It goes without saying finding talent is a big deal in electronics design and manufacturing.

John Watson is customer success manager at Altium, with more than 20 years' experience as a senior PCB designer. Watson also teaches classes on printed circuit design at Palomar Community College in San Marcos, CA.

We discuss the Printed Circuit Board Design and Advanced Printed Circuit Board Design curricula, other related courses offered at Palomar, and why he emphasizes hand routing over autorouting.

Palomar's website is palomar.edu.

Watson may be reached at [email protected] or 619-886-8860.

Watson will also participate on the Next-Generation Engineers panel at PCB West this year. The conference takes place Sept. 19-22, at the Santa Clara CA Convention Center. The panel takes place on Sept. 20, same day as the exhibition, and is free to attend; register at pcbwest.com.