How to hire a principal manufacturing engineer

How to hire a principal manufacturing engineer, step by step

Here's a step-by-step principal manufacturing engineer hiring guide:

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

What does a principal manufacturing engineer do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   First, determine the employments status of the principal manufacturing engineer you need to hire. Certain principal manufacturing engineer roles might require a full-time employee, whereas others can be done by part-time workers or contractors.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

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

   Yes

   No

   Hiring the perfect principal manufacturing engineer also involves considering the ideal background you'd like them to have. Depending on what industry or field they have experience in, they'll bring different skills to the job. It's also important to consider what levels of seniority and education the job requires and what kind of salary such a candidate would likely demand.

   Here's a comparison of principal manufacturing engineer salaries for various roles:

   Type of Principal Manufacturing Engineer	Description	Hourly rate
   Principal Manufacturing Engineer		$34-58
   Engineer	Engineers are highly trained professionals who determine the feasibility of various projects, usually related to the construction industry. They are considered experts in mathematics and science, two disciplines that they need to use in designing and coming up with plans for projects... Show more	$31-62
   Lead Design Engineer	A Lead Design Engineer produces design solutions that can be purchased, installed, and commissioned effectively. They are also responsible for the cost-effectiviness and safety of new designs.	$39-68

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • CAD
   • Continuous Improvement
   • Process Control
   • Product Quality
   • Project Management
   • Lean Manufacturing
   • Sigma
   • SPC
   • Solidworks
   • Production Processes
   • Design Engineering
   • Technical Support
   • Lean Six Sigma
   • Process Documentation

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Lead the machining Kaizen that re-arrange five CNC machines and four work stations.
   • Manage development and launch of on line QC system, and real time PC base SPC.
   • Implement a KANBAN system for manufacturing which reduce wasteful production activities and achieve labor reductions.
   • Audit suppliers towards conformance to ISO and CGMP requirements.
   • Develop financial evaluations of potential major capital investment projects and provide documentation of investment vs payback to companies Sr.
   • Train on GMP policies and procedures.

   More principal manufacturing engineer duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in the principal manufacturing engineer job description is a good way to get more applicants. A principal manufacturing engineer salary can be affected by several factors, such as the location of the job, the level of experience, education, certifications, and the employer's prestige.

   For example, the average salary for a principal manufacturing engineer in Oklahoma may be lower than in California, and an entry-level engineer typically earns less than a senior-level principal manufacturing engineer. Additionally, a principal manufacturing engineer with lots of experience in the field may command a higher salary as a result.

   Average principal manufacturing engineer salary

   $94,463yearly

   $45.41 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level principal manufacturing engineer salary

   $72,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 20, 2026

   Average principal manufacturing engineer salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$122,003	$59
   2	Arizona	$105,929	$51
   3	Texas	$103,008	$50
   4	Colorado	$100,115	$48
   5	Virginia	$100,032	$48
   6	Maryland	$97,549	$47
   7	Massachusetts	$96,405	$46
   8	Alabama	$92,277	$44
   9	Oregon	$89,645	$43
   10	New York	$89,589	$43
   11	Pennsylvania	$89,213	$43
   12	Minnesota	$88,066	$42
   13	Florida	$85,709	$41
   14	North Carolina	$85,299	$41
   15	Wisconsin	$82,258	$40
   16	Utah	$82,192	$40
   17	South Carolina	$81,365	$39

   Average principal manufacturing engineer salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	ZS	$119,335	$57.37	4
   2	Boehringer Ingelheim	$118,152	$56.80	22
   3	Snowflake Computing	$116,637	$56.08	12
   4	Infineon Technologies	$108,905	$52.36	20
   5	Sarepta Therapeutics	$107,225	$51.55
   6	Nike	$107,098	$51.49	25
   7	Palo Alto Networks	$106,792	$51.34	189
   8	Western Digital	$103,401	$49.71	14
   9	The Chemours Company	$97,702	$46.97	1
   10	TRW Automotive Holdings	$97,424	$46.84
   11	Amgen	$95,952	$46.13	52
   12	BD	$95,062	$45.70	12
   13	DXC Technology	$94,833	$45.59
   14	Westinghouse Appliances Australia	$93,623	$45.01	44
   15	Elbit Systems of America	$92,587	$44.51	10
   16	First Solar	$92,010	$44.24	37
   17	Medtronic	$91,630	$44.05	399
   18	AtriCure	$91,257	$43.87	7
   19	Endologix	$90,151	$43.34	2
   20	Rocket Lab	$89,941	$43.24	38

