Director, Manufacturing Operations (Sr Plant Manager)

THE COMPANY

We have been retained by a client who is a private equity-owned global design, engineering and manufacturing company that sells product solutions to Commercial and consumer products industries. They leverage their product portfolio into adjacent markets and after-sales channels. The company was founded over 100 years ago in Illinois and employs over 5,000 employees in 14 countries, has 3 engineering centers, and 12 manufacturing locations.

THE POSITION

This global leader manufacturing components for multiple sectors, seeks a Senior Plant Manager for a plant with two buildings in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico (Tamaulipas) with over 700 employees. The new Sr Plant Manager will be tasked with turning around some operational metrics, motivating and developing a high performing team, and developing more robust processes and procedures in a complex low volume and high mix  and also high volume – low mix labor intensive plant whcih also includes metal stamping and plastic injection molding.  This position reports to the Sr. Director of Operations.

Roles & Responsibilities:

• Responsible for operations for one plant with two buldings.
• Full responsibility and ownership of plant(s) P&L.
• Manages Operations functions including Production, Quality and Maintenance, Planning, SCM, Program Management, Logistics, EHS, Manufacturing Engineering, etc.
• Responsible for operational efficiency, lean, kaizen optimization, operational improvements.
• Lean manufacturing, Capex, shop floor lay-outs, installation, and commissioning of new lines.
• Responsible for driving operations projects, cost-saving targets, resource optimization.
• Establishes manufacturing budgets, long-range objectives, and criteria for monitoring progress and measuring success of manufacturing processes.
• Administers the operations policies through subordinates and managers.
• Works closely with all managers and supervisors to formulate strategies that satisfy the requirements of the customers/clients.
• Selects, develops, and evaluates personnel to ensure the efficient operation of the function.
• Coordinates with sales departments to determine pricing, deliveries, customer complaints, etc.
• Support NPI and Engineering development.
• Need to work closely with other functions such as Sales, Engineering, Product Development.

THE CANDIDATE

Experience and Qualifications:

• BS in Engineering or an Industrial-related degree.
• +10 years of experience in a similar position (i.e., Plant Manager, Director of Operations, Director of Manufacturing, etc.) managing manual assembly and semi-automated assembly processes, preferably experienced with both low volume and high mix and high volume and low mix  manufacturing environment.
• Proven track record of successfully leading large-scale manufacturing operations (700+ employees), driving continuous improvement initiatives, and achieving operational excellence.
• Technical knowledge in areas such as manufacturing, industrial engineering, production and inventory planning and quality control.
• Experience moving production lines and/or transferring a process.
• Experience interfacing with the customer on production related questions.
• Administrative knowledge and experience in costing, budgeting, forecasting, capital projects, wage and salary administration, and occupational health and safety regulations.
• Solid understanding of lean manufacturing principles, Six Sigma methodologies, and other continuous improvement tools and techniques.
• Solid understanding and demonstrated experience using S&OP principles and processes.
• Fully Bilingual – English and Spanish
• Availability to relocate to Nuevo Laredo, Mexico (with company support)

Skills and Abilities:

• Strong leadership skills with the ability to inspire and motivate teams, foster a culture of accountability, collaboration and innovation.
• The ability to drive results in a fast-paced environment.
• Strong communication, interpersonal, and relationship-building skills with the ability to effectively interact with stakeholders at all levels of the organization.
• High integrity