Director, Battery Engineering, Manufacturing & Operations
$174,300–$305,000 year
On-site · Baldwin Park, California, United States
Job Summary
Director to lead and scale manufacturing operations for KLA's emerging Battery Division in Los Angeles. Responsible for manufacturing strategy, operational excellence, and New Product Introduction (NPI) for advanced solid-state thin-film battery solutions. Leads a team focused on development and manufacturing of solid-state thin-film batteries to support next-generation in-situ semiconductor metrology tools. Partners across R&D, division leadership, supply chain, and product management to establish roadmaps, ensure manufacturing readiness (DFM, PLC), drive beta builds, and qualify manufacturing processes. Drives continuous improvement (Lean, Six Sigma, automation) to improve yield, cycle time, and cost, maintains high-yield sustaining operations while balancing R&D activities, and ensures compliance with quality systems, reliability targets, and regulatory requirements. Oversees root cause analysis of manufacturing and field issues, correlates failure modes with tools and processes, and fosters leadership development and a culture of accountability, innovation, and continuous improvement.
Required Qualifications
- Master's or higher degree in Materials Science, Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, Electrical Engineering or related field
- Minimum 10+ years of relevant experience in manufacturing/operations for battery technologies
- 5+ years of experience in vacuum deposition or thin film deposition
- 10+ years of experience in Manufacturing and Operations
- 5+ years of leadership experience managing large teams (≥20)
- Strong background in engineering, battery chemistry and data analysis
- Bachelor’s Level Degree with a minimum of 12 years of relevant experience (as alternative), or Master’s Level Degree with 10+ years as preferred
- Technical degree in relevant area required for the role
- Demonstrated ability to lead NPI and scale manufacturing
- Experience with Lean/Six Sigma and continuous improvement
- Knowledge of design for manufacturing (DFM) and product lifecycle management
- Excellent cross-functional collaboration skills
- Regulatory and quality systems familiarity
- Beta builds, engineering validation, and manufacturing qualification experience
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