Customer Solution Architect

At Bose Corporation, we believe sound is the most powerful force on earth - and for over 60 years, we have been a company built on innovation, excellence, and independence. Privately owned, fiercely customer-focused, and driven by our values, we continue to lead industries and transform lives through sound.

Today, Bose Corporation is entering an exciting new era. Across multiple global Business Units and Global Functions, we are shaping the future of audio technology, automotive, luxury, and premium experiences. We invite you to join us in this transformation.

Job Description

Position Summary

The automotive industry is rapidly evolving toward Software-Defined Vehicles (SDV), centralized compute architectures, AI-enabled experiences, and software-driven business models. Bose Automotive is building xxx, a software, IP, and platform business designed to scale Bose technologies across the broader automotive ecosystem.

We are seeking a highly strategic and technically capable Customer Solution Architect (CSA) to help define, shape, and scale the next generation of Bose software and platform solutions.

The Customer Solution Architect serves as the primary technical authority responsible for translating customer needs, market opportunities, and emerging platform requirements into scalable software, IP, and platform architectures. The CSA acts as the technical bridge between customers, Business Development, Product Management, Engineering, and strategic ecosystem partners.

Unlike traditional automotive architecture roles focused primarily on customer-specific RFQs and program delivery, the xx CSA focuses on scalable solution architectures, platform reuse, ecosystem integration, proof-of-concept activities, and future architecture adoption across multiple OEMs and technology partners.

This role combines deep technical expertise with strong customer engagement skills and will play a critical role in establishing Bose as a leading software and technology partner in the Software-Defined Vehicle ecosystem.

Role Purpose

The Customer Solution Architect is responsible for:

• Defining scalable customer solution architectures.
• Translating market needs into reusable platform capabilities.
• Influencing customer architecture decisions
• Supporting strategic customer pursuits and proof-of-concept activities.
• Enabling adoption of Bose software, IP, and platform technologies.
• Driving platform reuse and scalable deployment models across OEMs, Tier-1s, and ecosystem partners.

The CSA is a trusted technical advisor to:

• Customers
• Business Development
• Product Management
• Engineering
• Strategic Partners

Mission Statement

Enable scalable growth of Bose software, IP, and platform technologies by creating customer-winning solution architectures that align market needs, product strategy, and engineering capabilities.

Serve as the technical bridge between customers, ecosystem partners, Product Management, Engineering, and Business Development to ensure solutions are technically feasible, commercially compelling, and scalable across multiple customers and vehicle platforms.

Key Responsibilities

Customer Solution Architecture

• Define customer-facing software, platform, and system architectures.
• Translate customer requirements into scalable and reusable Bose solutions.
• Create solution concepts that align customer needs with Bose technology capabilities.
• Develop technical solution strategies supporting customer pursuits and ecosystem opportunities.
• Identify architectural tradeoffs and recommend optimal deployment approaches.

Technical Customer Engagement

• Serve as the primary technical advisor during strategic customer engagements.

• Support Business Development in:

• customer workshops

• architecture reviews

• proof-of-concept discussions

• executive technical engagements

• Engage directly with:

• OEM software organizations

• vehicle architecture teams

• advanced engineering organizations

• platform and SDV teams

• Influence customer technology roadmaps and future architecture decisions.

Platform & Integration Strategy

• Define how Bose technologies integrate into:

• centralized compute architectures

• zonal architectures

• infotainment platforms

• AI-enabled vehicle architectures

• third-party systems

• Develop reference architectures and integration frameworks.

• Ensure solutions maximize reuse across customers and vehicle programs.

• Identify opportunities to simplify deployment and reduce customer integration effort.

Proof-of-Concept & Innovation Leadership

• Define technical scope and success criteria for proof-of-concept activities.
• Support concept vehicles, pilot programs, and demonstration platforms.
• Evaluate emerging technologies and identify opportunities for innovation.
• Collaborate with Engineering and Product teams to validate new concepts and technology approaches.

