Materials Science — M4
MATERI.MATERIAL348F.M4
Leads the people, programs, and budgets of materials science R&D — managing scientists who research, characterize, and optimize advanced materials (metals, alloys, polymers, ceramics, composites) using techniques such as XRD, SEM/TEM, mechanical testing, thermal analysis (DSC/EGA), surface analysis (XPS, AFM, EDS, SIMS, AES), and computational modeling (pymatgen, matminer, MAST-ML, pyMKS, ASE, DAMASK). Distinct from hands-on bench/IC characterization and from plastics/process focus areas: this management track is accountable for portfolio direction, resource and instrumentation allocation, safety compliance, cross-functional integration into product development, and securing funding rather than personally executing experiments.
Leads the people, programs, and budgets of materials science R&D — managing scientists who research, characterize, and optimize advanced materials (metals, alloys, polymers, ceramics, composites) using techniques such as XRD, SEM/TEM, mechanical testing, thermal analysis (DSC/EGA), surface analysis (XPS, AFM, EDS, SIMS, AES), and computational modeling (pymatgen, matminer, MAST-ML, pyMKS, ASE, DAMASK). Distinct from hands-on bench/IC characterization and from plastics/process focus areas: this management track is accountable for portfolio direction, resource and instrumentation allocation, safety compliance, cross-functional integration into product development, and securing funding rather than personally executing experiments.
Focus — Materials Science
Leads the people, programs, and budgets of materials science R&D — managing scientists who research, characterize, and optimize advanced materials (metals, alloys, polymers, ceramics, composites) using techniques such as XRD, SEM/TEM, mechanical testing, thermal analysis (DSC/EGA), surface analysis (XPS, AFM, EDS, SIMS, AES), and computational modeling (pymatgen, matminer, MAST-ML, pyMKS, ASE, DAMASK). Distinct from hands-on bench/IC characterization and from plastics/process focus areas: this management track is accountable for portfolio direction, resource and instrumentation allocation, safety compliance, cross-functional integration into product development, and securing funding rather than personally executing experiments.
Material PAY and SKILL differential vs the function baseline.
Responsibilities by level
What this person actually does at each level on the executive track — escalating scope, not one generic blob. Your level is highlighted.
- Manages a team of materials scientists and engineers executing characterization and development projects, scheduling XRD (PANalytical X'Pert, Bruker AXS LEPTOS), SEM/TEM, and DSC/EGA instrument time and lab resources against short-term project goals.
- Owns the operating budget for the materials characterization lab, including consumables, instrument maintenance contracts, and headcount for the team.
- Reviews and validates experimental designs and data interpretation (including SPSS-based statistical analysis) from the team, evaluating trends across materials property datasets before findings are reported to product stakeholders.
- Leads the team's collaboration with product development and manufacturing engineers to ensure material selections align with manufacturing capabilities and quality standards.
- Ensures the team operates in compliance with lab safety regulations and standards, and develops and mentors scientists, building fluency in characterization workflows and computational modeling tools.
- Manages multiple materials science sections (e.g., metals/alloys, polymers/composites, computational modeling), setting research policies that align the materials portfolio with business product objectives.
- Defines the technical strategy for next-generation material formulation and optimization across the function, prioritizing programs whose delay or failure could jeopardize product launches.
- Owns consolidated budgets and capital planning for major characterization instrumentation (SEM/TEM, XPS, SIMS, AES, AFM, EDS) and high-throughput computational infrastructure (DFT databases, matminer, pymatgen, DAMASK).
- Engages senior R&D and product leaders to translate materials performance criteria into program roadmaps and resource commitments.
- Establishes standards for experimental rigor, data analysis, safety compliance, and technical documentation across all sections under management.
- Directs the materials science organization through subordinate managers, defining the methods and research direction that impact the division's product and technology roadmap.
- Oversees multiple research projects across the division, governing resources, budgets, and timelines while resolving complex, org-wide trade-offs among competing research programs, characterization capabilities, and computational modeling initiatives.
- Influences executives and major customers on critical materials decisions affecting product performance, qualification, and risk.
- Leads grant writing and external funding strategy, securing resources and partnerships that sustain the materials research pipeline.
- Drives best practices in materials science across the organization, establishing instrumentation strategy and talent strategy with business-wide implications.
