Product Design Engineering Lead

We are Loop

We redefine what an earplug should sound, look and feel like. Whether it’s hearing protection or comfort for your ears, Loop enables you to live life at your volume. Our founders Maarten and Dimitri started Loop back with a big idea. And a chronic ringing in their ears. Since then, we’ve helped more than 3,500,000 customers around the world to find quiet, enjoy great experiences and keep unwanted noise at bay.

In 2023 we grew from almost 100 Loopers to over 250 people. And that’s a number we would have to keep updating every month, as we are planning to double the team once again, this year.

Our headquarters are based in Antwerp, but with hubs in Amsterdam, Shanghai, and New York, we’re dotted all over the globe.

Not to brag about it, but we’ve recently won the EY Scale up of the year award, the Deloitte Fast50 award (for the second year in a row) and a couple of other amazing (international) prices. The New York Times named us ‘best earplugs for concerts’ and thousands of noise-sensitive customers call us a ‘life changer’.

Hybrid | Bay Area

Have you ever had the chance to work on products that truly transform people's lives? Well, now's your opportunity – we have a roadmap filled with exciting ideas to elevate our earwear. Imagine designing and developing groundbreaking active hearing devices – oh yes, we’re going active – as well as upgrading our existing Loop lineup. Ambitious projects require ambitious Product Design Engineering Leads. Does that sound like you?

As a Product Design Engineering Lead, the success of product development is in your hands

Your role is to spearhead the entire product development journey for the PDE team: from brainstorming initial concepts to crafting prototypes, supporting user tests, refining designs, all the way to the ultimate product launch. Your objective? With every product cycle under your guidance, you’re aiming for Loops that are not just effective and comfortable but also stylish. Your goal? To deliver products that go above and beyond our customer’s expectation and are in line with the needs of Loop manufacturing and operations. And don't underestimate the potential for innovation in earplugs. Trust us, there's plenty of room for innovation. Remember that roadmap we discussed? It's packed with plans for active hearing products, featuring health monitoring capabilities and other cutting-edge electrical solutions, empowering people to live life at their volume with style and confidence. Plus, you've got a trusty team by your side, and Jen, your supportive manager, is always ready to lend a hand.

Your other responsibilities:

• Collaborating with key stakeholders, internal Loopers and external partners like suppliers and manufacturers.
• Balancing costs, quality, and design of your projects, actively assessing and managing risk.
• Facilitating product architecture concept development and down selections.
• Lead cross-functional teams through root cause analysis of issues stemming from development and production issues.

How you’ll succeed as a Product Design Engineering Lead

This is not your first product-launch rodeo, and you have the mechanical technical expertise needed to help drive a product from concept to market. At your core, you're naturally curious – always eager to delve into the inner workings of things. And of course, design is your passion. Given the heavy collaboration with internal and external partners, your knack for (technical) communication is pivotal in this role, and you have a track record of guiding PDE teams through technical problem-solving and making data-based decisions. You’re the type of person who enjoys sharing insights and knowledge to help us enhance our processes, improve quality and manage costs effectively. So don’t be shy. It’s also important that you don’t mind working independently on projects a lot. And considering our rapid growth and audacious goals, you'll need to be adaptable, ready to embrace change and switch gears quickly.

These key competences will set you up for success:

• At least 5 years' experience as a mechanical or product design engineering lead at companies with tangible, non-digital products related to consumer goods, health care, or consumer electronics/IoT.
• A Degree in Product Design/ Development, mechanical engineering or similar
• An ability to help set and clarify both product and engineering requirements.
• A good understanding of DOE principles and methodologies, enabling you to optimize product designs and build statistical confidence in the solutions you develop.
• Familiarity with design considerations for manufacturing, assembly processes, and packaging to ensure the products can be efficiently produced and delivered to customers. Injection molding, compression molding, or plastics molding experience preferred.
• A comprehensive understanding of engineering analysis techniques, testing tools and methods, and adherence to technical documentation standards, as this is essential for successful product development.
• Experience working with suppliers and manufacturers based in Asia is highly desirable, as it aligns with our sourcing and production strategies.

Location:

As you'll be actively involved in developing a physical product, we'd love to have you at our Bay Area office for approximately 3 to 4 days a week. The frequency may vary, ranging from less to more, depending on the project's current phase.

Loop takes into consideration a wide range of factors that are utilized in making compensation decisions including, but not limited to, experience, skill sets, qualifications, education, and other business and organizational needs. Final salary is based on a number of factors including location, travel, relevant prior experience, or particular skills and expertise. Please note the range listed is just one component of the Company’s total rewards package.

Base Salary Range

$150,000—$200,000 USD

Why join us?

• In 2023, we won Scale-up of the year (according to EY — awarded December 2023), and we want you to scale and grow with us.
• Our culture? We’re all about enabling growth by giving our team full autonomy to manage their own projects, be a thought leader, and truly make an impact on the company.
• We take care of our people. So, we pay them what they’re worth. Expect a competitive pay in the top 20% of the market rate for your level of experience and potential.
• Flexibility: For us, hybrid and flexible working is all about trust. And we trust you to get on with your job, so there’ll be no micromanaging or peeking over your shoulder from us.
• Benefits: Our benefits are all aimed towards looking after your health, and enabling you to live life to the fullest. So everything from health insurance and retirement savings to the latest tools is covered.

Come as you are, our equal opportunities employer statement

Loop is an equal opportunities employer. We invest in diversity, ensure equality and encourage expression. We have a zero-tolerance policy for harassment, bias or discrimination towards applicants and employees.

Live life at your volume. We'll take care of your ears.