Software Architect - PACSystems Platform

Are you a senior technical leader who is passionate about building industrial automation systems that make a real-world impact? Emerson has an exciting opportunity for you. We are looking for an experienced Software Architect who can set technical direction across embedded firmware, workstation applications, and hybrid industrial software solutions. Based in Austin, Texas, you will help lead engineers developing Emerson's PACSystems technologies across controller firmware, PLC programming, industrial communications, distributed computing, and engineering workstation software.

PACSystems is trusted by leading companies across discrete and hybrid manufacturing industries to safely and reliably control critical processes. In this role, you will provide technical leadership for software spanning embedded controllers, runtime systems, PLC execution environments, communication services, and workstation applications used to configure, program, visualize, diagnose, and manage industrial automation solutions.

You will be responsible for setting architecture direction, choosing technologies, prioritizing technical work, mentoring less experienced developers, and coordinating closely with product marketing, product management, engineering leaders, and cross-functional development teams. This role requires strong experience with high-performance embedded real-time systems and PLCs, along with the ability to connect technical decisions to customer needs, product strategy, and long-term business value.

You will be part of an organization led by leaders who are deeply committed to technical excellence, Agile principles, mentorship, and building an environment where engineers do their best work. If you are looking for a role where you can shape product direction, grow technical talent, and influence systems that have lasting real-world impact, we want to hear from you.

As A Technical Lead / Software Architect, You Will:

• Set Technical Direction - Define and communicate technical direction for PACSystems software across embedded firmware, controller runtime, industrial communications, workstation applications, and hybrid software capabilities.
• Lead Architecture Decisions - Guide architecture decisions for high-performance, real-time, distributed industrial automation systems where deterministic behavior, timing constraints, reliability, scalability, and maintainability are critical.
• Choose Technologies - Evaluate and select technologies, frameworks, tools, and design approaches that support product strategy, long-term maintainability, development efficiency, quality, security, and customer needs.
• Prioritize Technical Work - Partner with engineering leaders, product management, and product marketing to prioritize work, balance feature delivery with technical debt reduction, and align engineering execution with customer and business priorities.
• Guide Embedded PLC Development - Provide technical leadership for embedded firmware and runtime software developed in C and C++ on Linux, VxWorks, and real-time operating environments supporting PLC execution, industrial control, and distributed controller platforms.
• Guide Workstation Application Development - Provide technical guidance for workstation applications used to configure, program, visualize, diagnose, monitor, and manage PACSystems automation solutions.
• Coordinate Across Functions - Work closely with product marketing, product management, systems engineering, firmware teams, application teams, quality teams, release management, and customer-facing stakeholders to ensure technical solutions meet market needs and product commitments.
• Mentor Engineers - Coach and mentor less experienced developers, helping them grow their technical judgment, design skills, debugging abilities, understanding of industrial automation, and ability to deliver high-quality software.
• Team Obsessed - Engage openly with your teammates, actively seek feedback, and commit to continuous improvement in both your work and your craft.

Drive Technical Excellence - Promote strong engineering practices including code reviews, automated testing, CI/CD, system-level validation, hardware-in-the-loop testing, specification-driven development, and thoughtful use of AI-assisted development tools.

Solve Complex Problems - Lead investigation and resolution of complex technical issues involving timing behavior, concurrency, memory usage, performance, communication latency, system reliability, and distributed control behavior.

Influence Product Strategy - Help translate customer needs, product strategy, market expectations, and technical realities into clear architectural direction and executable engineering plans.

Who You Are:

You are a hands-on technical leader who enjoys solving complex problems and helping others grow. You understand how embedded software, PLCs, industrial networks, workstation applications, and distributed control systems work together. You can move comfortably between architecture discussions, implementation tradeoffs, design reviews, technical mentoring, and business-priority conversations.

You make technical decisions with long-term ownership in mind. You are comfortable challenging assumptions, clarifying priorities, and helping teams make practical tradeoffs. You value collaboration, but you are also willing to provide clear technical direction when teams need alignment. You communicate well with engineers, product leaders, product marketing, and stakeholders who may not share the same technical depth.

For This Role, You Will Need:

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Engineering, Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Software Engineering, or a related STEM discipline
• At least 9 years of relevant software engineering experience, or at least 8 years of relevant experience with a master's degree
• Experience working on high-performance embedded real-time systems
• Experience working with PLCs, industrial controllers, or industrial automation systems
• Strong experience with C and C++ software development
• Experience with real-time operating systems such as VxWorks or RT Linux
• Experience designing software for distributed systems, concurrent systems, or systems with strict timing and reliability constraints
• Demonstrated ability to make architecture decisions, evaluate technical tradeoffs, and guide teams toward practical implementation
• Experience mentoring engineers, leading technical discussions, and reviewing software designs
• Strong communication skills with the ability to work across engineering, product management, product marketing, and leadership stakeholders
• Legal Authorization to work in the United States - sponsorship will not be provided for this role

Preferred Qualifications That Set You Apart:

• Experience serving as a technical lead, software architect, principal engineer, or senior technical decision-maker for complex software products
• Deep understanding of PLC runtime behavior, deterministic control execution, industrial communications, and controller-level software architecture
• Experience with industrial Ethernet and industrial internet protocols such as EtherNet/IP, PROFINET, Modbus TCP, OPC UA, MQTT, or related technologies
• Experience developing or leading workstation applications used for configuration, programming, diagnostics, monitoring, visualization, or system management
• Experience with edge computing, industrial IoT, distributed control systems, high-availability architectures, or fault-tolerant systems
• Experience balancing product feature development, platform modernization, technical debt reduction, and long-term architecture evolution
• Experience partnering with product marketing or product management to translate market needs into technical direction and prioritized execution plans
• Familiarity with automated testing, CI/CD pipelines, hardware-in-the-loop testing, system simulation, and release-quality validation practices
• Experience applying Agile, SAFe, or other structured development practices in a cross-functional engineering organization
• Experience using AI-assisted development tools, specification-driven workflows, or structured engineering practices to improve clarity, quality, and speed of delivery
• Ability to explain complex technical issues in clear, practical language for both technical and non-technical audiences

Our Culture & Commitment to You:

At Emerson, we prioritize a workplace where every employee is valued, respected, and empowered to grow! We foster an environment that encourages innovation, collaboration, and diverse perspectives-because we know that great ideas come from great teams. Our commitment to ongoing career development and growing an inclusive culture ensures you have the support to thrive. Whether through mentorship, training, or leadership opportunities, we invest in your success so you can make a lasting impact. We believe diverse teams, working together are key to driving growth and delivering business results.

We recognize the importance of employee wellbeing. We prioritize providing flexible, competitive benefits plans to meet you and your family’s physical, mental, financial, and social needs. We provide a variety of medical insurance plans, with dental and vision coverage, Employee Assistance Program, 401(k), tuition reimbursement, employee resource groups, recognition, and much more. Our culture offers flexible time off plans, including paid parental leave (maternal and paternal), vacation and holiday leave.