---
title: "Biofuels/Biodiesel Technology and Product Development Manager"
description: "Define, plan, or execute biofuels/biodiesel research programs that evaluate alternative feedstock and process technologies with near-term commercial…"
canonical: "https://nuecareer.com/careers/biofuels-biodiesel-technology-and-product-development-manager"
last-updated: "2026-08-23T15:56:39.581Z"
---

# Biofuels/Biodiesel Technology and Product Development Manager

**Category:** Management · **SOC code:** 11-9041 · **O\*NET-SOC code:** 11-9041.01

Define, plan, or execute biofuels/biodiesel research programs that evaluate alternative feedstock and process technologies with near-term commercial potential.

Also advertised as: Analytical Research Program Manager; Biodiesel Division Manager; Biofuels Manager; Business Development and New Technology Manager; Laboratory Manager (Lab Manager); Project Development Director.

## At a glance

- **Median annual wage:** $171,270 (BLS OEWS, May 2025)
- **Median hourly wage:** $82.34/hr
- **Wage range (10th–90th percentile):** $120,810 to $262,760, with the middle half between $139,360 and $212,500
- **Total US employment:** 220,260
- **Typical entry education:** Bachelor's
- **Preparation required:** Medium preparation — O\*NET rates this "Job Zone Four: Considerable Preparation Needed"
- **Projected growth:** +3.8% over 2024–2034 (BLS EP, 2024–2034)
- **Annual job openings:** 14,500 openings a year
- **AI-resilience score:** 36/100 — a NueCareer heuristic over O\*NET work activities and context, not a BLS or O\*NET figure

## Pay

National wage distribution, BLS OEWS, May 2025, across 220,260 US jobs.

| Percentile | Annual wage |
| --- | --- |
| 10th | $120,810 |
| 25th | $139,360 |
| 50th (median) | $171,270 |
| 75th | $212,500 |
| 90th | $262,760 |
| Mean (average) | $181,540 |

### Pay by state

The 15 highest-paying states, by median annual wage. The cost-of-living-adjusted column divides the state median by that state's BEA Regional Price Parity, so the columns answer different questions: the first is what the job pays there, the second is what that pay buys there.

| State | Median annual wage | Cost-of-living adjusted | Employment |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| NM | $215,120 | $233,289 | 2,270 |
| CA | $210,280 | $189,921 | 29,630 |
| MA | $201,430 | $190,465 | 7,690 |
| WA | $189,680 | $177,249 | 6,060 |
| DC | $185,220 | $168,533 | 1,290 |
| CO | $183,810 | $178,366 | 4,900 |
| DE | $181,190 | $181,539 | 560 |
| NJ | $180,640 | $166,022 | 4,540 |
| OR | $177,190 | $171,428 | Not published by BLS |
| VA | $176,160 | $174,236 | 4,390 |
| RI | $175,910 | $171,989 | 370 |
| NY | $175,710 | $162,814 | 8,250 |
| CT | $175,490 | $169,376 | 4,970 |
| MD | $172,670 | $164,512 | 5,240 |
| NH | $172,240 | $165,353 | 2,160 |

38 more states with published wage data are omitted here. The full table for all 53 states is at https://nuecareer.com/careers/biofuels-biodiesel-technology-and-product-development-manager/salary-by-state, or as JSON at https://nuecareer.com/api/v1/careers/biofuels-biodiesel-technology-and-product-development-manager.

## Outlook

BLS projects employment to move from 212,500 in the 2024–2034 base year to 220,500 by the end of the cycle — a gain of 8,000 jobs, or +3.8%. About as fast as average: 3.8% against 3.1% projected for all occupations over the same cycle. About 14,500 openings a year are expected on average, counting openings from growth as well as from workers leaving the occupation permanently. Source: BLS EP, 2024–2034.

## How to get in

- **Typical entry education:** Bachelor's degree (BLS Employment Projections).
- **Preparation level:** Medium preparation — O\*NET's preparation band for this occupation is "Job Zone Four: Considerable Preparation Needed".
- **Related work experience typically required:** 5 years or more.
- **Typical on-the-job training:** None.

### Education people in this job actually hold

O\*NET surveys incumbents, so this distribution describes who is in the job today and can differ from the BLS entry requirement above.

| Education level | Share of workers |
| --- | --- |
| Bachelor's Degree | 55.4% |
| Master's Degree | 28.6% |
| Associate's Degree (or other 2-year degree) | 5.8% |
| Post-Secondary Certificate | 4.8% |
| Post-Doctoral Training | 1.4% |
| High School Diploma | 1.3% |

## What the work involves

- Prepare, or oversee the preparation of, experimental plans for biofuels research or development.
- Provide technical or scientific guidance to technical staff in the conduct of biofuels research or development.
- Analyze data from biofuels studies, such as fluid dynamics, water treatments, or solvent extraction and recovery processes.
- Design or conduct applied biodiesel or biofuels research projects on topics, such as transport, thermodynamics, mixing, filtration, distillation, fermentation, extraction, and separation.
- Propose new biofuels products, processes, technologies or applications based on findings from applied biofuels or biomass research projects.
- Prepare biofuels research and development reports for senior management or technical professionals.
- Conduct experiments on biomass or pretreatment technologies.
- Develop lab scale models of industrial scale processes, such as fermentation.

