At a Glance
- Tasks: Collaborate with clients to solve kernel challenges and contribute to Linux development.
- Company: Join a forward-thinking tech company focused on innovation and community.
- Benefits: Fully remote work, optional travel, and opportunities for professional growth.
- Other info: Dynamic role with a focus on community collaboration and technical excellence.
- Why this job: Make a real impact on popular devices and push the boundaries of Linux.
- Qualifications: Experience in Linux kernel development and strong problem-solving skills required.
The predicted salary is between 60000 - 80000 £ per year.
This role combines deep technical work with collaborative consulting. You will partner with client engineering teams to solve their toughest kernel challenges while championing upstream-first approaches.
Location: Fully remote (preference for EU or East Coast US hours)
Travel: Optional conference attendance
What you'll actually do:
- Upstream First: Contribute directly to mainline Linux kernel development: schedulers, power management, device drivers and core subsystems.
- Real-World Impact: Support and optimise Linux for extremely popular consumer devices used by millions of people.
- Solve Hard Problems: Make Linux do things it can't currently do. Push the boundaries of what is possible to mould Linux to suit new use cases. Tackle device failures without the luxury of a stack trace, relying on experience and intuition.
- Community Collaboration: Work with upstream maintainers and represent at conferences.
- Client Partnership: Translate customer needs into technical solutions while advocating for upstream-first approaches. You'll help clients understand why investing in upstream benefits their long-term goals.
- Navigate Constraints: Balance technical excellence with real-world pressures: customer deadlines, hardware limitations, business priorities, while keeping code quality high.
- Be a Technical Advisor: Explain complex kernel decisions to product teams, provide honest timelines and build trust through transparent communication.
What we're looking for:
- Required: Product support experience, you are comfortable diagnosing and resolving issues reported by end-users which often require dedication to reproduce from vague bug reports and limited reproduction steps.
- Solid Linux kernel development experience, you have spent meaningful time working in the kernel and are comfortable navigating unfamiliar subsystems independently.
- Strong English communication skills, both spoken and written for patch reviews, documentation and client discussions.
- Self-directed work style - you thrive in a remote, asynchronous environment.
Nice to have:
- Upstream contribution history, we know not every employer makes this easy. If you haven't had the opportunity yet, we'll help you build that profile as part of the role.
- Consultancy or client-facing technical background, you know how to balance technical excellence with business constraints.
- Experience with schedulers, power management, Bluetooth, WiFi or audio subsystems.
- Familiarity with CI/CD for kernel testing (KernelCI, Jenkins, LAVA).
- Background in BSP development or board bring-up.
- Distribution experience (Arch, Debian, Yocto, Buildroot).
- Rust programming skills.
Kernel SW Consultant employer: microTECH Global LTD
As a Kernel SW Consultant, you will join a forward-thinking company that values innovation and collaboration in a fully remote environment, ideally suited for those in the EU or East Coast US. Our culture fosters continuous learning and community engagement, offering opportunities to contribute to significant Linux kernel developments while working alongside passionate professionals. With optional travel for conferences and a commitment to supporting your growth within the upstream community, we provide a unique platform for you to make a real-world impact on technology used by millions.
