VP of Imaging and Vision Engineering

At Intuitive Surgical, we believe that minimally invasive care is life-enhancing care. Through ingenuity and intelligent technology, we expand the potential of physicians to heal without constraints. Our mission is to make surgery more effective, less invasive, and easier on surgeons, patients, and their families. Joining Intuitive Surgical means joining a team dedicated to using technology to benefit patients by improving surgical efficacy and decreasing surgical invasiveness, with patient safety as our highest priority.

Primary Function of Position

The Vice President of Imaging and Vision Engineering provides experienced technical and managerial leadership to the team responsible for the design and development of surgical vision products used with the DaVinci Surgical System. This role drives new breakthrough imaging and computer vision systems including mechanical, optical, electrical, thermal, and algorithmic designs to elevate surgical vision for clinicians. The role is responsible for smooth and successful transition of product designs to scale manufacturing. Additionally, this role is responsible for the ongoing design updates of launched products to ensure excellent field performance, high reliability, supply continuity, improved manufacturing efficacy, and product cost. 

Essential Job Duties

• Strategy: Develop comprehensive initiatives for DaVinci Surgical System Imaging and Vision, aligned with the overall business strategy and goals.
  • Participate in regular business strategy efforts.
  • Gain a deep understanding of market trends in current and future customer unmet needs.
  • Create and maintain a portfolio of projects that balance near-term, medium-term, and long-term strategic objectives.
  • Contribute to the creation of corporate and business unit goals and establish team goals that focus on internal projects and department improvements.
• Technical Leadership: Lead directors, managers, and engineers in domestic and international engineering centers to conceptualize, develop, and produce advanced products within the framework of an intelligent roadmap aligned with the product strategy.
  • Set appropriate priorities for product development that provides focus and motivation by connecting the priorities to key customer needs.
  • Own planning, execution, and completion of projects. Anticipate challenges and effectively mitigate to maintain project pillars, schedule, and budget in partnership with Project Management partners.
  • Be a product sponsor and champion by providing sound technical and business leadership to project teams and by actively participating in business and design control review boards for new and existing products.
  • Ensure rigorous design documentation coupled with solid verification and validation that is consistent with customer quality expectations.
  • Deliberately support domestic and international product regulatory submissions.
  • Drive continuous innovation and guide the engineering team to generate and create meaningful IP throughout the product development process to preserve key innovations and competitiveness.
  • Be knowledgeable of Intuitive products, their use in clinical settings, and stay current on latest advancements in the field.
  • Understand capabilities and innovation being developed at key suppliers and wisely guide the team to make decisions on whether to partner or conduct in-house-efforts.
  • Support claims investigation and development for new products in collaboration with Product Management to strengthen the value proposition of the products.
• Team Leadership: Create a positive, high-performing, and desirable culture within the organization that consistently demonstrates the values of the organization.      
  • Foster an environment that encourages creativity and risk taking to produce breakthrough product designs that meet needs and can scale effectively within the business.
  • Use sound judgment to navigate challenging and complex situations with humility and ethical courage.
  • Build leaders within the organization who independently make ethical decisions and take timely action.
  • Create and implement an organizational design that anticipates and meets the needs of the business now and in the future.
  • Cultivate and measure design processes and support continuous improvement initiatives.
  • Assess employee performance, provide coaching, and create opportunities for staff to grow technically and managerially in alignment with business needs and employee desires.
  • Provide leadership for planning, staffing, budgeting, and project/program cost tracking.
• Design Transfer and Product Engineering: Work closely with manufacturing and field service to ensure that products achieve seamless design transfer and maintain high-quality field performance.
  • Continuously monitor, support, and work to improve product quality with curiosity and a desire to understand and solve operational challenges.
  • • Solve manufacturing and field challenges with deep failure analysis and creative design solutions to properly support our customers.
    • Effectively navigate quality and compliance challenges with clarity and proactively manage CAPA projects as needed.
  • Communication and Collaboration: Demonstrate clarity of thought and build strong, trustworthy relationships with partners across the company.
    • Be a student of communication and relationship-building and continuously improve this important skillset.
    • Communicate effectively with staff, company executives, clinicians, product teams, process development, and all operations functions.
    • Build relationships across the company and focusing particularly with those that are close partners with product development.

Required Skills and Experience

• A minimum of 15+ years of design engineering experience in camera or imaging product development.
• At least 10+ years as a manager of technical personnel in a fast-paced environment, with 5+ years leading large groups that include people managers being strongly preferred.
• Experience in medical device design and development, specifically in tissue visualization, is highly desirable.
• Strong technical and analytical skills in optics, algorithms, mechanical design, electronics, imaging, and software
• Deep understanding of engineering best practices and rigorous product development methods
• Proven experience and solid track record of complex product development and project management taking products through concept, design, manufacturing, deployment, and ongoing development

• Strong understanding of moderate volume manufacturing processes.
• Excellent communication skills are essential with solid proficiency in standard tools.
• Experience communicating with and influencing senior executives.
• Ability to travel occasionally (15-20%) for partner meetings, manufacturing site and supplier visits, and customer interactions both domestically and internationally.

Required Education and Training

Master’s or Ph.D. in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Software Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Imaging Science, or a related engineering discipline. Commensurate work experience in vision engineering will be considered.

Due to the nature of our business and the role, please note that Intuitive and/or your customer(s) may require that you show current proof of vaccination against certain diseases including COVID-19.  Details can vary by role.

Intuitive is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We provide equal employment opportunities to all qualified applicants and employees, and prohibit discrimination and harassment of any type, without regard to race, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, color, age, religion, protected veteran or disability status, genetic information or any other status protected under federal, state, or local applicable laws.

Mandatory Notices

We will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records in accordance with fair chance laws.

Preference will be given to qualified candidates who do not reside, or plan to reside, in Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, or Tennessee.

We provide market-competitive compensation packages, inclusive of base pay, incentives, benefits, and equity. It would not be typical for someone to be hired at the top end of range for the role, as actual pay will be determined based on several factors, including experience, skills, and qualifications. The target salary ranges are listed.