnership, ensuring open communication, transparency, and mutual alignment on priorities. Oversee IT capabilities supporting product lifecycle management (PLM), CAD, EDA, test automation, simulation, and other engineering tools. Collaborate with business and manufacturing IT teams to ensure continuity and efficiency from product ideation through manufacturing handoff. Provide leadership across IT infrastructure supporting engineering workloads, including compute, storage, high-performance environments, and cloud integration. Lead vendor and partner negotiations, ensuring cost-effective and scalable solutions. Develop, mentor, and inspire a global IT team to meet the evolving needs of engineering. Qualifications This is a business-focused, engineering-embedded IT leadership role, not a traditional IT position. The successful candidate will serve as a strategic partner who will endeavor to deeply understand Engineering's business challenges and translate them into IT-enabled solutions. Primary Vison for this role Immerse into Engineering's business operations across all functions (design, validation, manufacturing handoff, customer service, market dynamics, etc.) Identify process inefficiencies and delivery gaps where IT can add value Build trust-based partnerships with Engineering leadership to enable innovation and velocity What We're Looking For Engineering-first perspective with IT as the enablement toolset Business problem solver who happens to use technology Curiosity about Engineering workflows, pain points, and success metrics Proven success supporting large, global hardware and firmware engineering organizations in a high-tech or manufacturing company. Strong knowledge of end-to-end product development and manufacturing processes. Demonstrated ability to build trusted, collaborative partnerships with engineers, from executives to technical leads. Extensive experience in a progressive IT leadership role, including senior leadership roles. Strong background in product engineering systems, including PLM, CAD/EDA, and related tools. Deep understanding of hardware engineering workflows, complemented by exposure to software engineering practices. Experience with AI/ML applications in engineering or IT domains. Experience in IT infrastructure, including high-performance compute, storage, virtualization, and cloud. Exceptional communication, negotiation, and influence skills with the ability to engage at all organizational levels. Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or related field (Master’s preferred). Additional Information Western Digital is committed to providing equal opportunities to all applicants and employees and will not discriminate against any applicant or employee based on their race, color, ancestry, religion (including religious dress and grooming standards), sex (including pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions, breastfeeding or related medical conditions), gender (including a person’s gender identity, gender expression, and gender-related appearance and behavior, whether or not stereotypically associated with the person’s assigned sex at birth), age, national origin, sexual orientation, medical condition, marital status (including domestic partnership status), physical disability, mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, protected medical and family care leave, Civil Air Patrol status, military and veteran status, or other legally protected characteristics. We also prohibit harassment of any individual on any of the characteristics listed above. Our non-discrimination policy applies to all aspects of employment. We comply with the laws and regulations set forth in the "Know Your Rights: Workplace Discrimination is Illegal” poster. Our pay transparency policy is available here. Western Digital thrives on the power and potential of diversity. As a global company, we believe the most effective way to embrace the diversity of our customers and communities is to mirror it from within. We believe the fusion of various perspectives results in the best outcomes for our employees, our company, our customers, and the world around us. We are committed to an inclusive environment where every individual can thrive through a sense of belonging, respect and contribution. Western Digital is committed to offering opportunities to applicants with disabilities and ensuring all candidates can successfully navigate our careers website and our hiring process. Please contact us at [email protected] to advise us of your accommodation request. In your email, please include a description of the specific accommodation you are requesting as well as the job title and requisition number of the position for which you are applying. Based on our experience, we anticipate that the application deadline will be 05/8/2024 (3 months from posting), although we reserve the right to close the application process sooner if we hire an applicant for this position before the application deadline. If we are not able to hire someone from this role before the application deadline, we will update this posting with a new anticipated application deadline. #LI-AS1 Compensation & Benefits Details An employee’s pay position within the salary range may be based on several factors including but not limited to (1) relevant education; qualifications; certifications; and experience; (2) skills, ability, knowledge of the job; (3) performance, contribution and results; (4) geographic location; (5) shift; (6) internal and external equity; and (7) business and organizational needs. The salary range is what we believe to be the range of possible compensation for this role at the time of this posting. We may ultimately pay more or less than the posted range and this range is only applicable for jobs to be performed in California, Colorado, New York or remote jobs that can be performed in California, Colorado and New York. This range may be modified in the future. If your position is non-exempt, you are eligible for overtime pay pursuant to company policy and applicable laws. You may also be eligible for shift differential pay, depending on the shift to which you are assigned. You will be eligible to be considered for bonuses under either WD’s Short Term Incentive Plan (“STI Plan”) or the Sales Incentive Plan (“SIP”) which provides incentive awards based on Company and individual performance, depending on your role and your performance. You may be eligible to participate in our annual Long-Term Incentive (LTI) program, which consists of restricted stock units (RSUs) or cash equivalents, pursuant to the terms of the LTI plan. Please note that not all roles are eligible to participate in the LTI program, and not all roles are eligible for equity under the LTI plan. RSU awards are also available to eligible new hires, subject to WD's Standard Terms and Conditions for Restricted Stock Unit Awards. We offer a comprehensive package of benefits including paid vacation time; paid sick leave; medical/dental/vision insurance; life, accident and disability insurance; tax-advantaged flexible spending and health savings accounts; employee assistance program; other voluntary benefit programs such as supplemental life and AD&D, legal plan, pet insurance, critical illness, accident and hospital indemnity; tuition reimbursement; transit; the Applause Program; employee stock purchase plan; and the WD Savings 401(k) Plan. Note: No amount of pay is considered to be wages or compensation until such amount is earned, vested, and determinable. The amount and availability of any bonus, commission, benefits, or any other form of compensation and benefits that are allocable to a particular employee remains in the Company's sole discretion unless and until paid and may be modified at the Company’s sole discretion, consistent with the law. Notice To Candidates: Please be aware that WD and its subsidiaries will never request payment as a condition for applying for a position or receiving an offer of employment. Should you encounter any such requests, please report it immediately to WD Ethics Helpline or email [email protected]. Job Type (exemption status): Exempt position - Please see related compensation & benefits details below Salary Range: 215,900.00-287,800.00 Business Function: Information Technology Work Location: San Jose Great Oaks Headquarters--LOC_WDT_USCA23

Responsibilities

This senior IT leader will serve as the primary IT partner for global hardware and firmware engineering organizations, defining and delivering IT strategies to enhance innovation, velocity, and scalability. Key duties include modernizing engineering technologies, driving AI adoption in workflows, and overseeing IT capabilities for PLM, CAD, EDA, and related engineering tools.