Product Line Specialist

MKS Instruments•Irvine, CA

7d•$90,000 - $108,000•Hybrid

About The Position

The Product Line Specialist supports the Product Line Management team by coordinating customer programs, facilitating cross-functional execution, and ensuring timely communication of project status. This role is designed for individuals seeking to develop the skills and experience necessary to progress into a Product Line Manager position. Success in this role requires strong organizational skills, the ability to manage multiple priorities, effective communication, and collaboration across engineering, operations, supply chain, quality, and commercial teams.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience
2+ years of related experience - may consider relevant MS or PhD education as part of experience
Optical or opto-mechanical background that will enable meaningful discussions with customers and internal technical teams.
Desire to develop into a Product Line Manager role with increasing responsibility for customer engagement, strategy, and business leadership.
Proficiency in PowerPoint, Excel, and MS Project
Other project management tools.
Feels confident in Excel to track, get answers from others, outcome
Customer facing – quality team, speak with customer about 8Ds
Strong organizational and multitasking abilities.
Excellent verbal, written, and presentation skills.
Ability to coordinate activities across multiple functions and priorities simultaneously.
Strong follow-through and attention to detail.
Ability to lead meetings, document actions, and drive closure of assigned tasks.
Customer-facing communication and relationship-building skills.
Project coordination and program tracking experience.
Ability to work effectively in a fast-paced, cross-functional environment.
Qualified candidate who is eligible to work in the United States.
Applicants for positions requiring access to controlled goods and technologies may need to be “U.S. persons.”

Responsibilities

Support the execution of customer projects from opportunity identification through delivery by coordinating activities across multiple functional teams.
Work closely with Operations, Supply Chain, Engineering, Quality, and Program Management to track project status, identify risks, and support on-time execution of customer commitments.
Manage project action item lists, maintain accountability across stakeholders, and ensure timely follow-up on key deliverables.
Coordinate and facilitate project review meetings, customer status calls, and internal cross-functional discussions.
Create project status reports, executive summaries, customer presentations, and program review materials.
Present project updates to customers and internal leadership teams, clearly communicating progress, risks, mitigation plans, and next steps.
Support customer communications by gathering information, preparing updates, and ensuring alignment across internal teams.
Assist in tracking product development milestones, qualification activities, manufacturing readiness, and customer deliverables.
Collaborate with Product Line Managers to understand customer requirements and assist in translating those requirements into actionable project plans.
Monitor project schedules and support forecast updates under the guidance of Product Line Managers and business leadership.
Support new business opportunities by coordinating proposal development, presentation preparation, and customer-facing materials.
Maintain project documentation, meeting minutes, action logs, and program records to ensure visibility and organizational alignment.
Develop a broad understanding of company products, technologies, customer applications, and industry trends to prepare for future Product Line Management responsibilities.
Trustworthiness, reliability, and good judgment are material job duties.
Ability to take and follow directions and instructions.
Ability to interact with other employees, customers, suppliers, vendors, or the public, in a safe, professional, and respectful manner.
Access to sensitive and confidential business systems and software, personally identifying information, the company’s financial information, and/or the ability to maintain physical security and safety.