LEAD CAE Application Engineer

LEAD CAE Application Engineer,

SAN JOSE, CA

       At Cadence, we hire and develop leaders and innovators who want to make an impact on the world of technology.

The Lead CAE Application Engineer role is a chance to join a dynamic team, applying your CAE knowledge to support customers across aerospace, automotive, consumer electronics, industrial, and marine sectors. You’ll use Cadence’s CAE tools to create innovative solutions, benchmark products, promote best practices, and work closely with sales and product teams. This position combines technical simulation expertise with a customer-focused approach, helping clients use Cadence’s CAE tools effectively and solve complex engineering problems while advancing best practices in FEA and simulation workflows.

Job Duties

• Provide advanced technical support to customers on CAE applications, addressing modeling, solver, and post-processing challenges.
• Guide customers in applying core CAE concepts, including durability, NVH, and crash/safety simulations.
• Build expertise as a multi-product specialist to deliver expert consulting and support on customer projects before and after sales.
• Lead troubleshooting efforts for complex simulation issues across pre-processing, solving, and post-processing stages.
• Deliver customer training sessions, workshops, and technical demonstrations on Cadence’s CAE tools and methodologies.
• Collaborate with internal product development teams to communicate customer feedback and influence tool enhancements.
• Develop best practice guidelines, documentation, and knowledge base content for users.
• Deploy and integrate CAE tools into customer workflows; identify new opportunities for Cadence product adoption.
• Drive automation and efficiency improvements using scripting and customized solutions.
• Act as a technical escalation point for critical customer issues.

The ideal candidate should have:

• Master’s in Mechanical or Aerospace Engineering (or related) plus 5+ years’ experience.
• Solid mechanics and FEA fundamentals, with experience in structural durability, NVH, crash and safety analysis for automotive, consumer electronics, and aerospace industries.
• Proficiency in CAE/FEA tools: ANSA (pre-processing), META (post-processing), with strong expertise in CAE solvers (MSC NASTRAN, ABAQUS, LSDYNA).
• Knowledge of additional pre/post/solver technology workflows is an added plus.
• Strong communication, presentation and cross-functional collaboration skills.
• Strong programming and automation skills, particularly in Python scripting.
• Familiarity with AI/ML concepts and their application in simulation, such as surrogate modeling, optimization, or data-driven engineering.
• Analytical thinking and problem-solving
• Demonstrates a positive team attitude with a growth mindset, proactively suggesting and implementing process improvements.
• Willingness to travel and work at customer sites throughout North America

Work Authorization

• A current authorization to work in the U.S. is required.

The annual salary range for California is $102,900 to $191,100. You may also be eligible to receive incentive compensation: bonus, equity, and benefits. Sales positions generally offer a competitive On Target Earnings (OTE) incentive compensation structure. Please note that the salary range is a guideline and compensation may vary based on factors such as qualifications, skill level, competencies and work location. Our benefits programs include: paid vacation and paid holidays, 401(k) plan with employer match, employee stock purchase plan, a variety of medical, dental and vision plan options, and more.