Plant Operations Manager

Plant Operations Manager | Lean Manufacturing Growing manufacturer is seeking a Plant Operations Manager to lead manufacturing performance within a highly automated, 24/7 production environment. This is a newly created leadership position reporting directly to the Vice President of Manufacturing. The role will lead Production Supervisors and approximately 120 production employees while driving a culture built around Lean Manufacturing, visual management, accountability, and continuous improvement. This is an excellent opportunity for a progressive manufacturing leader who enjoys being close to the operation, developing frontline leadership, and using data and Lean methodologies to produce measurable improvements. Why Consider This Opportunity? Newly created position with significant visibility across the organization Direct reporting relationship to the VP of Manufacturing Opportunity to influence how Lean and continuous improvement are executed throughout production Modern manufacturing environment with significant investment in equipment, automation, and technology Lead an established supervisory organization within a 24/7 operation Career progression into broader plant and manufacturing leadership opportunities What You'll Lead Provide leadership, coaching, and accountability to Production Supervisors across a multi-shift manufacturing operation Establish and maintain a strong visual factory environment, giving employees and leaders clear visibility into performance, priorities, problems, and corrective actions Drive measurable improvements in safety, quality, productivity, OEE, scrap, downtime, labor utilization, and manufacturing efficiency Use Pareto analysis, 5 Whys, Root Cause Analysis, Kaizen, TPM, and other Lean methodologies to identify recurring issues and implement sustainable corrective actions Translate manufacturing data into actionable priorities rather than simply reporting KPIs Develop structured problem-solving and continuous improvement capabilities throughout the production leadership team Partner with Engineering, Quality, Maintenance, Planning, and Supply Chain to eliminate manufacturing constraints and improve overall performance Strengthen shift-to-shift communication, standard work, accountability, and execution Develop Production Supervisors and identify opportunities to strengthen the manufacturing leadership pipeline Promote a highly engaged culture centered on safety, teamwork, accountability, and continuous improvement What We're Looking For 7+ years of progressive manufacturing experience with demonstrated advancement into increasing levels of leadership responsibility Experience directly managing Production Supervisors or other frontline manufacturing leaders Proven success leading manufacturing operations in a high-volume, multi-shift environment Strong hands-on knowledge of Lean Manufacturing and structured continuous improvement Demonstrated examples of improving manufacturing performance through Lean tools and data analysis Experience with visual management/visual factory, Pareto charts, 5 Whys, Root Cause Analysis, corrective actions, and KPI management Ability to identify manufacturing problems, determine root causes, implement countermeasures, and sustain improvements Bachelor's degree preferred; equivalent manufacturing leadership experience will be considered Highly Preferred Lean, Six Sigma, or Continuous Improvement certification Experience implementing or strengthening a Lean manufacturing culture Knowledge of TPM, Kaizen, Standard Work, Gemba, OEE, Theory of Constraints, or similar methodologies Experience in plastics, extrusion, packaging, automotive, food manufacturing, converting, chemicals, or other high-volume/continuous-process manufacturing environments Career history demonstrating stability, increasing responsibility, and leadership progression Important Scope of the RoleThis position is focused on manufacturing operations and operational excellence rather than financial ownership of the facility. Full plant P&L responsibility is not required. Candidates currently working as Production Managers, Manufacturing Managers, Operations Managers, Plant Operations Managers, Assistant Plant Managers, or Plant Managers whose strengths are centered on manufacturing execution and Lean leadership are encouraged to apply.