4. Writing a principal manufacturing engineer job description

   A job description for a principal manufacturing engineer role includes a summary of the job's main responsibilities, required skills, and preferred background experience. Including a salary range can also go a long way in attracting more candidates to apply, and showing the first name of the hiring manager can also make applicants more comfortable. As an example, here's a principal manufacturing engineer job description:

   Principal manufacturing engineer job description example

   With exciting advancement of multiple gene therapy programs from early clinical to pivotal and commercial stages, we are actively recruiting for Principal Engineer to support Sarepta's diverse gene therapy portfolio and to deliver new treatments for patients. This position will provide great opportunities to support programs at CMOs and in-house manufacturing facilities being planned in Bedford MA.
   
   The ideal candidate should be well-versed in all CMC aspects in relation to early clinical, late stage and commercial programs. The incumbent will provide key support to process validation, regulatory filing, and continuous process verification for gene therapy products. He/she will be responsible to ensure manufacturing facilities, equipment, systems, methods, and processes are in a validated state. He or she will assure compliance through execution of effective
   Qualification/Validation
   policy and procedures and will support initiatives for increased business and operational efficiencies. They will support technology transfer projects and product launch at multiple manufacturing facilities.
   
   Oversee process validation activities at CMOs to ensure commercial viability in accordance with regulatory requirements.Support continued process verification program and Annual Product Reviews (APRs)/Product Quality Reviews (PQRs).Support viral vector manufacturing at CMOs and lead implementation of continuous improvement projects SME for tech transfer, event response, authoring process description and reviewing and approving batch record.Evaluate process issues using statistical tools and provide remediation to ensure product safety and quality.Support regulatory document creation including BLA submission and lead response authoring to regulatory questions (RTQ)
   
   Desired Education and Skills:
   Degree in in Engineering or Life/Pharmaceutical Sciences. Advanced degree is preferred. B.S. in life sciences or engineering field with 12+ years related experience/ MS with 8+ years /PhD in a related field with 3+ years process development, MSAT, and/or process validation experience.Advanced understanding of regulatory and cGMP requirements.Experience with risk assessment and technology transfers.Knowledge of regulatory, validation, and documentation requirements for product development, commercial production, and site transfer.Strong skills in data trending and analysis using statistical software.Strong collaborative and communication skills, and ability to work well in a cross-functional, matrixed environment is essential.Ability to prioritize and perform multiple tasks.Flexible and able to adapt to company growth and evolving responsibilities.Some travel to CMO sites may be required
   
   This position requires work on site at one of Sarepta's facilities in the United States. Candidates should be aware that Sarepta currently maintains a policy requiring all US-based employees to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 in order to work on site. Newly hired employees must be vaccinated prior to their employment start date. Sarepta is an equal opportunity employer and will provide a reasonable accommodation to those unable to be vaccinated where it is not an undue hardship to the company to do so as provided under federal, state, and local law.
   
   Candidates must be authorized to work in the U.S.
   Sarepta Therapeutics offers a competitive compensation and benefit package.
   Sarepta Therapeutics is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer and participates in e-Verify.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find the right principal manufacturing engineer for your business, consider trying out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important sources of talent for any company is its existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and current employees and ask if they know or have worked with principal manufacturing engineers they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit principal manufacturing engineers who meet your education requirements.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter now have more than 3.5 billion users, and you can use social media to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

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

6. Interview candidates

   To successfully recruit principal manufacturing engineers, your first interview needs to engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. You can go into more detail about the company, the role, and the responsibilities during follow-up interviews.

   Remember to include a few questions that allow candidates to expand on their strengths in their own words. Asking about their unique skills might reveal things you'd miss otherwise. At this point, good candidates can move on to the technical interview.

   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 principal manufacturing engineer

   Once you have selected a candidate for the principal manufacturing engineer position, it is time to create an offer letter. In addition to salary, the offer letter should include details about benefits and perks that are available to the employee. Ensuring your offer is competitive is vital, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and it is important to be open to discussion and reach a mutually beneficial agreement. After the offer has been accepted, it is a good idea to formalize the agreement with a contract.

   It's equally important to follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   After that, you can create an onboarding schedule for a new principal manufacturing engineer. Human Resources and the hiring manager should complete Employee Action Forms. Human Resources should also ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc., and that new employee files are 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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How much does it cost to hire a principal manufacturing engineer?