Customer Service & Operations Specialist - Hybrid

Panasonic Avionics Corporation; Bothell (WA); On-site; USD 31,684 - 52,348; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

401(k) match

Paid time off

Job summary

Panasonic Avionics Corporation is seeking a Customer Service/Operations Specialist to serve as the primary customer account focal point. You will handle receipt, review, validation, and processing of customer purchase orders, coordinating fulfillment to ensure on‑time delivery and alignment with sales plans.

You will collaborate with Program Management and Supply Chain to monitor orders, manage spares, certifications, and supplier coordination, while ensuring FAA/conformity requirements and

Qualifications

• High School Diploma or equivalent is required.
• Minimum 4 years in customer service/supply chain environment.
• Experience in aircraft or electronics industry is highly desired.
• In-flight entertainment experience is advantageous.

Responsibilities

• Process customer purchase orders and entry into PAC ERP or customer systems.
• Coordinate with Program Management to monitor orders and deliveries.
• Expedite orders to meet contractual SLAs with OEMs and partners.
• Maintain order data per SOX and internal requirements.
• Analyze and resolve customer account discrepancies with customers and accounting.

Skills

Communication skills

Problem solving

Detail oriented

Team player

Customer focus

Ability to travel

Education

High School Diploma or equivalent

Tools

Excel

PowerPoint

Oracle

ERP system

Windows

Job description

Overview

Who We Are: Panasonic Avionics Corporation is #1 in the industry for delivering inflight products such as movies, games, WiFi, and now Bluetooth headphone connectivity.

How exciting would it be to be a part of the innovation that goes into creating technology that delights millions of people in an industry that’s here to stay! With our company’s history spanning over 40 years, you will have stability, career growth opportunities, and will work with the brightest minds in the industry. We are committed to a diverse and inclusive culture that will help our organization thrive. We seek diversity in many areas such as background, culture, gender, ways of thinking, skills and more.

Responsibilities

The Customer Service/Operations Specialist will serve as the primary customer account focal point. The position is responsible for the receipt, review, validation and processing of customer purchase orders, coordinates order fulfillment activities to achieve on‑time delivery and realize company sales plan while ensuring inventory levels are within company standards. It communicates with customers and internal organizations, in person, telephone, email, and fax to ensure all requirements of programs or individual parts orders are successfully delivered according to customer commitments and expectations.

Order Fulfillment

• Receive, review and process customer purchase orders via manual entry into PAC ERP system, EDI transmissions, and/or customer‑owned systems or supplier portals.
• Enter PGA requirements to secure parts demand before customer purchase orders have been received to protect lead times.
• Manage spares and service parts ordering including coordination of certification requirements with customers as required, outside of program related activity.
• Coordinate with Program Management to monitor and provide status on customer’s equipment orders and deliveries and overall program status, with third party suppliers, aircraft OEMs and customers to meet overall program requirements. Identify all potential delivery delays and notify Program Managers/Regional Directors on critical delays.
• Facilitate flow of orders and product expedites through PAC’s Supply Chain, to meet customer and field requirements. Expedite requests are based on contractual and service level agreements; specifically, to support OEM/Seat Supplier business partners.
• Communicate and distribute reports and trend analysis for order and delivery status to internal/external customers as required.
• Maintain all relative order transaction data in PAC’s system of record per SOX and internal compliance requirements.
• Monitor engineering drawing change requirements and respond to those changes that have impact to parts entered on sales orders and schedules.
• Analyze and resolve customer account discrepancies working with customers and accounting.
• Coordinate product deliveries with Customs group and third‑party suppliers to ensure on‑time delivery of customer orders by PAC commitment dates.
• Ensure that all FAA/Conformity requirements are adhered to, pursuant to customer and PAC Quality requirements.
• Provide various departments and reports to assist with metrics, department compliance, productivity, and efficiencies.
• Host or attend conference calls or meetings related to program requirements or department processes.

Planning/Supplier Management

• Run program audits based on Program Table and OEM schedules per management established schedule to be included as needed in weekly team meetings.
• Communicate material requirements to PAC Planning, Procurement and Distribution Center groups to ensure a sustaining inventory level in order to support internal/external customer deliveries.
• Identify, negotiate, and resolve conflicts between stakeholders (PMO, Sales Forecasting, and Inventory Management) with respect to the Master Planning/Scheduling (OEM Dates/MROD) process to align to internal/external deadlines.
• Communicate, manage, and prioritize significant shifts in demand to the Supply Chain to meet delivery commitments.
• Manage “Holds Clearing” of customer purchase orders to ensure there is no impact to HW/SW deliverables and on‑time delivery trends.

