Diffractive optical elements (DOEs) enable novel high performance and process-tailored scanning strategies for galvanometer-based scan heads. Here we present several such concepts integrating DOEs with laser scanners and the respective application use cases. Beam shaping DOEs providing a homogeneous fluence over a custom defined profile, such as a rectangular Top-Hat, enable increased process quality in Laser-Induced Forward Transfer (LIFT) compared to the Gaussian beam of the laser source. We show that aberrations which occur over the necessary large wafer-sized image field can be eliminated through the use of a synchronous XY-stage motion. Another application that benefits from the use of DOEs is laser drilling. Drilling in display and electronics manufacturing demands high throughput that can only be achieved through the use of beam splitting DOEs for parallel processing. To this end, the joint MULTISCAN project is developing a variable multi-beam tool capable of scanning and switching each individual beamlet for increased control.