I’m in manufacturing/process engineering for the semiconductor industry. I’m currently awaiting a senior-level grade increase this week (~8%), and there’s a team-lead opening in the next ~3 months that I’m being mentored/sponsored to go for (includes a 14% bonus, to lead 3 engineers, 2 techs).
I’m trying to sanity-check whether my current comp/level is aligned with my impact and scope. Highlights from the last years:
• $1.5M+ recurring savings
• $750K+ cost avoidance
• 10× throughput increase
• 90%+ cycle-time reduction
• 95% downtime reduction
My day-to-day has expanded beyond “process engineering” into more of a full-stack manufacturing engineering scope (cost modeling, product/process design, quality systems, CI/OpEx, and supply-chain risk reduction). Goes without saying that I’m also the main escalation point for the product process I own and lead my cell without the lead title (1 engineer, 1 tech)
I'm a Ph.D. candidate in Plasma Physics, I got a M.Sc. in Plasma Physics and a Masters in Electrical Engineering. I have multiple certifications but notably, for manufacturing, Lean Six Sigma Green Belt, going for the LSS Black Belt at the end of 2026 (mostly for the recognition on my resume, I already act as one). I'm developping an internal Yellow Belt training program that will be deployed in Q32026 across the corporation. I have influence across sites and at the corporation level, I routinely end up into rooms or meetings with multiple VPs and C-suite leadership as a sougth after expert.
Question: If you were in my shoes, how would you frame this in a comp/leveling conversation—and what data points would you bring (market comps, internal leveling criteria, quantified wins, etc.)?