How to hire a manufacturing product manager

How to hire a manufacturing product manager, step by step

Here's a step-by-step manufacturing product manager hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a manufacturing product manager job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new manufacturing product manager
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   The manufacturing product manager hiring process starts by determining what type of worker you actually need. Certain roles might require a full-time employee, whereas part-time workers or contractors can do others.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   A manufacturing product manager's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, manufacturing product managers from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   This list presents manufacturing product manager salaries for various positions.

   Type of Manufacturing Product Manager	Description	Hourly rate
   Manufacturing Product Manager	Advertising, promotions, and marketing managers plan programs to generate interest in products or services. They work with art directors, sales agents, and financial staff members.	$28-66
   Web Manager	Web Managers are responsible for managing websites for organizations. Their duties include managing website upgrades, testing for website performance, implement a strategy to increase web traffic and subscribers, troubleshooting website issues, and responding to security breaches... Show more	$25-60
   Product Lead	A product lead is responsible for monitoring the development of new products and services of an organization, starting from brand conceptualization to official market release and distribution. Product leads identify effective product management by conducting data analysis and evaluating market statistics of customer demands... Show more	$41-78

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Product Development
   • Production Schedules
   • Product Quality
   • Product Management
   • GMP
   • FDA
   • Lean Manufacturing
   • Cost Reduction
   • R
   • CAD
   • Product Lifecycle
   • Direct Reports
   • Employee Engagement
   • Sigma

   Check all skills

   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.
   • Work with FDA requirement for food grade.
   • Insure regulatory compliance with 21CFR820 and ISO 13485 and participate in FDA inspection.

   More manufacturing product manager duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your manufacturing product manager job description is a great way to entice the best and brightest candidates. A manufacturing product manager salary can vary based on several factors:

   • Location. For example, manufacturing product managers' average salary in hawaii is 48% less than in california.
   • Seniority. Entry-level manufacturing product managers earn 57% less than senior-level manufacturing product managers.
   • Certifications. A manufacturing product manager with a few certifications under their belt will likely demand a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for a prestigious company or an exciting start-up can make a huge difference in a manufacturing product manager's salary.

   Average manufacturing product manager salary

   $91,706yearly

   $44.09 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level manufacturing product manager salary

   $60,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 20, 2025

   Average manufacturing product manager salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$127,628	$61
   2	New York	$108,921	$52
   3	North Carolina	$105,843	$51
   4	Texas	$102,076	$49
   5	Arizona	$98,926	$48
   6	Washington	$94,739	$46
   7	Massachusetts	$93,163	$45
   8	Pennsylvania	$91,065	$44
   9	Oregon	$90,425	$43
   10	Nevada	$89,655	$43
   11	Indiana	$88,415	$43
   12	Tennessee	$87,655	$42
   13	Idaho	$86,014	$41
   14	South Carolina	$83,984	$40
   15	Ohio	$83,638	$40
   16	Wisconsin	$83,248	$40
   17	Kentucky	$79,522	$38
   18	Louisiana	$78,830	$38
   19	Michigan	$78,226	$38
   20	Oklahoma	$78,086	$38

   Average manufacturing product manager salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Google	$133,642	$64.25	288
   2	Pwc	$116,132	$55.83	532
   3	Autodesk	$115,740	$55.64	28
   4	Caterpillar	$111,728	$53.72	89
   5	BD	$110,621	$53.18	15
   6	Rivian	$108,342	$52.09
   7	Kroger	$96,821	$46.55	69
   8	NI	$91,791	$44.13
   9	Sun Chemical	$88,410	$42.50
   10	John Deere	$87,929	$42.27	9
   11	Altair	$86,315	$41.50	3
   12	IES	$85,920	$41.31
   13	Marcum Search	$83,433	$40.11
   14	SharkNinja	$80,132	$38.52	12
   15	Randstad North America, Inc.	$68,262	$32.82	4
   16	PeopleShare	$61,301	$29.47
   17	NESCO	$53,985	$25.95

4. Writing a manufacturing product manager job description

   A manufacturing product manager job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. Below, you can find an example of a manufacturing product manager job description:

   Manufacturing product manager job description example

   **ROLE SUMMARY**
   
   **The Manager, Drug Product Manufacturing Technical Services Lead (TSL) is responsible for the management of sterile clinical drug product manufacturing technology transfer for internal Pfizer clinical and commercial sites and external Contract Manufacturing Organizations (CMOs). The position may be located in Andover, MA, Chesterfield, MO, Durham, NC or Cambridge, UK and will directly interface with manufacturing sites, Drug Product Design and Development (DPDD) groups within Pharmaceutical R&D, QA, Analytical, Project Teams and Global Clinical Supplies (GCS).**
   
   **ROLE RESPONSIBILITIES**
   
   + The Tech Services Leads (TSL) manage technology transfer for BioTherapeutics clinical sterile drug product manufacturing.
   
