Group Head / Sr. DGM - Software Systems

Group Head / Sr. DGM – Software Systems

Domain: Land Defence Systems
Experience: 15–20 Years
People Management Experience: Minimum 5 Years

Location: Talegaon / Hazira

Role Overview

We are seeking an accomplished Technical Leader – Embedded Software, RTOS & Mission-Critical Systems to provide technology leadership for the development of advanced software platforms and mission-critical embedded applications for land-based defence systems.

The role will provide technical ownership across the complete software product lifecycle—from software architecture, technology strategy and requirements definition through detailed design, development, integration, verification, qualification, deployment and lifecycle support.

The ideal candidate will have deep expertise in embedded software, real-time operating systems, VxWorks, Linux, Qt/QML, C/C++, distributed systems and software architecture, combined with proven experience leading multidisciplinary software engineering teams and delivering complex, safety- and mission-critical systems.

The candidate should be capable of operating across low-level embedded software, BSP/device drivers, RTOS, middleware, application software, graphical user interfaces and system-level software architecture, while providing technical leadership and building a high-performing software organization.

Key Responsibilities

1. Software Technical & System Leadership

• Provide technical leadership and strategic direction for embedded, real-time, platform and application software for land defence systems.
• Act as the senior technical authority for software architecture and engineering across assigned programmes.
• Define software architectures, technology roadmaps, development methodologies and technical strategies aligned with defence programme requirements.
• Lead software architecture and design reviews covering:
  • Software requirements
  • Functional decomposition
  • Software partitioning
  • Architectural trade-offs
  • Interface definition
  • Performance and resource utilization
  • Cybersecurity considerations
  • Verification and validation strategy
• Establish and drive software architecture standards, reusable frameworks, common platforms and design patterns across programmes.
• Ensure software solutions meet stringent requirements for real-time performance, reliability, determinism, availability, maintainability and mission readiness.
• Provide technical leadership during customer reviews, architecture reviews, programme reviews and system integration activities.
• Drive resolution of complex software and system-level technical issues.
• Work closely with systems engineering, electronics, power electronics, controls, mechanical, vehicle integration, weapons and platform teams.

2. Embedded Software & RTOS

• Lead development of mission-critical embedded software based on RTOS and real-time computing architectures.
• Provide deep technical direction on VxWorks-based embedded systems, including:
  • Task/thread architecture
  • Scheduling
  • Inter-task communication
  • Synchronization
  • Interrupt handling
  • Memory management
  • Timing and determinism
  • Performance optimization
  • Fault handling
• Lead development of embedded software using C/C++ for real-time and resource-constrained systems.
• Guide development of Board Support Packages (BSPs), device drivers, hardware abstraction layers and middleware.
• Define robust interfaces between application software, middleware, RTOS, device drivers and hardware.
• Drive best practices for:
  • Real-time scheduling
  • Concurrency
  • Multithreading
  • Memory management
  • Exception handling
  • Fault recovery
  • Watchdog and health-monitoring mechanisms
• Lead performance analysis and optimization of real-time embedded systems.

3. Linux & Platform Software

• Provide technical leadership for embedded Linux and Linux-based platform architectures.
• Guide development of:
  • Embedded Linux platforms
  • Device drivers
  • BSPs
  • Middleware
  • System services
  • Inter-process communication
  • Networking stacks
  • Hardware abstraction layers
• Drive Linux platform customization, configuration, optimization and integration for defence applications.
• Define architecture for systems involving Linux and RTOS-based heterogeneous computing environments.
• Lead integration of Linux-based mission applications with real-time control and embedded subsystems.
• Drive adoption of appropriate open-source technologies while ensuring configuration management, security, licensing and long-term maintainability.

4. Qt / GUI & Application Software

• Provide technical leadership for development of Qt/QML-based graphical user interfaces and operator-control applications.
• Define software architecture for modern, responsive and maintainable HMI/operator interfaces.
• Guide development of:
  • Qt/C++ applications
  • Qt/QML user interfaces
  • Real-time data visualization
  • System status and health monitoring
  • Mission displays
  • Operator control interfaces
  • Diagnostics and maintenance interfaces
• Ensure efficient integration between GUI/application layers and real-time embedded systems.
• Drive development of reusable UI frameworks, widgets and software components across defence programmes.
• Ensure GUI solutions meet requirements for performance, usability, reliability and degraded/fault operating modes.

5. Software Architecture & Platform Engineering

• Define scalable and modular software architectures for complex defence platforms.
• Establish appropriate software partitioning across:
  • Bare-metal systems
  • RTOS
  • Embedded Linux
  • Application processors
  • Mission computers
  • Vehicle control units
  • Distributed computing nodes
• Define communication and middleware architectures using appropriate technologies and protocols.
• Drive development of common software platforms and reusable middleware.
• Establish software design standards, coding guidelines, architecture patterns and engineering best practices.
• Promote modularity, portability, configurability and technology reuse.
• Evaluate emerging software technologies and determine their suitability for mission-critical defence applications.

6. Real-Time, Distributed & Networked Systems

• Lead architecture and development of distributed real-time software systems.
• Provide technical direction for inter-process and inter-system communication.
• Define communication architectures for embedded and distributed platforms.
• Guide implementation of deterministic communication and data exchange mechanisms.
• Work with system teams on interfaces involving:
  • Ethernet
  • CAN/CAN-FD
  • Serial interfaces
  • MIL-STD-1553 or equivalent military communication buses
  • Other platform-specific interfaces
• Ensure appropriate consideration of latency, bandwidth, determinism, fault tolerance and synchronization.
• Drive system-level performance analysis and optimization.

