Principal Autonomy Systems Engineer

NEW JOB VACANCY IN SHROPSHIRE - PRINCIPAL AUTONOMY SYSTEMS ENGINEER

Have you previously at a Managerial, Principal, Lead or Senior level, and have you worked within Autonomous Systems, Autonomous Vehicles, Mobility Applications, Wheel Based Vehicles, Systems Software Engineering, Systems Engineering or Agricultural Vehicles?

We are proud to be working with an R&D business based in Shropshire who are looking for a Principal Autonomy Systems Engineer to join them on a permanent basis, this is a 37 hour working week (with flexible start and finish times available), and the role comes with an annual salary ranging between £70,000 - £90,000 per annum (DOE).

The hiring manager is looking for someone who will be based in the office 5 days per week, and a relocation package can be offered for someone who lives more than 2 hours away from Shropshire and is prepared to relocate, PLEASE BE ADVISED THAT SPONSORSHIP IS NOT AVAILABLE, SO PLEASE DON'T APPLY IF YOU REQUIRE SPONSORSHIP NOW, OR AFTER POST STUDY.

You will line manage a team of 4-6 Engineers, and coordinate 3-4 subsystem suppliers with technical support from the companies head office in India, you will also be responsible for ensuring that internal and supplier developments come together, whilst also offering hands-on technical support.

Off-Highway or Agricultural industry experience would be preferred, but is not essential.

What You Will Do:

• Own and evolve the Principal Autonomy Systems Engineer system architecture and technical roadmap, supporting today's requirements and tomorrow's autonomy ambitions.
• Translate product outcomes into subsystem requirements and defined interfaces across perception, localisation, planning, motion control, and vehicle integration.
• Lead C++ and ROS2 delivery for the autonomy stack, including design reviews, code reviews, integration, debugging, and selected feature development.
• Plan and prioritise programme delivery, including supplier work packages, milestones, acceptance criteria, dependencies, issues, and risks.
• Own verification and validation planning, ensuring measurable acceptance criteria and traceability from requirements to test evidence.
• Guide productionisation essentials such as secure updates, logging, diagnostics, controlled releases, and field issue resolution.

What You Will Bring:

• A minimum of 10 years experience within a similar role - ESSENTIAL
• Proven experience with using C++, and experience delivering integrated autonomy or robotics software on physical mobile systems.
• Practical ROS2 and embedded Linux experience, including system integration, debugging, and deployment in real environments.
• Strong understanding of autonomy software interfaces and the ability to make confident system-level design decisions.
• Demonstrable experience leading engineering through requirements, architecture, implementation, integration, verification, and controlled release.
• Evidence of technical team leadership, mentoring, and coordinating external development partners or suppliers.

This Principal Autonomy Systems Engineer role plays a direct part in advancing a cutting-edge engineering centre that develops technology for agricultural vehicles, supporting a clear pathway from prototype delivery to validation, productionisation, and in-field support. By setting technical direction, improving traceability and release discipline, and coordinating both internal and external contributors, this company can move from innovation to reliable operational outcomes.

Location:

This role is based in Newport (Shropshire).

Occasional travel to Europe will be required depending on programme needs and exhibitions, so you MUST be prepared to travel and hold a Passport.

Interested?:

If the Principal Autonomy Systems Engineer role sounds like your next challenge, apply now and share what you've built, led, and delivered in autonomy, robotics, or integrated mobile systems.

Your CV will be forwarded to Jonathan Lee Recruitment, a leading engineering and manufacturing recruitment consultancy established in 1978. The services advertised by Jonathan Lee Recruitment are those of an Employment Agency.
In order for your CV to be processed effectively, please ensure your name, email address, phone number and location (post code OR town OR county, as a minimum) are included.