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Lance Harvie

Lance Harvie is an Embedded Engineer turned Technical Recruiter having recruited in the UK, Australia, Canada, Germany, India and Asia. Lance holds a Bsc (Hons) degree in Microelectronics and Information Processing from the University of Brighton, UK. Lance has started and run several technical recruitment firms in the role of CEO, COO, Technical Director and Technical recruiter over the past 23 years. Being an engineer first and foremost, Lance approaches recruitment from an engineering perspective which involves leveraging technology, engineering best practices and an engineer lead team of researchers and subject matter experts. This approach yields a more delightful and frictionless experience for hiring managers and candidate alike.

Embedded Systems in the Age of AI: What’s Changing and What Still Matters

Status: Coming up in April 2026!

Embedded systems are entering a period of rapid change driven by rising system complexity, always-connected devices, and the early impact of AI on both development workflows and products themselves. What was once a siloed discipline—bare metal firmware on fixed hardware—has become a multidisciplinary stack spanning silicon, operating systems, security, connectivity, cloud integration, and now machine-learning at the edge.

In this talk, Lance Harvie draws on years of experience as an engineer and specialist recruiter to map how embedded development has evolved from EPROM-based systems to modern SoCs running Embedded Linux and AI-assisted toolchains. He breaks down where AI is already affecting firmware, PCB, and chip design, where the hype exceeds reality, and why “vibe coding” carries real risk in safety-critical and production hardware.

The session also cuts through hiring myths:

  • Why most embedded job descriptions are unrealistic.
  • What skills are genuinely in demand.
  • Why strong fundamentals, system-level thinking, and communication matter more than ever.
  • How engineers should position themselves as AI tools and automated recruitment processes become standard.

This is a practical, experience-driven view of where embedded systems are heading, what engineers need to learn next, and what still matters if you want to build reliable products and long-term careers in an AI-shaped industry.

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Mastering Embedded Systems: Essential Skills and Trends for 2023

Status: Available Now

The topics I cover in this talk include passion for one's craft, upskilling to stay relevant and valuable in the market, and new trends such as RISC-V, Embedded Linux Kernel, and Yocto.

Additionally, leveraging ChatGPT can help individuals learn faster and prototype more quickly. Skills in demand include bare metal C, Rust, C++18/19, embedded Linux (kernel and user level), graphic libraries (open and closed source), cloud connectivity for analytics, security (chip and firmware level), open source RTOS's (RT-Thread, FreeRTOS, NuttX), debugging at the chip and firmware level, and expertise in robotics, EVs, medical devices, and IOT for industrial purposes.

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How to Guarantee a Successful Outcome When Recruiting Technical Talent (2020)

Status: Available Now

Recruiting is the lifeblood of every company getting it right could make the difference between being great or just plain average.

What you will learn in this talk: (This only applies to technical recruiting)

  1. How to define the scope of your job requirements
  2. How to communicate these requirements to internal recruiters or agencies
  3. How to hire your internal recruiter or recruitment team
  4. How to assess your recruitment agency suppliers
  5. How to ensure you communicate with full transparency and a sense of urgency

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