How to hire a senior manufacturing specialist

How to hire a senior manufacturing specialist, step by step

Here's a step-by-step senior manufacturing specialist hiring guide:

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

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   The senior manufacturing specialist 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

   You should also consider the ideal background you'd like them a senior manufacturing specialist to have before you start to hire. For example, what industry or field would you like them to have experience in, what level of seniority or education does the job require, and how much it'll cost to hire a senior manufacturing specialist that fits the bill.

   Here's a comparison of senior manufacturing specialist salaries for various roles:

   Type of Senior Manufacturing Specialist	Description	Hourly rate
   Senior Manufacturing Specialist	Industrial engineers find ways to eliminate wastefulness in production processes. They devise efficient systems that integrate workers, machines, materials, information, and energy to make a product or provide a service.	$33-65
   Quality Control Engineer	A quality control engineer is responsible for conducting quality assessments for the company's products and services to ensure adherence to federal regulations and quality standards. Quality control engineers recommend strategic methods by analyzing processes and writing test results... Show more	$25-45
   Reliability Engineer	A reliability engineer is in charge of determining and managing the asset reliability risks of businesses. Reliability engineers are professionals who solve problems related to engineering... Show more	$36-69

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • GMP
   • Lean Manufacturing
   • Sigma
   • CAPA
   • QA
   • Process Improvement
   • Technical Support
   • ISO
   • Technical Knowledge
   • FDA
   • Product Quality
   • Manufacturing Support
   • MES
   • Quality Issues

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage implementation of improve paste compounding (including extrusion) process.
   • Develop knowledge of CNC grinding programming.
   • Maintain GMP compliance of equipment and documentation.
   • Develop site guidelines for ISO classify spaces.
   • Maintain a working knowledge of company, government (FDA), and industry quality and safety codes and standards.
   • Authore CMC FDA filing sections including viral safety evaluation; executed/support validation IQ/OQ/PQ/PV for downstream and support processes.

   More senior manufacturing specialist duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your senior manufacturing specialist job description is one of the best ways to attract top talent. A senior manufacturing specialist can vary based on:

   • Location. For example, senior manufacturing specialists' average salary in hawaii is 37% less than in massachusetts.
   • Seniority. Entry-level senior manufacturing specialists 49% less than senior-level senior manufacturing specialists.
   • Certifications. A senior manufacturing specialist with certifications usually earns a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for an established firm or a new start-up company can make a big difference in a senior manufacturing specialist's salary.

   Average senior manufacturing specialist salary

   $97,540yearly

   $46.89 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level senior manufacturing specialist salary

   $69,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 17, 2025

   Average senior manufacturing specialist salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$116,156	$56
   2	Massachusetts	$108,515	$52
   3	New Jersey	$105,362	$51
   4	Michigan	$99,434	$48
   5	New York	$96,070	$46
   6	Colorado	$95,740	$46
   7	Arizona	$95,405	$46
   8	Illinois	$92,029	$44
   9	Texas	$90,582	$44
   10	West Virginia	$88,992	$43
   11	North Carolina	$80,316	$39

   Average senior manufacturing specialist salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Amazon	$133,007	$63.95	90
   2	Genentech	$126,251	$60.70	6
   3	FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies	$117,707	$56.59	22
   4	Vertex Pharmaceuticals	$102,943	$49.49	3
   5	Caterpillar	$102,656	$49.35	36
   6	Merck	$102,325	$49.19	25
   7	General Electric	$96,985	$46.63	121
   8	FUJIFILM Medical Systems USA	$90,496	$43.51	42
   9	Molson Coors	$90,165	$43.35	3
   10	Fujifilm Holdings America Corporation	$89,982	$43.26	20
   11	Mylan	$88,360	$42.48
   12	E. & J. Gallo Winery	$88,127	$42.37
   13	Quaker Houghton	$87,575	$42.10	1
   14	Randstad North America, Inc.	$82,726	$39.77
   15	kubota	$80,288	$38.60
   16	EMD Millipore	$77,616	$37.32
   17	System One	$76,944	$36.99	9
   18	Cummins	$75,731	$36.41	6
   19	Alnylam Pharmaceuticals	$75,475	$36.29
   20	Niagara Bottling	$73,371	$35.27	21

4. Writing a senior manufacturing specialist job description

   A senior manufacturing specialist 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. To help get you started, here's an example of a senior manufacturing specialist job description:

   Senior manufacturing specialist job description example

   At Greene, Tweed, you'll find the cutting-edge technology, world-class polymer expertise and endless advancement opportunities you'd expect from a multi-national industry leader. You'll find them all in an environment that embraces diversity in people and opinions, moves decision making to the point of impact, and celebrates your success.
   
