Applications Engineering Manager

Job Description

Job Description

Location: Rochester, NY

Summary:

We are seeking an experienced and innovative manager in the Optics and Photonics space to guide QED’s Applications Engineering team. This leadership role requires strong skills in team management, mentoring, customer support, sales and product development. The successful candidate will collaborate closely with cross-functional teams—including Sales, Customer Support, R&D, Quality, and Manufacturing—to ensure our customers are extracting as much value as possible from our products and that our products are meeting the needs of today’s – and tomorrow’s – customers.

At QED, Applications Engineers are the “expert users” of QED’s polishing and metrology products. They are customer-facing, but also support internal development initiatives. They act as process engineers, teachers, and salespeople as they perform their various job functions. Their main activities can be separated into 3 main responsibilities:

1. Provide process support for existing customers (including polishing/metrology validations during installation, basic & advanced training, process optimization and process troubleshooting)
2. Provide Sales & Marketing with technical support (including tech support during customer meetings, capability analyses, product demonstrations, trade show support, and marketing material support)
3. Provide R&D and Engineering with VOC input for new product developments (including defining customer requirements, testing support for new developments, and design review support)

Based in Rochester, New York, QED Technologies is a leading capital equipment manufacturer serving the global precision optics industry. Our innovative solutions enable the production of high-quality optical components with superior accuracy. We are committed to driving future growth through innovation, excellence, and customer satisfaction.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

• Team Leadership & Mentorship
  • Lead and manage a global team of 6-10 applications engineers and interns from varied backgrounds, providing guidance, coaching, and performance feedback.
  • Foster a collaborative and innovative team environment, encouraging open communication and knowledge sharing.
  • Set priorities and schedule activities that span Sales, Customer Support, Manufacturing and R&D, in a dynamic organization, often with competing demands.
  • Develop/maintain departmental training and process documentation to ensure consistency and quality as new engineers are onboarded.
• Customer Experience Center (CEC) Management
  • Oversee the operation of QED’s demonstration and training center. This area is where Applications Engineers perform product demonstrations, and training sessions for our products. Ensure room/equipment is maintained in a clean and organized condition, compliant with all of QED’s SH&E guidelines, so as to create an efficient work area that is suitable to “show off” to visiting customers at all times.
  • Support/schedule machine time for Manufacturing & R&D activities. The CEC is a shared space that other groups use when they need to use or test equipment on our products.
• Technical Sales & Marketing Support
  • Work closely with the Sales team and potential customers - either directly, or through the team – to provide the necessary technical information they need to close opportunities. This can be through product demonstrations, capability analyses, customer meetings or trade shows.
  • Customer Demonstration Process Management: Ensure the team provides effective and efficient customer demonstrations, starting from gathering clear goals and requirements from the customer through defining the demonstration plan to maintain the equipment in top-notch condition to effective report writing and customer communication.
  • Support technical content creation (e.g. white papers, case studies, social media posts, YouTube videos) for the QED’s marketing initiatives.
  • Publish/present technical papers – either directly, or through the team – at trade shows or conferences to highlight new capabilities of our technology.
• Customer Support
  • Work closely with our customers – either directly, or through the team – to provide the necessary technical information they need to most effectively utilize the products we sell them. This can be through remote support or onsite support, and come in the form of basic training, advanced training, process optimization, new process development initiatives.
  • Work closely with Customer Service Manager to ensure all customer requests are getting tracked and closed in a timely manner.
• Machine Order Process Support
  • Work closely with Sales, Operations and Customer Support to ensure new machine orders are managed properly, from acceptance test definition at order time through installation scheduling and final customer training and machine acceptance.
• Engineering & Operations Support
  • Provide team member support to various R&D, NPD and CI projects in order bring the Voice of Customer feedback they gain and collect as they work with customers to the product development and qualification initiatives of our company.
  • Balance the often competing demands of manufacturing, product development, customer support and sales, based on the needs of the business.
• Cultivate New Business Opportunities
  • Identify and explore new applications and/or markets for QED’s technology, through process development initiatives in the CEC. Work with R&D as necessary to push new developments in fluid, software, or hardware.

Qualifications

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• Education and/or Experience
  • Minimum B.S. in Optical Engineering (or a closely related field of study) with 7+ years of relevant industry experience (MS or PhD preferred).
  • Experience in the Precision Optics industry, Photonics industry, Semiconductor manufacturing industry, or other precision manufacturing industries.
• Other Skills and Abilities
  • Proven experience in managing projects, teams and individuals
  • Proven experience in mentoring junior engineers.
  • Strong leadership, communication, and presentation skills for global audiences.
  • Ability to manage multiple priorities and drive results in a fast-paced environment
  • Technical Excellence
    • Drive the team to develop a deep understanding of our technologies do that they understand the “why’s” not just the “what’s” of our products so that they can respond to our customer’s process challenges quickly and effectively
    • Cultivate a “measure twice, cut once” mentality so that customer demonstrations and other activities are done right the first time
    • Set high standards for performance and communications (e.g. customer reports). Lead by example.

Work Location

The primary work location for this position is QED’s main headquarters, 1040 University Avenue, Rochester, NY 14607. Employee may be permitted to work from home for some tasks, at the discretion of the employee’s manager. Applicants must reside within commuting distance of our Rochester, NY location. Relocation will not be provided for this role.

Travel

Domestically and internationally (~10-15%), may be required in order to perform the essential functions of this position. All candidates must possess a current US passport and not have restrictions regarding travel.

QED Technologies is an equal opportunity employer. We value diversity. However, due to our ITAR status, we are unable to provide visa sponsorship at this time. Therefore, all applicants must be permanently authorized to work in the United States and will not require visa sponsorship now or in the future.

The salary offered will be determined based on comparing the selected candidate's education, experience and special skills, with the current QED employee population to ensure internal compensation equity.