Kevin Liedtke
About Me
For 20+ years I’ve made complex software behave the way technical users need, working at whatever level that requires, from architecture direction to product experience design to shipped code. At Intel that meant owning UX architecture for the wired Ethernet software portfolio, shipping production software across 40+ releases, and building developer tooling for a 1,000+ engineer organization. Along the way I generated three granted patents and several published filings. I’m at my best translating ambiguous real-world problems into systems that are reliable to build on and clear to use.
What I Do
I lead technical strategy, mentor engineers, and drive architecture and design decisions across products, platforms, and engineering workflows. My work spans product experience design, implementation, automation, and operational visibility, with a focus on improving reliability, maintainability, and usability. I collaborate effectively across disciplines and organizational levels, from individual contributors to executive leadership, to align technical direction with business and user needs.
Beyond Code
Outside of work, I continue exploring new technologies through personal engineering projects and hands-on experimentation. I also value time with my family, enjoy basketball both on and off the court, and take every opportunity I can to get in the water snorkeling. Continuous learning, curiosity, and staying engaged beyond the day-to-day remain central to how I grow as an engineer and architect.
Case Studies
Professional examples focused on architecture, UX-driven systems thinking, workflow design, and cross-functional influence.
Case Study Deep Dives
Detailed walkthroughs covering architecture decisions, product experience design, and hands-on builds. Names, data, and visuals are generalized or recreated to respect Intel confidentiality.
Professional Experience
Senior Systems Software Architect
Intel Corporation | Remote | 2022 - 2024
- Led UX architecture and experience strategy across Intel’s wired Ethernet software portfolio, aligning product behavior, engineering workflows, and tooling with real user and business needs.
- Designed and implemented automation, validation, and data-driven tooling that reduced operational overhead, improved engineering efficiency, and strengthened support traceability.
- Provided technical leadership across architecture reviews, executive discussions, and cross-functional initiatives, guiding design decisions and organizational alignment.
- Formally mentored 7–8 engineers over multi-year engagements spanning technical architecture, UX practice, and cross-functional communication; many advanced to senior roles.
Senior Human Factors Engineer
Intel Corporation | Hillsboro, OR | 2012 - 2022
- Defined UX and interaction architecture across Intel’s wired Ethernet software portfolio, aligning applications, APIs, and hardware-software workflows into a cohesive user experience.
- Built and led distributed UX collaboration, centralized support knowledge, and drove workflow improvements that reduced internal support ticket volume by 20%.
- Served as the UX and Human Factors lead for Wired Ethernet, influencing requirements, product direction, and end-of-life decisions tied to more than $50M in customer opportunities.
Network Software Engineer
Intel Corporation | Hillsboro, OR | 2005 - 2012
- Developed production software for Intel Ethernet products, delivering administrator-facing configuration, diagnostics, and device management workflows across 40+ releases tied to over $1B in sales.
- Built software spanning middleware, services, UI layers, and hardware integration components using C++, C#, .NET, and WMI.
- Managed a $250K globalization budget, helping ensure product usability and accessibility for a worldwide customer base.
Patents
Patent work rooted in real user and system problems, spanning firmware update reliability, network device behavior, resource management, power optimization, and hardware-software interaction. Several of these inventions, including the granted firmware update patents, grew directly out of UX architecture work, where designing for failure recovery and progress transparency surfaced problems worth solving at the system level.
Granted Patents
- GrantedUS-12001826-B2
Device Firmware Update Techniques
Techniques for improving firmware update reliability through clearer device state handling and recoverable update behavior.
- GrantedUS-12254304-B2
Firmware Update Techniques
Approaches for managing firmware update flows across hardware devices with clearer update state and recovery behavior.
- GrantedUS-12413539-B2
Switch-Managed Resource Allocation and Software Execution
Techniques for coordinating resource allocation and software execution through switch-managed network device behavior.
Published Applications
- Published ApplicationUS-20230124192-A1
Heating and Cooling Systems for Edge Data Centers
Approaches to managing thermal behavior in compact edge computing environments through integrated heating and cooling systems.
- Published ApplicationUS-20220114011-A1
Methods and Apparatus for Network Interface Device-Based Edge Computing
Techniques for enabling edge processing behavior through smart network interface hardware.
- Published ApplicationUS-20210041929-A1
Dynamic Network Controller Power Management
Techniques for adjusting network controller power behavior based on workload and operational state.
- Published ApplicationUS-20200177660-A1
Offload of Streaming Protocol Packet Formation
Methods for offloading streaming packet formation work to networking hardware to improve system efficiency.
Engineering Projects
Hands-on engineering projects demonstrating practical software development, automation, hardware integration, and modern web experience through systems I use, maintain, and improve.
Featured Engineering Projects
Supporting Projects
How I Work
I approach software through the lens of real-world system behavior, user workflow, and technical practicality. My process blends engineering, design, and systems thinking so solutions are not only technically sound, but intuitive to use, maintain, and evolve.
Core principles that guide how I design software and the experiences around it:
Understand the Real Problem
I start by identifying root causes, constraints, and stakeholder goals rather than accepting surface-level feature requests at face value. Strong architecture begins with solving the correct problem.
Design Around Workflow
Systems should reflect how users and operators actually work. I map workflows, decision points, and system interactions early to reduce friction and eliminate ambiguity.
Weigh Cost, Value, and Tradeoffs
Every decision balances user value against implementation cost, support burden, and schedule. I make those tradeoffs explicit, and that includes recommending against building something when the cost outweighs the benefit.
Validate Before Committing
I use prototypes, technical reviews, and iterative feedback to validate assumptions before implementation scales, reducing downstream rework and architectural risk.
Architect for Operational Reality
Good architecture accounts for reliability, supportability, failure recovery, and maintainability, not just ideal-case functionality. I design systems with real operational conditions in mind.
Continuously Improve
Launch is not the finish line. I use support feedback, operational data, and evolving requirements to refine systems over time and improve long-term product quality.