Contract Compliance

• Continuously audit and maintain Customer Profile, Freight Directives and ensure Commercial Terms called out on open orders are 100% accurate, to avoid impacts on deliveries and collections.
• Ensure that incoming customer purchase orders for hardware/software deliverables encapsulate all required Terms and Conditions for order processing.
• Track and issue customer incentives, credits and concessions as required by contract.
• Support frequent internal and external audits by providing documentation that supports 3‑way match requirements as needed.

Finance/Credit Support

• Apply customer‑specific price lists to orders in conjunction with Finance and Marketing groups during the demand scheduling process to ensure customer billing accuracy.
• Provide Finance support with AR collections by taking the applicable actions to ensure the customer’s account status is at acceptable levels and meets contract requirements.
• Troubleshoot and follow‑up on product rejections by customer, product conformity problems, incorrect shipments, Proof‑of‑Delivery, and QA documentation and take appropriate action to clear to mitigate collection roadblocks.

The hourly range of $22.60 – $37.98 is just one component of Panasonic’s total package. The final offer amount may vary based on factors including but not limited to the individual’s knowledge, skills, experience, and location. In addition, this role may be eligible for discretionary bonuses and incentives. The minimum hourly wage for this role will be the greater of the posted range or the minimum wage for the location where the employee will be working, subject to local minimum wage requirements.

Qualifications

• High School Diploma or equivalent.
• Minimum 4 years’ work experience in a customer service and supply chain environment.
• Minimum 2 years’ work experience in aircraft or electronics industry highly desired.
• In‑flight entertainment experience highly desired.
• Good understanding of the full Just‑In‑Time (JIT) supply chain process.
• Excellent communication skills and ability to interact with a diverse, multi‑level organization and global customer base.
• Self‑motivated, well organized and detail oriented.
• Creative problem solver able to resolve conflicts and filter conflicting agendas to determine a path forward.
• Intermediate working knowledge of computers and the use of software packages (Windows, Excel, Word, and PowerPoint) with emphasis on Excel and Access.
• Oracle or ERP system experience highly desired.
• Ability to work independently and make decisions as required with minimum supervision.
• Ability to understand and interpret technical and contractual language.
• Ability to travel to customer sites and represent PAC in a professional manner.
• Ability to mentor other employees and a demonstrated desire to accept new projects and challenges in support of company goals.
• Works on assignments requiring considerable judgment and initiative. Understands implications of work and makes recommendations for solutions.
• Must be able to sit for extended periods of time working at a PC using repetitive motion in the operation of a mouse and keyboard.

Our Principles

Contribution to Society | Fairness & Honesty | Cooperation & Team Spirit | Untiring Effort for Improvement | Courtesy & Humility | Adaptability | Gratitude

What We Offer

• Paid time off: Exempt salaried employees receive flexible paid time off. Non‑exempt hourly employees accrue 14 vacation days per year + 7 sick days + 3 personal days. Accrual rate increases with tenure. All employees receive 11 company paid holidays per year. Additional compensation is provided for hours worked during corporate closed holidays.
• Health Insurance: Medical insurance offerings from Aetna and Kaiser (CA & HI). Options for Employee Only, Employee + Spouse/Domestic Partner, Employee + Children, or Family. Dental PPO and DMO options & Vision insurance through EyeMed or VSP.
• 401(k) with 50% match on up to 8% contribution, fully vested from day 1.
• Washington residents only are eligible for Washington’s Family and Medical Leave program and Washington’s Paid Sick Leave program.
• Other offerings include Wellness Program, Counseling services, FSA & HSA, Life Insurance for employee, spouse and child, AD&D Insurance, Long‑term and Short‑term disability, Critical Illness Insurance, Accident Insurance, Legal Assistance, Pet Insurance, Identity Theft Protection, Dependent Care FLSA, Education Assistance, Commuter Program, Employee Purchase Program, Service Award Program.

All applicants are subject to company policies, third‑party customer and worksite requirements, and government requirements regarding vaccination and/or testing for COVID‑19. Where permitted by applicable law, applicants may be required to be fully vaccinated with an authorized COVID‑19 vaccine as a condition of employment unless they are eligible for and obtain an exemption based on a reasonable accommodation because of a disability or sincerely held religious belief, practice, or observance. While the Company strongly encourages COVID‑19 vaccinations, it may require vaccination and/or testing for positions in which third‑party customer, worksite, or government requirements apply, in accordance with applicable law. At those locations where requirements apply, exemptions will be considered based on applicable law.

Panasonic is proud to be an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, and any other characteristic protected by law or company policy. All qualified individuals are required to perform the essential functions of the job with or without reasonable accommodation. Pre‑employment drug testing is required for safety‑sensitive positions or as may otherwise be required by contract or law. Due to the high volume of responses, we will only be able to respond to candidates of interest. All candidates must have valid authorization to work in the U.S. Thank you for your interest in Panasonic Avionics Corporation.