Senior Staff Engineer-CTO office

About our group:

The Office of the CTO (OCTO) at Seagate is committed to strategic innovation, chartered to define the company’s long-range technology vision and explore disruptive ideas. The OCTO drives outside-in research on emerging data center architectures, develops technical Points of View, and validates breakthrough concepts through Proofs of Concept. The group influences industry standards, contributes to Open Hardware and Software ecosystem, enables technology partnerships, and manages future Seagate’s innovation roadmap enabling technology advancements in storage & storage adjacent technologies. By combining thought leadership with hands-on experimentation, OCTO positions Seagate at the forefront of cloud, AI and edge infrastructure evolution. 

About the role - you will:

• Deal with architectural research: Conduct in-depth research and analysis of emerging data center architectures, including disaggregated/composable storage, relationship of compute & storage, memory & networking architectures. 
• Create Points of View (POVs): Develop and articulate clear, compelling technical Points of View on how these future architectures will impact the demand for storage form factor, interfaces, and required features of our Hard Disk Drives (HDD), Solid-State Drives (SSD) & Storage solution subsystems. 
• Conduct competitive analysis: Track and analyze the long-term technology strategies of ecosystem partners (e.g., Hyperscale’s, enterprise & edge companies) to identify strategic gaps and opportunities. 
• Work on patent/IP generation: Drive strategic Intellectual Property (IP) by generating high-value patent applications related to future data center storage integration and optimization. Also participate in reviewing and making recommended actions on various internally proposed patentable concepts  
• Represent Seagate at key industry consortia & foundations, conferences, and with strategic customers to influence industry standards and gather early technical requirements. 
• Prepare and present complex technical assessments, risk analyses, and strategic recommendations to the CTO and Executive Leadership Team in a clear, concise, and business-relevant manner. 

About you:

• Forward-looking technologist who thrives at the intersection of storage, networking, and compute—and you’re energized by shaping what the data center will look like 5+ years from now. You combine deep storage systems expertise with broad, system-level thinking. 
• You design and execute rigorous architectural investigations, synthesize standards and competitive signals, and translate findings into technical narratives and decision frameworks that withstand peer and executive scrutiny. 
• You can recognize patentable patterns early and turn them into high‑value IP. You engage confidently in standards bodies and with hyperscale’s/OEMs, to influence interfaces and capture early technical requirements 
• Collaborate across Product Marketing, R&D, and Research to align long‑range concepts with near‑term deliverables, ensuring POC lead to decisions for the long- term innovation roadmap.  
• Enjoy mentoring junior engineers, elevating system thinking and architectural rigor across teams. 

Your experience includes:

• Experience in data storage, memory, or enterprise systems architecture, with a focus on strategic & research development. 
• Deep Domain Expertise: Expert-level knowledge of at least one of the following domains, with strong working knowledge of the others: 

• • HDD/Magnetic Recording: Principles of magnetic recording, drive interfaces, & storage protocols.  

• • Data Center Interconnects: Protocols like NVMe oF, TCP/RDMA, and PCIe at a specification and system level. 

• • Software-Defined Storage (SDS): Architecture, orchestration frameworks, and integration with disaggregated storage environments. 

• Demonstrated ability to drive an idea from concept through to a working, validated POC ready for development. 
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to write white papers and present at major industry forums.  
• Able to travel nationally and internationally.
• Bachelor’s degree in engineering related field (i.e. Electrical, Mechanical, Chemical, Computer Engineering, Materials, Physics, or Information Technology) and 12+ years of experience or master’s degree in the same and 8+ years’ experience or PhD and 5+ years’ experience or equivalent experience and education.

You might also have: 

• Experience with AI/ML workload requirements and their impact on storage bandwidth, latency, and capacity. 
• Familiarity with *nix kernel storage stacks and performance analysis tools. 
• Prior experience in a technology strategy, advanced development, or OCTO-equivalent role at a major storage, semiconductor, or hyperscale company. 

Location:

This position can be based out of our offices in Minneapolis, Colorado or Remote in USA.  

Our Shakopee campus is located 25 minutes southwest of Minneapolis in a setting with a rural vibe – it overlooks a horse racing track and stables, yet it has great entertainment venues close by as well. With wide-open spaces, the campus has plenty of space for running, biking, shooting some hoops or playing volleyball over lunch. If working out is your thing, the on-site fully equipped fitness center hosts wellness programs, tournaments and group workouts. Hungry? Seagate offers an on-site café with freshly sourced foods and specialty coffees, or if you prefer, drive to one of many restaurants just minutes away.

Our Normandale campus spans two suburbs, Edina and Bloomington, and serves as the Recording Head development and manufacturing arm of Seagate. Located in the heart of a bustling community, Seagate offers an on-site café, or if you prefer, you can drive to one of many restaurants just minutes away. Need to grab a gift over lunch time? Shopping is abundant in the area. If working out is your thing, the on-site fully equipped fitness center hosts wellness programs, outdoor activities, tournaments and group workouts. Looking for something more laid back? Reset in one of our meditations rooms, or simply take a walk around our indoor walking path. On-site cultural festivals, celebrations and community volunteer opportunities also abound.

Our Longmont product-design campus is nestled against the foothills with exceptional views of the Rocky Mountains. Here at work, you can grab breakfast and lunch in the on-site cafeteria or get an afternoon espresso, prepared by a professional barista. Our 1,500+ employees enjoy an active on-site experience from sporting activities (get in a few laps at lunch on our 1-mile walking path around campus, play ping-pong or volleyball, or stop in our 24- hour fitness center for a group or individual workout) to community service and many employee resource groups including Pride! Women’s Leadership Network and a Young Professionals Network.

Seagate is able to offer virtual employment for this position in the following states: AL, AZ, CA, CO, CT, FL, GA, ID, IL, IN, KS, KY, MA, MD, MI, MN, MO, NC, NH, NJ, NM, NY, NV, OH, OK, OR, PA, SC, SD, TN, TX, UT, VA, WA, WI, WY.

The estimated base salary range for this position is $144,164.00 - $210,107.00. The individual salary is based on work location and additional factors, including job-related skills, experience, and relevant education or training.

Seagate offers comprehensive benefits to its eligible employees, including, but not limited to, , eligibility to participate in discretionary bonus program, medical, dental, vision, and life insurance, short-and long-term disability, 401(k), employee stock purchase plan, health savings account, dependent care, and healthcare spending accounts. Seagate also offers paid time off, including 12 holidays, flexible time off provided pursuant to Seagate policy, a minimum of 48 hours of paid sick leave, and 16 weeks of paid parental leave. The benefits for this position are based on a full-time schedule for a full calendar year and may differ depending on work location

Location: Shakopee, United States
Travel: Up to 25%