   + Manage Phase I and II sterile vial and pre-filled syringe drug product clinical manufacturing at internal clinical manufacturing sites and Contract Manufacturing Organizations (CMOs).
   
   + Manage and support Phase III and commercial launch sterile drug product manufacturing at Pfizer commercial sites in the US and Europe.
   
   + Develop, review, and approve technology transfer documents for manufacturing of clinical and commercial supplies.
   
   + Oversee efforts and closely work with CMOs, QA, Analytical, Development and Supply Chain organizations to ensure timely manufacture and delivery of clinical supplies for parenteral drug products.
   
   + Lead quality investigations and develop and implement agreed upon corrective and preventative actions.
   
   + Represent Tech Services group on site during engineering trials and clinical manufacturing of drug product supplies at CMOs and Pfizer PGS sites.
   
   + Liaise with formulation and process development groups to manage development of new drug product manufacturing processes for internal and external manufacturing sites.
   
   + Lead manufacturing team discussions to ensure manufacturing readiness to meet clinical supply needs based on agreed schedules. Review and approve manufacturing batch records to ensure compliance with cGMP requirements.
   
   **BASIC QUALIFICATIONS**
   
   + Bachelor's degree in a scientific discipline, Life Science or Engineering.
   
   + Minimum of 5 years of direct experience in GMP manufacture or drug product development or manufacturing.
   
   **PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS**
   
   + Training in cGMP compliance, parenteral process technology and knowledge of regulatory requirements for sterile drug product manufacturing is preferred.
   
   **NON-STANDARD WORK SCHEDULE, TRAVEL OR ENVIRONMENT REQUIREMENTS**
   
   This position will require 10% of domestic and international travel in support of manufacturing activities at CMOs or Pfizer Global Supply sites.
   
   **OTHER JOB DETAILS**
   
   Work Location Assignment:Flexible
   
   Flexible colleagues are assigned a Pfizer site within a commutable distance where they work about 2-3 days weekly to connect and innovate with their team face-to-face. However, they also benefit from being able to work offsite regularly when it makes business sense to do so.
   
   Relocation assistance may be available based on business needs and/or eligibility.
   
   **Pfizer requires all U.S. new hires to be fully vaccinated for COVID-19 prior to the first date of employment. As required by applicable law, Pfizer will consider requests for Reasonable Accommodations.**
   
   **Sunshine Act**
   
   Pfizer reports payments and other transfers of value to health care providers as required by federal and state transparency laws and implementing regulations. These laws and regulations require Pfizer to provide government agencies with information such as a health care provider's name, address and the type of payments or other value received, generally for public disclosure. Subject to further legal review and statutory or regulatory clarification, which Pfizer intends to pursue, reimbursement of recruiting expenses for licensed physicians may constitute a reportable transfer of value under the federal transparency law commonly known as the Sunshine Act. Therefore, if you are a licensed physician who incurs recruiting expenses as a result of interviewing with Pfizer that we pay or reimburse, your name, address and the amount of payments made currently will be reported to the government. If you have questions regarding this matter, please do not hesitate to contact your Talent Acquisition representative.
   
   **EEO & Employment Eligibility**
   
   Pfizer is committed to equal opportunity in the terms and conditions of employment for all employees and job applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, age, gender identity or gender expression, national origin, disability or veteran status. Pfizer also complies with all applicable national, state and local laws governing nondiscrimination in employment as well as work authorization and employment eligibility verification requirements of the Immigration and Nationality Act and IRCA. Pfizer is an E-Verify employer.
   
   Research and Development

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5. Post your job

   There are various strategies that you can use to find the right manufacturing product manager for your business:

   • Consider promoting from within or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to find candidates who meet your education requirements.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your manufacturing product manager job on Zippia to find and recruit manufacturing product manager candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   During your first interview to recruit manufacturing product managers, engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. During the following interview, you'll be able to go into more detail about the company, the position, and the responsibilities.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents. You can move on to the technical interview if a candidate is good enough for the next step.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new manufacturing product manager

   Once you've selected the best manufacturing product manager candidate for the job, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, this letter should include details about the benefits and perks you offer the candidate. Ensuring that your offer is competitive is essential, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and you should be open to discussion. After you reach an agreement, the final step is formalizing the agreement with a contract.

   You should also follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that you've filled the position.

   To prepare for the new employee's start date, you can create an onboarding schedule and complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9 forms, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Human Resources should also ensure that a new employee file is created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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