Director of Operations – Easton
Coherent · Easton, PA
- Level
- Director+
- Team
- Production
- Degree
- Required
- Experience asked
- 10+ years
- Industry
- Industrial
- Posted
- 30+ days ago
The role in 30 seconds
A director-level production role at Coherent (industrial) in Easton, PA.
- They ask for
- 10+ years · degree required
- Tools it names
- Capacity planning, EHS / safety
Read from the posting. The full description is below.
From the plant jobs report · week of November 2, 2026
Production Engineer roles in Pennsylvania: typical posted base $132k–$167k.
Median of the low and high ends of 8 live postings that list pay, out of 51 production engineer openings in Pennsylvania, read from manufacturers' own careers sites.
Pennsylvania plant jobs report →Pay by team and state →What moves pay →
How this role compares
Against 50 other live production postings in Pennsylvania.
- Base pay
- Not listed in this posting
- Experience asked
- More than usual (10+ vs 7+)
Typical $125k–$165k, from 7 postings that list pay.
Similar roles usually ask 7+ years.
Skills these teams ask for most
- Lean 51%
- ✓ Team leadership 43%
- ✓ EHS / safety 31%
✓ = this posting asks for it too. % = share of similar postings that mention it.
Stands out: this posting asks for Capacity planning, which few similar roles mention. If you have it, lead with it.
At a glance
Pulled from the posting text. If it's not listed here, the posting didn't say.
How to get in at this plant
Five moves over a week or two. The first one takes ten minutes.
- 1
Pick 2–3 people on the Production team at Coherent
Engineers who joined in the last year or two reply the most. Use the team search on this page to find them.
- 2
Send a short, curious note
One real question about their work. No favors yet. Each person gets a different note, written for this role.
- 3
Turn a reply into a short call
Questions worth asking about this team:
- What does a normal week look like on your team?
- How did you land the job? What stood out in your interviews?
- 4
Apply with someone vouching for you
If the call went well, ask whether they’d pass your résumé to the hiring manager. Send your résumé link, apply that day, and let them know.
- 5
Bring proof to the interview
One page of before-and-after numbers from projects you led: scrap, OEE, cycle time, cost. Plant managers hire on results.
This plant: Coherent in Easton
2 other open roles at this site.
- Maintenance Technician · Reliability · Technician
- Production Engineer · Production
Full description from CoherentAs posted on their careers site.ShowHide
Position Summary
The Director of Operations – Easton, PA provides senior leadership for the Easton Garnet manufacturing operation, with primary accountability for the successful execution of the Easton expansion, operational readiness, and production ramp. The role is responsible for building a safe, stable, scalable, and high-performing manufacturing organization that can meet current and future business requirements.
The position reports to the Senior Director, Garnet Operations and works closely with Engineering, R&D, Quality, Supply Chain, Finance, Human Resources, Facilities, EHS, and other functions to align expansion, staffing, equipment, process qualification, and manufacturing execution.
requirements
and applicable regulations.
Required
- ✓Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Operations, Manufacturing, Materials Science, or a related technical discipline.
- ✓Typically 10+ years of relevant experience or equivalent combination of education and work experience
Typically requires 7+ years diversified leadership, planning, communication, organization and people motivation skill (or equivalent experience
- ✓Significant progressive leadership experience in manufacturing, operations, engineering, or a related technical organization.
- ✓Experience leading manufacturing expansions, production ramps, equipment installation, technology transfer, or facility startup.
- ✓Experience leading multi-site manufacturing organizations or transitioning new technologies into volume production.
- ✓Strong understanding of manufacturing operations, capacity planning, quality systems, cost management, capital execution, and continuous improvement.
- ✓Strong financial and business acumen with experience managing operating budgets and capital investments.
- ✓Strong analytical, problem-solving, decision-making, and executive communication skills.
Requirements
- ✓Ability to work at computer
ITAR/EAR and Other
Requirements
- ✓Must be a U.S. Person as defined by ITAR (U.S. Citizen, U.S. Permanent Resident, or protected individual).
- ✓Compliance with all applicable export control regulations.
Safety
Requirements
All employees are required to attend scheduled training, follow the site EHS procedures and Coherent Corporate EHS standards. This includes the use of proper protective equipment (PPE) as required by the job responsibilities.
Managers will ensure that all safety and environmental procedures are followed consistently. They will ensure that risk assessments are performed, p
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Easton Operations Leadership
- •Provide overall leadership and accountability for manufacturing operations at Easton.
- •Own operational performance across safety, quality, delivery, cost, productivity, yield, capacity, and schedule attainment.
- •Establish clear priorities, operating metrics, management systems, and accountability throughout the organization.
- •Ensure the operation has the people, equipment, materials, processes, infrastructure, and technical support required to meet production objectives.
Expansion & Manufacturing Ramp
- •Provide senior operations leadership for the Easton Garnet expansion and manufacturing ramp.
- •Ensure facility, equipment, staffing, training, qualification, and production-readiness activities remain aligned with business requirements.
- •Identify and escalate significant operational, schedule, resource, or technical risks and drive timely resolution.
Organizational Development
- •Build and develop the Easton manufacturing organization required for current production and future growth.
- •Establish clear leadership accountability across managers, supervisors, leads, technicians, and operators.
Manufacturing Performance & Improvement
- •Drive improvements in throughput, yield, cycle time, equipment utilization, labor productivity, and manufacturing cost.
- •Lead corrective actions and recovery plans when performance does not meet business expectations.
- •Establish disciplined daily management and structured problem solving to improve operational stability and performance.
Quality, Customer & EHS
- •Maintain strong manufacturing discipline and partnership with Quality and Engineering to improve process capability and product consistency.
- •Maintain senior leadership accountability for EHS performance and ensure operations comply with Coherent
Capital, Equipment & Facility Readiness
- •Provide senior operations input to equipment, infrastructure, facility, and manufacturing-layout decisions.
- •Partner with Engineering and Facilities to ensure investments support manufacturing requirements, maintainability, safety, and future capacity.
Cross-Functional & Executive Leadership
- •Serve as the senior operations interface for key cross-functional partners and maintain alignment with Garnet business priorities.
- •Provide clear executive-level communication on performance, risks, capacity, resource requirements, and major decisions.
- •Execute the manufacturing strategy, capacity objectives, and operational priorities established by the Senior Director, Garnet Operations.
Preferred
- +Advanced degree in Engineering, Operations, Business Administration, or a related field.
- +Experience in crystal growth, optical materials, semiconductor materials, photonics, epitaxy, or advanced-material manufacturing.
Measures of Success
- •Successful execution of Easton expansion milestones and manufacturing-readiness objectives.
- •Achievement of planned production, capacity, quality, safety, delivery, cost, and productivity objectives.
- •Development of a strong Easton leadership organization with the capability to manage routine operations effectively.
- •Successful installation, qualification, and production release of manufacturing equipment.
- •Effective development, training, and retention of the manufacturing workforce.
- •Visible improvement in operational stability, yield, productivity, and manufacturing cost.
Working Conditions
- •Office Environment
Physical