We are seeking a full-time Aviation Systems Engineer - OEM Software Lead who is interested in providing technical leadership and customizing Garmin's Integrated Flight Deck systems for our Chandler, AZ location. In this role, you'll be responsible for partnering with software engineers in implementing OEM-specific requirements, configuring aircraft systems, and integrating software deliverables onto an integrated flight deck to serve the needs of aircraft Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs). This role includes many customer-facing opportunities and requires working with engineers across all our aviation products. You will frequently utilize lab environments to make sure all the Garmin deliverables are working together to meet the customer's needs.
Essential Functions
+ Successfully managing OEM relationships and requirements, maintaining a positive relationship with the customer, understanding and advocating for a program's needs, managing issue lists, and ensuring customer expectations are appropriately calibrated
+ Developing OEM-specific content, including user interface pages and the crew alerting system, which utilize data from aircraft systems throughout the flight deck
+ Developing and maintaining high quality deliverables for our OEMs in alignment with their engineering, flight test, and production schedules
+ Familiarity and understanding of how Garmin Aviation's product offerings come together as an integrated flight deck
+ Working cross functionally with Garmin's program management, systems, system tests, human factors and flight operations teams to ensure all aspects of a program are tended to
Basic Qualifications
+ Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Software Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Math, Physics or related field AND a minimum of 1 year relevant experience OR an equivalent combination of education and experience
+ Excellent academics (cumulative GPA greater than or equal to 3.0 as a general rule)
+ Demonstrated proficiency and experience necessary to develop moderately complex software in C, C++, C#, Java, Python, or other selected languages
+ Proficient knowledge, utilization and mastery of relevant software engineering tools (configuration management systems, build processes, debuggers, emulators, simulators and logic analyzers)
Desired Qualifications
+ Outstanding academics (cumulative GPA greater than or equal to 3.5)
+ Previous work or internship experience in design, particularly for consumer products
+ Work experience in a team environment
+ Experience with systems engineering principles
+ Demonstrated problem-solving capabilities, particularly related to systems integration
+ Demonstrated customer service skills including servant leadership with internal and external customers
+ Strong communication skills to facilitate effective teamwork between various groups responsible for the success of an OEM program
Garmin International is an equal opportunity employer. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, citizenship, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, veteran's status, age or disability.
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How to hire a software systems engineer lead
Software systems engineer lead hiring summary. Here are some key points about hiring software systems engineers lead in the United States:
- In the United States, the median cost per hire a software systems engineer lead is $1,633.
- It takes between 36 and 42 days to fill the average role in the US.
- Human Resources use 15% of their expenses on recruitment on average.
- On average, it takes around 12 weeks for a new software systems engineer lead to become settled and show total productivity levels at work.
How to hire a software systems engineer lead, step by step
To hire a software systems engineer lead, you should create an ideal candidate profile, determine a budget, and post and promote your job. Here's a step-by-step guide on how to hire a software systems engineer lead:
Here's a step-by-step software systems engineer lead hiring guide:
- Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
- Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
- Step 3: Make a budget
- Step 4: Write a software systems engineer lead job description
- Step 5: Post your job
- Step 6: Interview candidates
- Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new software systems engineer lead
- Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist
Post a software systems engineer lead job for free, promote it for a fee
Identify your hiring needs
First, determine the employments status of the software systems engineer lead you need to hire. Certain software systems engineer lead roles might require a full-time employee, whereas others can be done by part-time workers or contractors.
Determine employee vs contractor statusIs the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?You should also consider the ideal background you'd like them a software systems engineer lead to have before you start to hire. For example, what industry or field would you like them to have experience in, what level of seniority or education does the job require, and how much it'll cost to hire a software systems engineer lead that fits the bill.
This list presents software systems engineer lead salaries for various positions.
Type of Software Systems Engineer Lead Description Hourly rate Software Systems Engineer Lead Software developers are the creative minds behind computer programs. Some develop the applications that allow people to do specific tasks on a computer or another device... Show more $43-75 Lead Engineer A lead engineer's duties vary on their line of work or industry of employment. Typically, their responsibilities will revolve around overseeing the progress of operations and performance of the workforce, ensuring that everything is running smoothly... Show more $28-57 Systems Integration Engineer A systems integration engineer is responsible for evaluating the efficiency and performance of the control systems to support business operations and requirements. Systems integration engineers develop technical solutions from business initiatives that would maximize a team's productivity and increase target performance... Show more $37-67 Create an ideal candidate profile
Common skills:- Java
- Software Development
- Python
- Cloud
- GIT
- Linux
- Systems Engineering
- UI
- Configuration Management
- DOD
- System Design
- Tcp Ip
- Jenkins
- Prototyping
Responsibilities:- Manage OS security patching and intrusion detection systems.
- Used Java server technologies (Jini and RMI) to develop robust services.
- Facilitate the creation and oversight of a database change management solution; moving application deployment closer toward automation and continues integration.
- Administer DHCP and DNS servers by updating scopes, setting reservations, and any DISA specific blacklists.
- Create user accounts, modify host files, modify DNS files, modify file permissions on directories and files.
- Perform network testing on the new interface to ensure the TCP/IP, telnet, ftp, rlogin.
Make a budget
Including a salary range in your software systems engineer lead job description is one of the best ways to attract top talent. A software systems engineer lead can vary based on:
- Location. For example, software systems engineers lead' average salary in missouri is 40% less than in california.