   If you enjoy continuous learning and are excited about working with and creating technological solutions, explore career opportunities with Greene, Tweed.
   
   Essential Duties/Responsibilities: Develop and maintain SAP Material Data, Routings and Bill of Materials for all products in manufacturing facility and corresponding sales areas. Maintain agreed upon metrics and service levels for key responsibilities in accordance with ISO and Quality requirements. Creates router, master templates and maintains manufacturing rates used in creating and maintaining routing. Extensive knowledge and understanding of manufacturing process and corresponding structure and setup in SAP is required. Provide manufacturing quotes for all products: standard and custom. Ability to develop and maintain automated quoting tools for standard products. Define and maintain standard work for all key processes in Methods, such as Material Master, Routing and BOM creation, Quoting process, ECN change management, etc. Based on above responsibilities, provide training for all new and existing Methods Specialists to assure consistency. Review Manufacturing Related Engineering Change Notices (ECN) and other change requests to assure accurate manufacturing data relating to SAP routing, BOM, Item Master data. Trained in all mass update capabilities for Master Data: MM, Routing, BOM. Ability to perform data analysis to maintain master data, such as assembly scrap analysis, labor rate analysis for productivity and efficiency rates through SAP reporting and analysis tools such as Excel.
   
   Required Minimum QualificationsEducation/Certifications: HS Diploma required; Preference given to candidates with BS degree
   
   Skills and Experience: 4+ years' experience working with master data, process routings and product quotes Extensive knowledge of manufactured manufacturing specifications, manufacturing equipment, process flow routings, bill of materials for assemblies, and standard manufacturing rates & costs for standard products is required in this position. Extensive knowledge of SAP Material Master, Routing and BOMs (or equivalent ERP system) required Demonstrated ability to read and interpret manufacturing prints required Job Environment:Physical Requirements:Standing Occasionally (16-45%) Sitting Frequently (46-100%) Lifting Up to 15lbs without assistance Carrying Up to 15lbs without assistance Walking Frequently (46-100%) Greene, Tweed Job DescriptionNote: This Job Description in no way states or implies that these are the only duties to be performed by the employeeoccupying this position. Employees will be required to follow any other job-related instructions and to perform any otherjob-related duties requested by the Supervisor. All requirements are subject to change and updates.Hearing Ability to detect noises with or without corrective device(s) Vision Clarity of vision, with or without corrective lenses Mental Requirements:Problem Solving Frequently (46-100%) Making Decisions Ability to make decisions that have a moderate impact Supervise Rarely (0-15%) Interpret Data Frequently (46-100%) Organize Frequently (46-100%) Read/Write Frequently (46-100%) Communication Frequently (46-100%) Work EnvironmentHigh Temperatures Rarely (0-15%) Low Temperatures Rarely (0-15%) Noises Loud (manufacturing environment, movement of large equipment) Fumes Exposure Rarely (0-15%)
   
   Note: This Job Description in no way states or implies that these are the only duties to be performed by the employee occupying this position. Employees will be required to follow any other job-related instructions and to perform any other job-related duties requested by the Supervisor. All requirements are subject to change and updates.
   
   We offer a competitive benefits package that includes medical, dental, vision, life insurance, short term and long term disability insurance, 401K savings plan, paid time-off, tuition assistance and more, to meet the diverse needs of all employees and their family members.
   EEO Minorities/Females/Protected Veterans/Disabled
   
   Greene, Tweed, a Federal Contractor, is an equal opportunity employer of protected veterans and individuals with disabilities. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment and will not be discriminated against on the basis of disability or their protected veteran status.
   
   NOTE: Greene, Tweed is not seeking assistance or accepting unsolicited resumes from search firms for employment opportunities, unless they have a written agreement for the position they are contacting us about. Regardless of past practice, all resumes submitted by search firms to any employee at GT without a valid written search agreement in place for that position will be deemed the sole property of Greene, Tweed, and no fee will be paid in the event the candidate is hired by Greene, Tweed as a result of the referral or through other means.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are a few common ways to find senior manufacturing specialists for your business:

   • Promoting internally or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to meet candidates with the right educational background.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to recruit passive job-seekers.

   Post your job online:

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

6. Interview candidates

   Recruiting senior manufacturing specialists requires you to bring your A-game to the interview process. The first interview should introduce the company and the role to the candidate as much as they present their background experience and reasons for applying for the job. During later interviews, you can go into more detail about the technical details of the job and ask behavioral questions to gauge how they'd fit into your current company culture.

   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 senior manufacturing specialist

   Once you have selected a candidate for the senior manufacturing specialist 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.

   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.

   Once that's done, you can draft an onboarding schedule for the new senior manufacturing specialist. Human Resources should complete Employee Action Forms and ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc. They should also ensure that new employee files are created for internal recordkeeping.

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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