Ecosystem & Strategic Partnerships

• Work closely with strategic technology partners including:

• semiconductor suppliers

• cloud providers

• middleware vendors

• AI platform providers

• Tier-1 suppliers

• Support partnership evaluations and ecosystem integration activities.

• Define technical collaboration models that enable scalable growth.

Platform Reuse & Scalability

• Identify reusable platform capabilities and software building blocks.
• Help shape future Bose software and platform strategies.
• Ensure customer solutions contribute to long-term platform scalability.
• Support definition of APIs, SDKs, integration frameworks, and deployment models.

Deliverables

The CSA is expected to create and maintain:

• Customer solution architectures
• Platform deployment models
• Reference architectures
• Integration frameworks
• Technical business cases
• Proof-of-concept definitions
• Technical solution strategies
• Platform scalability assessments
• Architecture decision records
• Technical risk assessments

Qualifications

Education

• Bachelor's degree required, preferably in:
• Computer Science
• Software Engineering
• Electrical Engineering
• Systems Engineering
• Computer Engineering
• Advanced technical degree preferred.

Experience

• Minimum 8 years of experience in:

• Solution Architecture

• Systems Architecture

• Software Architecture

• Product Engineering

• Automotive Software Development

• Experience working directly with OEM customers.

• Experience defining software and platform architecture.

• Experience supporting customer pursuits and technical business development activities.

• Experience with automotive software, infotainment, connectivity, AI, or SDV platforms.

Preferred experience:

• Automotive OEM
• Tier-1 supplier
• Semiconductor company
• Automotive software company
• Cloud or platform provider

Required Skills & Competencies

Technical

Strong understanding of:

• Software-Defined Vehicle architectures
• Centralized compute architectures
• Zonal architectures
• Automotive software platforms
• Middleware and APIs
• Cloud and edge computing
• OTA software deployment
• AI-enabled user experiences
• Audio, infotainment, and cockpit systems
• System integration and deployment models

Customer & Commercial

• Ability to engage credibly with both technical and executive audiences.
• Strong workshop facilitation and customer presentation skills.
• Ability to translate technical capabilities into customer value.
• Ability to influence customer architecture and platform decisions.
• Strong business acumen and understanding of software business models.

Leadership

• Exceptional communication and collaboration skills.
• Strong problem-solving capabilities.
• Ability to operate effectively in ambiguous and evolving environments.
• Comfortable influencing cross-functional teams without direct authority.
• Strategic mindset combined with strong execution focus.

Success Measures

Success in this role will be measured by:

• Customer architecture influence.
• Number of solution concepts adopted by customers.
• Successful proof-of-concept and pilot program execution.
• Growth of scalable platform opportunities.
• Reuse of platform capabilities across customers.
• Ecosystem integration success.
• Contribution to AutoTech pipeline growth.
• Technical credibility and customer satisfaction.

Travel Requirements

Domestic and international travel required.

Estimated travel:

20-40%

Why This Role Matters

The Customer Solution Architect is a foundational role within AutoTech.

This role will help define how Bose technology scales beyond traditional system ownership by enabling software, IP, and platform solutions that can be deployed across multiple OEMs, Tier-1s, and ecosystem partners.

The CSA will play a critical role in transforming Bose from a traditional automotive systems supplier into a scalable software and technology platform provider for the Software-Defined Vehicle era.

At Bose, you're inspired to be and do your best and are rewarded for your unique talents! Our compensation is thoughtfully tailored to your skills, experience, education, and location, and goes beyond base salary. The hiring range for this position in the primary work location of Troy, Michigan is: $125,000-$171,950.The hiring range for other Bose work locations may vary.

In addition to competitive base pay we offer rewards including bonus programs, comprehensive health and welfare benefits, a 401(k) plan, plus exclusive perks designed to support your wellbeing, and a generous employee discount where you can immerse yourself in our products and experiences. We are a proudly independent company-driven by purpose, guided by our values, and united by a belief in the power of sound. As the world leader in audio experiences, we're creating what's next-pushing boundaries and delivering transformative sound experiences for people everywhere. Join us and make your next career move a mic-drop. Let's Make Waves.