- Seniority. Entry-level software systems engineers lead 42% less than senior-level software systems engineers lead.
- Certifications. A software systems engineer lead with certifications usually earns a higher salary.
- Company. Working for an established firm or a new start-up company can make a big difference in a software systems engineer lead's salary.
Average software systems engineer lead salary
$120,173yearly
$57.78 hourly rateEntry-level software systems engineer lead salary$91,000 yearly salaryUpdated January 20, 2026Average software systems engineer lead salary by state
Rank State Avg. salary Hourly rate 1 California $159,689 $77 2 Washington $147,842 $71 3 New York $134,524 $65 4 North Carolina $132,120 $64 5 Nevada $129,144 $62 6 Florida $125,726 $60 7 Texas $125,220 $60 8 District of Columbia $125,059 $60 9 Massachusetts $121,354 $58 10 Virginia $119,642 $58 11 Alabama $117,260 $56 12 Maryland $112,452 $54 13 Arizona $111,970 $54 14 Colorado $107,828 $52 15 Georgia $105,378 $51 16 West Virginia $103,636 $50 17 Tennessee $102,865 $49 18 Minnesota $102,691 $49 19 Wyoming $101,739 $49 20 North Dakota $100,618 $48 Average software systems engineer lead salary by company
Rank Company Average salary Hourly rate Job openings 1 Meta $173,390 $83.36 1,365 2 The Walt Disney Company $164,922 $79.29 266 3 Waymo $157,936 $75.93 177 4 Sony Interactive Entertainment America $144,169 $69.31 5 Magic Leap $138,373 $66.53 4 6 JPMorgan Chase & Co. $138,308 $66.49 1,195 7 Zynga $137,656 $66.18 5 8 Amobee $134,844 $64.83 9 Parsons $133,969 $64.41 71 10 Randstad North America, Inc. $128,286 $61.68 25 11 FCA US LLC $127,526 $61.31 21 12 General Motors $127,456 $61.28 911 13 Baidu $127,336 $61.22 4 14 3M Company $127,303 $61.20 18 15 Science $123,643 $59.44 3 16 Iridium Communications $122,472 $58.88 4 17 Physicians Mutual $121,795 $58.56 18 SAIC $121,629 $58.48 255 19 The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory $119,079 $57.25 35 20 Mobileum $118,550 $57.00 Writing a software systems engineer lead job description
A job description for a software systems engineer lead role includes a summary of the job's main responsibilities, required skills, and preferred background experience. Including a salary range can also go a long way in attracting more candidates to apply, and showing the first name of the hiring manager can also make applicants more comfortable. As an example, here's a software systems engineer lead job description:
Software systems engineer lead job description example
Post your job
There are a few common ways to find software systems engineers lead for your business:
- Promoting internally or recruiting from your existing workforce.
- Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
- Attend job fairs at local colleges to meet candidates with the right educational background.
- Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to recruit passive job-seekers.
- Post your software systems engineer lead job on Zippia to find and recruit software systems engineer lead candidates who meet your exact specifications.
- Use field-specific websites.
- Post a job on free websites.
Interview candidates
Your first interview with software systems engineer lead candidates should focus on their interest in the role and background experience. As the hiring process goes on, you can learn more about how they'd fit into the company culture in later rounds of interviews.
It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents. You can move on to the technical interview if a candidate is good enough for the next step.
Sometimes, it's not enough to interview software systems engineer lead candidates, so you can ask them to do a test project. If you are not a technical person and don't know what a test project should be, you can use these websites:
- TestDome
- CodeSignal
- Testlify
- BarRaiser
- Coderbyte
The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.
Send a job offer and onboard your new software systems engineer lead
Once you've selected the best software systems engineer lead candidate for the job, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, this letter should include details about the benefits and perks you offer the candidate. Ensuring that your offer is competitive is essential, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and you should be open to discussion. After you reach an agreement, the final step is formalizing the agreement with a contract.
It's also good etiquette to follow up with applicants who don't get the job by sending them an email letting them know that the position has been filled.
After that, you can create an onboarding schedule for a new software systems engineer lead. Human Resources and the hiring manager should complete Employee Action Forms. Human Resources should also ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc., and that new employee files are created.
Go through the hiring process checklist
- Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
- Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
- Define job responsibilities and requirements
- Establish budget and timeline
- Determine hiring decision makers for the role
- Write job description
- Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
- Promote the job internally
- Process applications through applicant tracking system
- Review resumes and cover letters
- Shortlist candidates for screening
- Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
- Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
- Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
- Conduct background checks on top candidates
- Check references of top candidates
- Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
- Extend offer to top candidate(s)
- Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
- Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
- Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
- Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)
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How much does it cost to hire a software systems engineer lead?
Recruiting software systems engineers lead involves both the one-time costs of hiring and the ongoing costs of adding a new employee to your team. Your spending during the hiring process will mostly be on things like promoting the job on job boards, reviewing and interviewing candidates, and onboarding the new hire. Ongoing costs will obviously involve the employee's salary, but also may include things like benefits.
You can expect to pay around $120,173 per year for a software systems engineer lead, as this is the median yearly salary nationally. This can vary depending on what state or city you're hiring in. If you're hiring for contract work or on a per-project basis, hourly rates for software systems engineers lead in the US typically range between $43 and $75 an hour.
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Updated January 20, 2026