7. People Leadership & Organization Development

• Lead and develop a multidisciplinary software engineering organization comprising engineers working across:
  • Embedded software
  • RTOS
  • VxWorks
  • Linux
  • BSP/device drivers
  • Middleware
  • C/C++
  • Qt/QML
  • Application software
  • Software architecture
• Build a high-performing software organization with strong technical depth and succession capability.
• Establish competency frameworks and technical career paths.
• Conduct performance management, talent reviews, resource planning and succession planning.
• Mentor senior engineers, architects and engineering managers.
• Develop the next generation of software technical leaders and architects.
• Promote a culture of engineering excellence, innovation, ownership, quality and continuous learning.

Required Technical Expertise

The candidate should demonstrate strong expertise in:

• Embedded Software
• Real-Time Operating Systems
• VxWorks
• Embedded Linux
• C/C++
• Qt / Qt Quick / QML
• Software Architecture
• Distributed Real-Time Systems
• Multithreaded Programming
• BSP and Device Driver Development
• Middleware
• Hardware/Software Integration
• Real-Time Networking
• Mission-Critical Software

Strong understanding and hands-on experience in:

• RTOS architecture
• Scheduling and determinism
• Inter-process communication
• Multithreading and synchronization
• Interrupt handling
• Memory management
• Device drivers
• BSP development
• Hardware abstraction layers
• Embedded Linux customization
• Linux device drivers
• Bootloaders
• Middleware frameworks
• Real-time communication
• Network programming
• Performance optimization
• Fault handling and recovery
• Diagnostics and health monitoring
• Software configuration management
• Software verification and validation

Software Architecture & Engineering Tools

Experience with some or most of the following will be expected:

• VxWorks / Wind River ecosystem
• Embedded Linux
• C/C++
• Qt / Qt Quick / QML
• Git
• CMake
• GCC/toolchains
• GDB
• Static-analysis tools
• CI/CD frameworks
• Unit and integration testing frameworks
• Code coverage tools
• Debugging and profiling tools
• SIL/HIL environments
• Real-time system analysis and profiling tools

Experience with containerization, virtualization, DevSecOps and automated software pipelines will be an added advantage where applicable to the product architecture.

Defence Industry Experience – Preferred

Experience in one or more of the following areas will be highly desirable:

• Armoured, Artillery and Air Defence Platforms
• Vehicle management systems
• Mission computers
• Weapon systems
• Gun-turret systems
• Gun control and stabilization systems
• Autonomous/remote land platforms
• Mission displays and operator consoles
• Embedded vehicle control systems
• Real-time mission-critical systems
• Military communication and networking systems

Experience with relevant military standards, environmental qualification, system integration, EMI/EMC, reliability and defence software qualification processes will be strongly preferred.

Leadership & Behavioural Competencies

• Strong software technology vision and strategic thinking.
• Proven ability to lead large, multidisciplinary software engineering teams.
• Strong systems-thinking and architectural problem-solving capability.
• Ability to make technically sound decisions under programme, schedule and resource constraints.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder-management skills.
• Ability to influence across organizational boundaries through technical leadership.
• Strong customer-facing and technical presentation capability.
• Demonstrated ability to build, mentor and retain high-quality software talent.
• Ability to balance deep technical involvement with organization-level leadership.
• Strong orientation toward quality, reliability, cybersecurity and engineering excellence.
• Strong ownership and accountability for technical outcomes.

Education

Essential

• B.E./B.Tech. or equivalent in Computer Science & Engineering / Electronics & Communication Engineering / Electrical & Electronics Engineering / Embedded Systems

Preferred

• M.E./M.Tech. in Computer Science / Embedded Systems / Real-Time Systems / Software Engineering / Electronics / Computer Engineering

Experience

• 15–20 years of relevant software engineering experience.
• Minimum 5 years of demonstrated people-management and engineering leadership experience.
• Strong experience in embedded and real-time software development.
• Significant hands-on experience with VxWorks and/or other RTOS platforms.
• Strong experience in Embedded Linux and C/C++.
• Strong experience with Qt/QML and development of operator/HMI applications is highly desirable.
• Proven experience architecting and delivering complex, mission-critical embedded software systems.
• Experience leading multidisciplinary software teams through the complete product development lifecycle.
• Experience in defence, aerospace, automotive, industrial automation, robotics or other high-reliability domains is preferred.
• Direct experience in land defence systems, weapon systems, vehicle electronics, mission computers or unmanned platforms will be strongly preferred.

Ideal Candidate Profile

The ideal candidate is a senior software technology leader and people manager who combines deep technical expertise in embedded and real-time software with the ability to architect and deliver complex mission-critical defence systems.

The candidate should be comfortable operating across the complete software stack—from device drivers, BSPs, RTOS and VxWorks through middleware, Linux, C/C++, Qt/QML and application software, while maintaining a strong understanding of system-level requirements and hardware/software integration.

They should have a demonstrated track record of leading software teams, solving complex real-time and embedded-system challenges, interacting with customers and cross-functional stakeholders, and building strong technical organizations.

This is a technology leadership role—not merely a project management position—and requires demonstrated ownership of complex software engineering decisions, technical strategy, engineering excellence, technical delivery, innovation and people development.

Job details

• Business: L&T Precision Engineering & Systems IC
• Location: Talegaon, Maharashtra
• Experience: 15-20 years
• Skills: Embedded Software Design