- Sets the long-term materials science strategy across multiple departments or divisions, defining how advanced materials research drives the company's multi-year competitive and product direction.
- Leads through senior managers and directors, governing the cross-functional integration of materials science into product development, manufacturing, and emerging technology platforms.
- Defines investment policy and capital strategy for the company's materials characterization and computational modeling capabilities, balancing abstract trade-offs across discovery, qualification, and scale-up.
- Negotiates with executives, strategic customers, and external research and funding partners on critical materials commitments, articulating the strategic significance of the research portfolio.
- Oversees the company-wide grant and funding-proposal strategy and embeds materials-science best practices that shape long-term company success.
Level guidelines
The universal leveling rubric applied to this function — how scope, complexity, collaboration, and experience step up across levels.
| Level | Knowledge & Application | Complexity & Problem Solving | Collaboration & Interaction | Typical Degree & Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| M3 | Applies deep materials science knowledge (chemistry, physics, characterization, computational modeling) to direct a single team's project execution and data quality. | Evaluates trends across materials property datasets and diverse experimental issues; resolves project-level technical and resource conflicts within established research methods. | Leads a functional materials team and partners with product development, manufacturing, and quality counterparts on material selection and characterization deliverables. | 5–7+ years in materials science with experience managing professional scientists and lab budgets. |
| M4 | Applies strategic understanding of the materials portfolio to set research policies and align multiple sections with business product objectives. | Solves strategic problems where program delays could jeopardize product launches; defines prioritization methods across metals, polymers, composites, and modeling work. | Engages senior R&D and product leaders on functional strategy and translates materials criteria into multi-section roadmaps. | 8–10+ years with complex team/organization leadership across materials disciplines. |
| M5 | Defines org-wide materials research methods and investment priorities impacting the division's product and technology roadmap. | Addresses complex, organization-wide materials challenges with business-wide implications; defines new approaches to capability and program trade-offs across the project portfolio. | Leads through department managers; influences executives and major customers on key materials decisions and secures external funding. | 10–12+ years including second-level management and materials strategy work. |
| M6 | Sets long-term materials science strategy across divisions, defining how advanced materials research shapes multi-year company success. | Resolves abstract, cross-functional materials issues; defines long-term discovery-to-scale strategy and capital investment policy. | Leads through senior managers and directors; negotiates with executives and strategic/funding partners on critical materials commitments. | 12–15+ years with deep leadership across materials departments or divisions. |
Skills
Focus-specific skills the role applies — the relevance layer beyond the occupational base.
- Project and Budget Management
- Overseeing multiple research projects, managing resources, budgets, and timelines, and securing funding through grant proposals.
- Materials Characterization
- Methods used to determine the physical, chemical, and structural properties of materials, including microscopy (SEM/TEM/AFM), spectroscopy (XPS, EDS, AES, SIMS), X-ray diffraction, thermal analysis (DSC/EGA), and mechanical testing.
- Domain Knowledge
- Solid foundation in chemistry, physics, and engineering principles applied to metals, alloys, polymers, ceramics, and composites.
- Computational Modeling
- Multiscale and molecular simulation combining methods and scales (pymatgen, matminer, MAST-ML, pyMKS, ASE, DAMASK, high-throughput DFT databases) to capture material behavior, bridging atomic and macroscopic levels.
- Data Analysis
- Interpreting experimental data and building predictive models to support material behavior forecasting and process optimization.
- Technical Communication
- Preparing reports, manuscripts, proposals, and technical manuals for use by scientists, sponsors, and customers.
Provenance
The evidence base behind this profile — every layer is sourced; quality is scored by an adversarial review panel (1–5; passes at ≥4 on the minimum dimension).
Level — M4 — Director
Leads a function or department; owns strategy, budget, and outcomes for the area.
- Scope
- A function or department
- Autonomy
- Owns area strategy and budget
- Complexity
- Strategic priorities and cross-functional alignment
- Impact
- Function-level results
- Decision rights
- Owns strategy, budget, and org design for the area
- Leadership
- Leads managers; sets direction for the function
- Typical experience
- 10–15 yrs
Adjacent roles
Nearest roles by structural coordinates (level + taxonomy). Distance 0 → 1; each carries its 3-state match band. How coordinates work → · Compare side-by-side →
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- code=19-2032source=jfm-factory.resolve