Global Support Engineer
Job description
About the role
The position focuses on New Product Introduction readiness, technical escalation support, and maintaining SD Headquarters instrumentation.
Software engineers turn product ideas into working code. Engineers work in small teams, review each other's work, and ship in small batches. Most teams follow agile practices such as sprints and daily standups. Engineers also write tests, fix bugs, and improve performance. The field values clear communication as much as technical skill. Engineers spend part of every week on planning, code review, and debugging, not just writing new code. The ability to explain a technical decision in plain words separates strong engineers from the rest.
Key facts
What you'll do
Global knowledgebase content is created to ensure readiness before product launch.
Troubleshooting documentation and escalation records are standardized by the support role.
SD Headquarters instrumentation is maintained to support Service Training and internal validation testing.
Service processes are improved through participation in standardization discussions and efforts.
Requirements
A Bachelors degree in Engineering (Mechanical, Electrical, Biomedical, or related discipline) is required.
2-5 years of experience in field service or technical support within complex instrumentation, biotech, medical device, or similar regulated industry is required.
System-level troubleshooting across mechanics, fluidics, optics, electronics, and SW/FW is demonstrated.
Written and verbal communication skills enable clear documentation of technical issues.
Independent work with moderate technical guidance is possible, with appropriate escalation.
Hands-on familiarity with NGS technologies, including library preparation, sequencing, and data analysis, is preferred.
Experience in regulated environments (ISO 13485, GMP) is a plus.
Prior experience supporting product launches or NPI activities is a plus.
Practical notes
The role is based onsite in San Diego and may require domestic travel approximately 10-20%.
Work hours are flexible to support customers, including non-regular business hours.
Typical interview steps
Hiring for engineering roles usually starts with a recruiter screen, followed by one or two technical rounds. Candidates often solve a coding problem, discuss past projects, and answer system design questions. Some loops include a take-home task. Final rounds typically cover team fit and give candidates a chance to ask questions. Interviewers look for how you break down an unfamiliar problem, not just whether you reach the answer. Practicing a few problems aloud and reviewing your own past projects are the best preparation.
Good to know
Typical tools in this field include system-level troubleshooting across mechanical, fluidics, optics, electronics, and software/firmware subsystems.
Questions to ask
Worth asking in any interview: how the team measures success, who the role works with daily, what the onboarding looks like, and what the company is trying to achieve this year. Asking what past hires did well is a strong final question. Keep the list short and pick the questions that matter most to you.
Career growth
Engineering careers usually progress from individual contributor to senior, staff, and principal levels. Some engineers move into management and lead teams of five to twenty people. Others stay on the technical track. Growth follows demonstrated impact, not tenure alone. A typical engineering ladder has clear levels with defined expectations for scope, quality, and mentorship. Moving up usually requires owning outcomes end to end rather than completing assigned tickets.
About the company
Element Biosciences builds tools that let researchers probe cellular activity with imaging and computation. Teams design assays, image analysis, and data models that translate raw readouts into biological insight.
You work at the interface of wet-lab experiments and software pipelines. Your contributions shape experiments, influence analysis, and connect measurement to biological questions.