Embedded Linux Contract Jobs in Chicago, IL (NOW HIRING)

Company Description
Fortune Brands Innovations, Inc. is an industry-leading home, security and digital products company. We're focused on exciting opportunities within the home, security and commercial building markets. Our driving purpose is to elevate every life by transforming spaces into havens. We believe our work and our brands can have incredibly positive impacts for not just our business and shareholders, but for people and the planet, too.
At Fortune Brands, we're building something big. We're advancing exciting innovations in all of our products and processes. We're delivering trust, dependability, sustainability, and style. To make it all happen, we've transformed our workplace into an environment where smart, ambitious people have the support to reach their fullest potential.
When you join Fortune Brands, you become part of a high-performing team empowered to think big, learn fast and make bold decisions. We support an inclusive culture where everyone is encouraged be their authentic selves, and where our differences and unique perspectives are a key strength.
Explore life at Fortune Brands here.
Job Description
Fortune Brands are hiring for a Senior Manager of Device Software, Connected Products to provide technical leadership and people management for our embedded software team. You will drive architectural decisions, maintain engineering quality standards, and develop a team of firmware engineers working across both embedded Linux and RTOS-based product lines. This is a hands-on leadership role requiring deep technical credibility combined with strong people management skills.
Key Responsibilities

• Directly manage, mentor, and develop a team of embedded software engineers; conduct regular 1:1s, performance reviews, and career development planning
• Maintain honest, timely feedback with each direct report; invest most heavily in developing top performers and hold clear accountability across the team
• Know each engineer's motivations, strengths, and career aspirations; build an environment where people can grow toward what they're naturally excellent at
• Build knowledge redundancy across the team; eliminate single points of failure through deliberate documentation and cross-training
• Define and own embedded software architecture across both Linux-based and RTOS-based firmware disciplines; guide technical direction and ensure critical decisions are well-documented
• Lead new hardware bring-up efforts and platform convergence initiatives; maintain the firmware-cloud interface contract in collaboration with backend and platform teams
• Own CI/CD pipeline health, release processes, and OTA fleet management for production device populations
• Drive adoption of development best practices, code review standards, and AI-assisted development tooling
• Own the firmware technical roadmap and delivery commitments; balance new feature development against platform stability and intentional technical debt reduction
• Partner with Product Management to assess and prioritize firmware feature requests across multiple product lines
• Coordinate with Hardware Engineering on new product bring-up and establish clear HW↔FW interface processes
• Coordinate with Data Science on algorithm and model integration into embedded firmware
• Collaborate with QA on firmware testing strategies, manufacturing test plans, and production readiness criteria
• Work with compliance teams to support radio, safety, and cybersecurity certification processes for connected devices
• Coordinate with contract manufacturers on firmware document control, ECO processes, and OTA deployment to production fleets
• Manage team capacity planning and work allocation across concurrent product programs

Qualifications

• BS in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or equivalent relevant experience
• 7+ years of industry experience in a technical role
• 2+ years People management experience: performance management, career development, and building a high-functioning team
• Proven track record leading and developing embedded software or firmware engineering teams
• Deep understanding of embedded Linux (Yocto/buildroot or equivalent); able to guide architecture, evaluate trade-offs, and support engineers across the full development lifecycle
• Strong working knowledge of RTOS concepts and architectures (FreeRTOS, Zephyr, or equivalent): task scheduling, memory management, inter-task communication, synchronization primitives
• Experience with Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) as used in IoT embedded software
• Experience with OTA update systems and production device fleet management
• Understanding of firmware document control and configuration management in hardware product organizations
• Strong system design and architecture skills; comfort making and communicating technical decisions under uncertainty
• Excellent cross-functional communication skills; able to represent the firmware team clearly to product, hardware, data science, compliance, and manufacturing stakeholders

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with IoTor connected consumer electronics at scale
• Hands-on experience with OTA and fleet observability platforms (Mender, Memfault, or equivalent)
• Proficiency in embedded debugging tools and techniques
• Understanding of communication protocols: BLE, Wi-Fi, SPI, I2C, UART, Zigbee, Z-Wave
• Experience with ARM Cortex-M, RISC-V, or similar microcontroller architectures
• Knowledge of power management techniques for battery-operated devices
• Track record managing compliance processes for radio, safety, and cybersecurity certifications (FCC, CE-RED, IC, UKCA, ANATEL)
• Experience managing mixed teams of FTEs and contractors
• Background working across both embedded Linux and RTOS-based firmware disciplines simultaneously
• Track record of successful product launches in consumer electronics or IoT hardware

Additional Information
Fortune Brands believes in fair and equitable pay. A reasonable estimate of the base salary range for this role is Hiring Pay Range: $140,000 USD - $220,000 USD. Please note that actual salaries may vary within the range, or be above or below the range, based on factors including, but not limited to, education, training, experience, professional achievement, business need, and location. In addition to base salary, employees will participate in either an annual bonus plan based on company and individual performance, or a role-based sales incentive plan.
At Fortune Brands, we support the overall health and wellness of our associates by offering comprehensive, competitive benefits that prioritize all aspects of wellbeing and provide flexibility for our teammates' unique needs. This includes robust health plans, a market-leading 401(k) program with a company contribution, product discounts, flexible time off benefits, adoption benefits, and more. We offer numerous ERGs (Employee Resource Groups) to foster a sense of belonging for all associates.
Fortune Brands is built on industry-leading brands and innovation within the high-growth categories of water, outdoors and security. The Company makes innovative products for residential and commercial environments, with a growing focus on digital solutions and products that add luxury, contribute to safety and enhance sustainability. To learn more, visit our website at fbin.com.
Equal Employment Opportunity
Fortune Brands is an equal opportunity employer. Fortune Brands evaluates qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, gender identity or expression, national origin, ancestry, age, disability/handicap status, marital status, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, genetic history or information, or any other legally protected characteristic.
Reasonable Accommodations
Fortune Brands is committed to working with and providing reasonable accommodations to individuals with disabilities. If, because of a medical condition or disability, you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application or interview process, please contact us at fbinleave.fbhs@fbin.com and let us know the nature of your request along with your contact information.
Important Notice: Protect Yourself from Fraudulent Job Postings
To protect yourself from fraudulent job postings or recruitment scams, please note that Fortune Brands job postings are exclusively hosted on our website at fbin.com/careers via our SmartRecruiters platform. Fortune Brands will never request banking information or sensitive personal details until an offer of employment has been accepted and the onboarding process begins.