Principal Power Systems Control Architect (HVDC)

Location: San Francisco, United States; on-site

Company

hirify.global is building a US industrial electric grid based on advanced power transmission systems and modular HVDC terminals with integrated energy storage.

What you will do

• Own the architecture, development, testing, deployment, and maintenance of control systems software for OEM and company hardware.
• Co-design transmission systems and components for regional macrogrids and a future HVDC transmission network.
• Develop simulation, software-in-the-loop, hardware-in-the-loop, and physical testing platforms to validate control-system performance and robustness.
• Lead in-situ commissioning of controls software at deployment sites.
• Define embedded controls software practices covering CI/CD, version control, issue tracking, testing, and design reviews.
• Plan and execute engineering programs in the assigned area while reporting directly to the CTO.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering or a related field.
• 15+ years of commercial engineering experience architecting and delivering control systems in safety-critical domains.
• Strong foundations in feedback and feedforward control, state estimation, and stability analysis.
• Hands-on real-time embedded control development using C/C++ on RTOS or bare-metal platforms.
• Experience with PSCAD, EMTP, MATLAB/Simulink, PLECS, and HIL/SIL platforms such as RTDS or OPAL-RT.
• Experience with embedded controls software practices, debugging, root-cause analysis, and production hardware commissioning.

Nice to have

• Master’s or PhD in Electrical Engineering, Controls, or Power Systems.
• 20+ years of experience driving major controls architecture changes end-to-end.
• Power electronics and VSC HVDC experience across valve, submodule, pole, converter, and system-level control.
• BESS, EMS, PPC, grid-forming, grid-following, protection coordination, and fault-tolerant control experience.
• Familiarity with IEC 61850, DNP3, Modbus, CAN, IEC 62443, NERC CIP, or IEC 61508.

Culture & Benefits

• Competitive compensation with salary and material equity participation.
• Medical, dental, and vision coverage, including 75% coverage for dependents and spouses.
• Up to $300 per month for gym and wellness expenses or Bay Club membership for San Francisco employees.
• Daily lunch when working from an office.
• Unlimited PTO with manager approval and company-wide office closures in July and December.
• Laptop choice, pre-tax transit benefits, and an employee contribution 401(k) program.