POSITION TITLE: Applications Engineer

POSITION OBJECTIVE:

Provides technical expertise and assistance to Clearfield customers and employees to support pre and post sales activities. Provides issue resolution, working with other Clearfield resources, as needed. Possesses a full understanding of area of specialization; resolves a wide range of issues in creative ways. Identifies and works with Product Development on new or improved product characteristics and/or capabilities through field interactions.

POSITION RESPONSIBILITIES:

Supports the process of matching customer requirements with appropriate products:

• Communicates with sales or directly with customer to identify product application, specifications, and delivery requirements.
• Creates and recommends product application specific solutions. Develops product/project demonstrations.
• Identify and understand customer applications as they relate to product design.

Provides technical assistance on installation activities relating to FTTx:

• Investigates and provides solutions to operational problems effecting product installation and/or performance.
• Supports new product introduction by training and other interactions with customers.
• Identifies ways to reduce installation and rework costs. Collects and communicates data to enable a root cause analysis. Updates processes to ensure installation improvements and cost reductions become standard process.
• Liaison with sales and customer to resolve issues.

Prepare and maintain timely documentation relating to work activity:

• Provide written field reports with illustrations/pictures of customer product problems and first installations in CRM.
• Provide preliminary review of drawings and revisions, as needed, prior to submittal for engineering approval.
• Ensure that all documentation related to any work activity, as needed, is documented in a CAS in CRM.
• Maintain product history folder.

Provide support to the sales force to enhance sales capabilities:

• Provide training on product capabilities, applications, and features.
• Provide technical assistance on product capabilities, applications, and features to the sales teams, as needed, support a sales effort and/or resolve a technical problem.
• Provide data, from work activities in the field, for technical bulletins and promotional literature.

Job complexity and relationships:

• Works on problems of diverse scope where analysis of data requires evaluation of identifiable factors.
• Demonstrates good judgment in selecting methods and techniques for obtaining solutions.
• Networks with senior internal and external personnel in own area of expertise.

Supervision - Normally receives little instruction on day-to-day work, general instructions on new assignments.

This description of duties is not intended to be all-inclusive or to limit the discretionary authority to assign other tasks of a similar nature and/or level of responsibility.

COMPETENCIES:

Critical Judgement- Evaluating ideas and information while referring to objective criteria to reach rational conclusion.

• Recommends optimal approaches to address critical issues.
• Identifies implications of own analysis (e.g., potential impact of judgment, potential impact on certain stakeholders).
• Anticipates how others in own and other affected organizations will respond to and use the information/data generated.
• Identifies the problem based on a range of factors, most of which are clear.
• Identifies an optimal solution and recommendation based on weighing the advantages and disadvantages of alternative approaches.
• Makes straightforward recommendations based on information that is generally adequate.
• Applies guidelines and procedures that require some interpretation in dealing with exceptions.

Fostering Communication- Listening and communicating openly, honestly, and respectfully with different audiences, promoting dialogue and building consensus.

• Recalls others' main points, taking them into account in own communication.
• Checks own understanding of others' communication (e.g., paraphrases, asks questions).
• Elicits comments or feedback on what has been said.
• Maintains continuous, open and consistent communication with others.

Initiative- Dealing with situations and issues proactively and persistently, seizing opportunities that arise.

• Acts on issues in own area of responsibility instead of waiting or hoping the problem will solve itself.
• Tries varied approaches and solutions to resolve a problem.
• Persists when significant difficulties arise.

Teamwork- Working collaboratively with others to achieve organizational goals.

• Initiates collaboration with others.
• Assumes additional responsibilities to facilitate the achievement of team goals.
• Seeks input from other team members on matters that affect them.

Industry Knowledge- Using knowledge of economic, social, cultural and business environment, including competitive and customer behavior trends, to gain an organizational advantage.

• Demonstrates knowledge of main competitors’ positions in the market.
• Demonstrates knowledge of main competitor’s products/services.
• Pitches own organization against competition in generic terms.
• Demonstrates an understanding of the concept and potential of indirect competition.
• Identifies related industries that may have an impact on own industry.
• Demonstrates a thorough understanding of own organization’s industry.

POSITION REQUIREMENTS:

• Five years of progressively responsible technical problem-solving experience.
• Strong FTTx product knowledge required, Clearfield product knowledge preferred.
• CFOT (Certified Fiber Optic Technician) certification preferred.
• Must be proficient with the following equipment and associated software: OTDR, Fusion machine, VFL, Inspection probe
• Ability to effectively communicate with all levels of customers and Clearfield employees.
• Ability to provide direct and actionable feedback.
• Able to build strong internal and external relationships and deliver customer centric solutions.
• Able to build teams to address large systemic problems and take immediate action on well defined, repetitive issues.
• Able to travel 50% domestically.

BENEFITS for full-time:

• Comprehensive Medical, Dental, and Vision benefits.
• 100% company paid Short-term and Long-term disability insurance coverage.
• 100% company paid Basic Life and Accidental Death and Dismemberment (AD&D) insurance coverage.
• 100% company paid Business Travel Accident (BTA) insurance.
• 100% company paid Employee Assistance Program (EAP).
• Additional voluntary benefits are offered.
• 401K plan: Maximum match is 4.5% of the first 6% of contribution.
• Employee Stock Purchase Plan:
• Clearfield's Time Off Policy includes Personal Time Off (PTO) beginning at three weeks annually. PTO is accrued on the first of the month starting on day of hire. In addition, nine paid holidays per year.

SALARY RANGE: $71,862 - $89,828 - $107,793; bonus eligible position. Offers of employment will be extended at a level consistent with the experience and qualifications of the candidate. This information reflects the anticipated salary range for this position at the time of posting. The salary range may be modified in the future and actual compensation may vary from the posting based on various factors such as geographic location, work experience, education and/or skill level.