How To Become A Manufacturing Product Manager: What It Is and Career Path

What is a manufacturing product manager and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Quoted expert

Patrick Lindsay

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a manufacturing product manager. For example, did you know that they make an average of $44.09 an hour? That's $91,706 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 10% and produce 33,700 job opportunities across the U.S.

What's a day at work look like for a manufacturing product manager?

Patrick Lindsay

Assistant Lecturer, Miami University

Sales is a good job out of college. Regardless of the company, the industry, the marketplace or geography, being in the customer interface is not only the best and quickest way to learn about a business but also to learn about business. They are exposed to the impact from and on all stakeholders. They learn about what a value proposition really is and the importance of Trust. They observe and learn the importance of relationships. And they grasp the importance of why over what and how. Finally, sales experience and success is almost universally transferable. Once a grad has a year to three developing competencies, skills and confidence, they can pursue virtually any other product or service in almost any company. They can pursue a next job in sales but also other areas like marketing, customer service, human resources, training, recruiting, et cetera. Employers are not emphasizing industry knowledge or experience like they once did. And many companies, from small local the largest global companies in their industries, insist their new college hires begin in sales (aka account management, business development, client acquisition).

Now, with the proper training (could be a major/minor but doesn't have to be if the graduate has developed a particular skill set) there are many available jobs for graduates that are technology-related. These are "good job" from a compensation and stability perspective. And any position with a global tech firm is a golden ticket.

ScoreManufacturing Product ManagerUS Average

Salary

7.2

Avg. Salary $91,706

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

7.5

Growth rate 10%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

3.1

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.23%

Asian 8.15%

Black or African American 3.04%

Hispanic or Latino 8.67%

Unknown 5.32%

White 74.58%

Gender

female 17.93%

male 82.07%

Age - 38

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 38

Stress level

7.5

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

9.0

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance

3.5

Work life balance is poor

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a manufacturing product manager

Explore manufacturing product manager education requirements

Most common manufacturing product manager degrees

Bachelor's

63.3 %

Master's

14.5 %

Associate

12.1 %

Start to develop specific manufacturing product manager skills

Skills	Percentages
Product Development	10.72%
Production Schedules	8.66%
Product Quality	7.44%
Product Management	6.75%
GMP	5.03%

Complete relevant manufacturing product manager training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New manufacturing product managers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a manufacturing product manager based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real manufacturing product manager resumes.

Research manufacturing product manager duties and responsibilities

Develop model to manage and track costs to determine ROI.
Manage and develop highly visible and critical OEM client accounts and contracts.
Implement lead manufacturing principles to achieve continuous improvement processes; hire qualified machinists; ensure division-wide OSHA compliance.
Comply with 21 CFR 820 and GMP.

Apply for manufacturing product manager jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a manufacturing product manager job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams

Average manufacturing product manager salary

The average manufacturing product manager salary in the United States is $91,706 per year or $44 per hour. Manufacturing product manager salaries range between $60,000 and $138,000 per year.

Average manufacturing product manager salary

$91,706 Yearly

$44.09 hourly

What is a manufacturing product manager and how to become one

What's a day at work look like for a manufacturing product manager?

Manufacturing product manager career paths

Key steps to become a manufacturing product manager

Explore manufacturing product manager education requirements

Most common manufacturing product manager degrees

Start to develop specific manufacturing product manager skills

Complete relevant manufacturing product manager training and internships

Research manufacturing product manager duties and responsibilities

Apply for manufacturing product manager jobs

How did you land your first manufacturing product manager job

Average manufacturing product manager salary

How do manufacturing product managers rate their job?