Senior management responsible for new hardware development seems to have experience working with contractors and smaller scale projects, but has difficulties managing a complex development process and following the schedule. Senior management is micromanaging some aspects of the development without having sufficient knowledge. Taking advice from all kind of sources without ability to distinguish applicability to current development delays the process. A technician was promoted to engineer and is allowed to perform development work. At the same time senior engineers are asked to do sustaining activities. The senior management hope for success is to outsource as much hardware development as possible to China/Taiwan.
Look for red flags during interview: level and knowledge of technical questions asked