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Lumentum is seeking a Principal Product Development Engineer responsible for driving advanced variant development and technical leadership of complex optical switch modules from end-to-end. This role requires deep technical expertise, strategic problem-solving capability, and strong leadership skills to drive product development, manufacturing readiness, and engineering excellence across global cross-functional teams.
This position serves as a key technical leader for New Product Introduction (NPI), process optimization, yield improvement, and manufacturing scalability while influencing engineering decisions and supporting long-term technology development.
Key Responsibilities
Drive and provide technical leadership for New Product Introduction (NPI) activities, including product design reviews, process development, risk assessment, and manufacturing readiness for complex optical modules and telecommunication products.
Serve as a subject matter expert and technical lead for product development, process integration, yield improvement, and manufacturing optimization initiatives.
Lead resolution of highly complex product, process, yield, reliability, and quality issues; coordinate with global cross-functional teams to implement effective and sustainable technical solutions.
Drive strategic continuous improvement initiatives related to production yield, process capability, quality performance, operational efficiency, and manufacturing scalability.
Lead DFM, PFMEA, process flow optimization, process validation, and development of manufacturing standards and work instructions.
Manage and oversee Bill of Materials (BOM), component readiness, and collaboration with supply chain teams and suppliers to ensure timely qualification and development of custom parts and assemblies.
Influence technical decisions and collaborate closely with global engineering, manufacturing, quality, sourcing, and operations teams to support business objectives and product roadmap execution.
Provide technical mentoring, coaching, and guidance to engineers and cross-functional teams to strengthen organizational engineering capability.
Support technology development and drive engineering solutions aligned with customer requirements, manufacturing capability, quality expectations, and business goals.
Lead complex engineering projects and drive execution across multiple priorities in a fast-paced global environment.
Qualifications
Bachelor’s degree or higher in Engineering or a related Science field. Master’s degree is preferred.
Minimum 10 years of experience in product development, NPI, manufacturing engineering, or process engineering within telecommunication, optical module, or high-tech manufacturing industries.
Proven technical leadership experience driving complex engineering projects and influencing cross-functional engineering decisions.
Strong organizational and leadership skills with the ability to manage multiple complex priorities and drive execution effectively under pressure.
Excellent communication and presentation skills, both verbal and written, in English.
Proven ability to collaborate and influence cross-functional teams in a matrix organization across local and international environments.
Strong technical problem-solving and data analysis capability, including familiarity with databases, statistical analysis tools, and process control systems.
Strong knowledge of assembly and test processes, manufacturing equipment capabilities, reliability principles, and materials science.
Hands-on experience with DFM, PFMEA, yield improvement, process optimization, and manufacturing scalability.
Experience working with telecommunication products such as fiber optic line cards, optical modules, optical switches, and related components is highly preferred.
Experience mentoring engineers and driving engineering best practices across teams is an advantage.
We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company.
We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, sex, gender, gender expression, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status.
We will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment.
Please contact us to request accommodation.
Skills Required
- Bachelor's degree or higher in Engineering or a related Science field
- Minimum 10 years of experience in product development, NPI, manufacturing engineering, or process engineering
- Experience in telecommunications, optical modules, or high-tech manufacturing industries
- Technical leadership experience driving complex engineering projects and influencing cross-functional decisions
- Strong organizational, leadership, communication, and presentation skills in English
- Experience collaborating with cross-functional teams in local and international matrix organizations
- Technical problem-solving and data analysis capability
- Familiarity with databases, statistical analysis tools, and process control systems
- Knowledge of assembly and test processes, manufacturing equipment capabilities, reliability principles, and materials science
- Hands-on experience with DFM, PFMEA, yield improvement, process optimization, and manufacturing scalability
- Experience with fiber optic line cards, optical modules, optical switches, and related components
- Master's degree
- Experience mentoring engineers and driving engineering best practices
Lumentum Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Lumentum and has not been reviewed or approved by Lumentum.
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Equity Value & Accessibility — Equity is positioned as a meaningful part of total compensation, with RSUs frequently framed as a valued component of offers. An employee stock purchase plan with a discount and look-back further reinforces equity access as part of rewards.
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Retirement Support — Retirement benefits are presented as a clear strength, with a 401(k) match and immediate vesting highlighted as supportive features. Auto-enrollment and match eligibility details indicate a structured retirement program for U.S. employees.
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Healthcare Strength — Multiple medical plan options are described, including PPO and HDHP/HSA choices and Kaiser in some locations, suggesting breadth and choice in coverage. Health and well-being programming is also characterized as part of a comprehensive benefits approach.
Lumentum Insights
What We Do
Lumentum (NASDAQ: LITE) is a market-leading designer and manufacturer of innovative optical and photonic products enabling optical networking and laser applications worldwide. Lumentum optical components and subsystems are part of virtually every type of telecom, enterprise, and data center network. Lumentum lasers enable advanced manufacturing techniques and diverse applications including next-generation 3D sensing capabilities. Lumentum is headquartered in San Jose, California with R&D, manufacturing, and sales offices worldwide. For more information, visit www.lumentum.com.