## Skills and knowledge

### Essential skills

- Reading Comprehension — importance 3.6 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Writing — importance 3.6 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Speaking — importance 3.6 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Critical Thinking — importance 3.6 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Active Listening — importance 3.5 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Active Learning — importance 3.3 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Monitoring — importance 3.3 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Mathematics — importance 3.1 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale

### Transferable skills

These are the skills that carry into other occupations, and they drive the related-occupation and career-change rankings on this site.

- Complex Problem Solving — importance 3.6 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Judgment and Decision Making — importance 3.6 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Systems Analysis — importance 3.6 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Systems Evaluation — importance 3.5 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Coordination — importance 3.3 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Time Management — importance 3.3 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Quality Control Analysis — importance 3.1 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Management of Personnel Resources — importance 3.1 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale

### Knowledge areas

- English Language — importance 4.1 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Chemistry — importance 4.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Engineering and Technology — importance 3.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Mathematics — importance 3.6 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Production and Processing — importance 3.4 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Computers and Electronics — importance 3.3 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale

### Abilities

- Oral Comprehension — importance 4.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Written Comprehension — importance 4.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Problem Sensitivity — importance 4.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Deductive Reasoning — importance 4.0 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Written Expression — importance 3.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale
- Information Ordering — importance 3.9 on the O\*NET 1–5 importance scale

## Who it suits

O\*NET rates every occupation on the six Holland (RIASEC) interest areas, on a 1–7 scale. This occupation's strongest areas are Investigative (I), Enterprising (E), Realistic (R).

| Interest area | Score (1–7) |
| --- | --- |
| I — Investigative | 5.84 |
| E — Enterprising | 4.70 |
| R — Realistic | 4.16 |
| C — Conventional | 3.51 |
| A — Artistic | 2.11 |
| S — Social | 2.10 |

### Personality fit

These scores are **derived by NueCareer**, not published by any government agency: they are cosine similarities between a personality type's trait profile and this occupation's O\*NET interest and work-style ratings, expressed 0–100. Treat them as a starting point for exploration, not as evidence that a type belongs in a job.

| Type | Fit score (0–100) |
| --- | --- |
| INTJ | 75.9 |
| ISTP | 74.7 |
| ISTJ | 74.2 |
| INTP | 66.7 |
| ESTP | 65.5 |

Best-fitting types: INTJ, ISTP, ISTJ.

## Related occupations

O\*NET's primary related occupations, in its own ranked order.

- [Biofuels Production Manager](https://nuecareer.com/careers/biofuels-production-manager) — median $126,060
- [Chemical Engineer](https://nuecareer.com/careers/chemical-engineer) — median $125,040
- [Biomass Power Plant Manager](https://nuecareer.com/careers/biomass-power-plant-manager) — median $126,060
- [Geothermal Production Manager](https://nuecareer.com/careers/geothermal-production-manager) — median $126,060
- [Nanotechnology Engineering Technologist and Technician](https://nuecareer.com/careers/nanotechnology-engineering-technologist-and-technician) — median $66,120
- [Manufacturing Engineer](https://nuecareer.com/careers/manufacturing-engineer) — median $102,440
- [Energy Engineer, Except Wind and Solar](https://nuecareer.com/careers/energy-engineer) — median $122,930
- [Wind Energy Development Manager](https://nuecareer.com/careers/wind-energy-development-manager) — median $141,900
- [Water/Wastewater Engineer](https://nuecareer.com/careers/water-wastewater-engineer) — median $100,840
- [Bioengineer and Biomedical Engineer](https://nuecareer.com/careers/bioengineer-and-biomedical-engineer) — median $109,370

## Sources

- **O\*NET** — O\*NET 30.3 Database, May 2026. https://www.onetcenter.org/database.html
- **BLS OEWS** — BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025. https://www.bls.gov/oes/
- **BLS EP** — BLS Employment Projections, Table 1.2, 2024–2034. https://www.bls.gov/emp/
- **BLS OOH** — BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2024–2034 edition. https://www.bls.gov/ooh/
- **BEA RPP** — BEA Regional Price Parities by State, 2024. https://www.bea.gov/data/prices-inflation/regional-price-parities-state-and-metro-area

---

This bank includes information from the O\*NET 30.3 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). O\*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. NueCareer has transformed the data by joining it to BLS wage and projection data and deriving facet, personality-fit and AI-resilience scores. BLS and BEA data are public domain (17 U.S.C. §105).

O\*NET content is used under [CC BY 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). How these figures are sourced and derived: https://nuecareer.com/careers/methodology

JSON representation of this page: https://nuecareer.com/api/v1/careers/biofuels-biodiesel-technology-and-product-development-manager