Media Codec Telemetry & Validation Engineer

Team Red Dog is seeking a Media Codec Telemetry & Validation Engineer to support a Fortune 100 technology leader advancing the reliability and quality of Windows media experiences at global scale. This onsite role (Redmond WA) is ideal for an engineer who thrives at the intersection of video codecs hardware validation and telemetry owning the signals and tests that determine when media features shipor stop. If you are passionate about codec quality real-hardware validation and turning telemetry into actionable insight this role offers direct measurable impact on products used by billions.

Top Required Skills (Must Haves):

1. Codec & Media Pipeline Expertise 46 years- Experience with video and image codecs such as H.264 HEVC and AV1 across encode and decode paths. Strong understanding of codec profiles and color formats (8/10-bit 4:2:0 4:2:2 4:4:4) failure modes and performance behaviors within real-world media pipelines.

2. Video Feature Test Development on Real Hardware 35 years - Hands-on experience designing and writing video validation tests that confirm hardware devices (GPU SoC accelerator) correctly support specific codec features or capabilities including: Crafting functional validation tests/Verifying hardware feature enablement/Confirming decoding and encoding behavior/Validating performance and correctness on real devices

3. Telemetry / Observability Engineering 4 years - Proven experience instrumenting systems defining telemetry events and schemas analyzing large datasets and building dashboards that transform raw signals into meaningful reliability quality and regression insights.

Opportunity Overview:
This role is a unique opportunity to own and evolve the telemetry and validation signals that gate codec quality across Windows. You will expand profile-level visibility for modern codecs strengthen HLK encoder coverage and integrate MVHV scenarios to reduce hardware partner friction. Your work directly influences driver readiness codec reliability and the confidence with which new media features ship.

How you will make an impact:

• Design and implement enhanced telemetry events schemas and probes across codec pipelines.
• Expand telemetry granularity for advanced codec profiles and configuration variations.
• Build and enhance dashboards that surface trends regressions and reliability issues.
• Author and extend HLK tests for HEVC and AV1 encoder validation.
• Integrate MVHV scenarios into HLK workflows to improve IHV pass rates.
• Analyze telemetry and HLK test data to identify codec reliability gaps.
• Collaborate with codec engineers HLK teams graphics/media teams and IHV partners to close coverage gaps and improve driver readiness.

The expertise you bring:

• 46 years working with modern video and image codecs.
• Strong understanding of codec internals encode/decode paths and advanced profiles.
• Experience with HLK authoring and driver certification workflows.
• Ability to understand telemetry signals failure modes and reliability metrics.
• Proven cross-team collaboration skills across engineering and hardware partner teams.

What makes a candidate highly successful in this role:
Highly successful candidates naturally connect codec behavior telemetry signals and validation coverage. They proactively identify blind spots design instrumentation or tests to close those gaps and translate complex data into clear actionable insights that improve reliability and partner outcomes.

Why Work with Team Red Dog
At Team Red Dog people are at the heart of everything we do. Our commitment to personalized service and our deep experience in matching talented professionals with meaningful roles at some of the worlds most inspiring companies is what sets us apart. We take the time to understand your unique skills strengths and passionsbecause we believe your career should reflect who you are.

Whether youre looking to grow pivot or simply find a place where your work truly matters we offer opportunities that empower you to make a positive impact. With excellent benefits a supportive team and a role where you can thrive while doing what you love were here to help you take the next step with confidence. Join usand discover what it means to be genuinely valued in your career.

Generous benefits package for qualified employees includes:
Health insurance (medical dental vision and life)
Employer-matched 401K plan
Paid time off
Paid holidays
Profit sharing

Estimated Start Date: Immediately
Location: Onsite Redmond WA
Job #: 2442
Job Type and Estimated Duration: W2/Contract through 6/30/2026 extension possible
Rate: $66$73/hr

Team Red Dog is committed to providing equal opportunities to everyone regardless of race ethnicity gender age religion sexual orientation disability or any other characteristic. If you need accommodation during the recruitment process reach out to and we will work to ensure an accessible experience. We strictly adhere to federal state and local laws to maintain a workplace free from discrimination and harassment.

We offer competitive compensation aligned with U.S. industry standards and our final offer will reflect the candidates location job-specific skills experience and knowledge.

All applicants must be authorized to work in the U.S. without the need for sponsorship.
Team Red Dog is an E-Verify employer.
Employment is contingent upon the successful completion of a reference and background check.
Please no solicitations from C2C or recruiting firms.

Required Experience:

IC