New Product Development Manager

Our client is seeking a New Product Development Manager to join the team in the Silicon Valley Design Center located in Santa Clara, CA.

The New Product Development Manager owns all aspects of their optical transceiver development programs, managing a staff of assigned associates: inter-disciplinary (engineering) experts, cross-functional leaders, and project management, from concept approval through production release. They are highly effective leaders steeped in product development, optical transceiver product technology, and have proven competence in a key engineering discipline with adjacent competencies in others – enough to be an effective leader and manager, such as EE, RF-optics, photonics, signal integrity, physics, ME, optics, Material Science, thermal, FW.

Essential Functions/ Responsibilities:

• Lead the end-to-end development process for optoelectronic assemblies, from concept and prototyping to production and market release.
• Collaborate with marketing, engineering, sourcing, manufacturing, and quality teams to define product specifications, plans, and budgets.
• Build and constantly tune composition of excellent team
• Oversee the design, development, and testing of optoelectronic components, ensuring performance, reliability, efficiency, and compliance with industry standards.
• On time, on scope, on performance, on quality, on cost
• Set up decision processes and roles to ensure timely execution
• Identify and integrate emerging technologies and materials to enhance product performance and competitiveness.
• Manage project milestones, mitigate risks, and resolve technical challenges to keep development on track.
• Serve as the primary liaison between R&D, supply chain, and external partners or vendors.
• Analyze market and customer feedback to refine product designs and prioritize development pipelines.
• Mentor and guide team members, fostering a culture of innovation and technical excellence.
• Communicate up, across and down

The responsibilities as defined are intended to serve as a general guideline for this position. Associates may be asked to perform additional tasks depending on strengths and capabilities.

Required Skills and Experience:

• 5 years of experience in new product development, with at least a couple of cycles from concept to revenue and at least 2 years in a leadership role.
• Strong leader of people, technology and product development, driving with a sense of urgency
• Proven expertise in optoelectronics, including knowledge of optical systems, optical transceivers, semiconductor devices, or related assemblies.
• Strong project management skills, with experience using tools like MS Project, Jira, or similar.
• Familiarity with manufacturing processes, quality assurance, and regulatory requirements for optoelectronic products.
• Excellent problem-solving abilities and a track record of delivering complex projects on time and within budget.
• Exceptional communication and leadership skills to inspire teams and influence stakeholders.

Education:

• PhD 7y, MS 9y, BS 10y
• Degree in Electrical Engineering, Optics, Physics, Materials Science, Semiconductor Materials Science, Mechanical Engineering, Chemical Engineering

Salary and benefit offerings:

The preferred location for this position is Santa Clara, CA. At this facility, the salary range would be $232k - $290K per year and is commensurate with experience plus generous bonuses paid three times per year in February, August and late fall.

The secondary location would be in San Diego, CA. At this facility, the salary range would be $211k - $264K per year and is commensurate with experience plus generous bonuses paid three times per year in February, August and late fall.

The third location would be in Colorado Springs, CO. At this facility, the salary range would be $189k - $237K per year and is commensurate with experience plus generous Samtec bonuses paid three times per year in February, August and late fall.

The benefits package includes medical (HSA/PPO) dental, vision, hearing, group life, AD&D, short- and long-term disability, EAP, 401K match / profit sharing (the company will contribute 7% of your total gross pay to your 401(k) plan regardless of any contributions you make and will match the first 5% of your contribution to the 401(k)-plan dollar for dollar), plus other voluntary options, as well as paid time off.

The company is an Equal Opportunity Employer and committed to creating a diverse environment. All employment decisions are based in business needs, job requirements and individual qualifications, without regard to race, color, religion or belief, national, social or ethnic origin, pregnancy or parental status, age, disability, sexual orientation, gender and/or gender identity/expression, marital status, past or present military service, family medical history or genetic information, or any other status protected by applicable laws.