What are the responsibilities and job description for the Manufacturing Operations Leader - Plastics position at AJ Augur Group, LLC - Plastics Search & Recruitment Experts?
My client is a privately held manufacturer of consumer and foodservice packaging products is seeking an experienced manufacturing leader to oversee two high-volume thermoforming operations within one of its largest production campuses.
This is a highly visible leadership role responsible for driving operational performance, employee engagement, safety, quality, continuous improvement, and cost management across two manufacturing departments operating in a 24/7 environment.
The successful candidate will lead approximately 250 employees through a team of production managers, supervisors, and frontline leaders while helping improve operational performance, accountability, employee retention, and overall plant culture.
This opportunity is ideal for a proven manufacturing leader who enjoys solving difficult operational challenges, developing teams, and driving measurable business results.
Responsibilities
▪️ Lead multiple high-volume manufacturing operations within a large production campus
▪️ Drive improvements in safety, quality, productivity, service, labor utilization, and cost performance
▪️ Develop and mentor production managers, supervisors, and frontline leadership teams
▪️ Improve OEE, throughput, efficiency, and operational performance
▪️ Lead continuous improvement and operational excellence initiatives
▪️ Utilize data and analytics to support decision making and problem solving
▪️ Develop action plans to address production, staffing, quality, and operational challenges
▪️ Establish accountability systems that sustain long-term improvements
▪️ Partner closely with engineering, maintenance, quality, supply chain, and operational excellence teams
▪️ Lead change management initiatives and support strategic manufacturing objectives
▪️ Participate in budgeting, workforce planning, and long-range operational planning
Qualifications
▪️ Experience leading large manufacturing operations in plastics, packaging, thermoforming, extrusion, converting, food manufacturing, paper, or other continuous process industries
▪️ Experience managing managers and leading through multiple layers of leadership
▪️ Proven success leading large-scale 24/7 manufacturing operations
▪️ Strong background in Lean Manufacturing, Continuous Improvement, Operational Excellence, Six Sigma, or similar systems
▪️ Demonstrated ability to improve productivity, quality, efficiency, employee engagement, and operational performance
▪️ Strong analytical, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills
▪️ Experience leading operational turnarounds or improving underperforming manufacturing operations is highly desired
▪️ Thermoforming, plastics packaging, or related manufacturing experience is strongly preferred
▪️ Bachelor's degree preferred
Leadership Profile
The ideal candidate is a servant leader who enjoys spending time on the manufacturing floor, developing people, building strong teams, and creating a culture of accountability and continuous improvement.
This individual must be able to balance strong operational discipline with the ability to engage employees at every level of the organization.
Compensation
▪️ Base salary
▪️ Annual performance bonus
▪️ Comprehensive benefits package
▪️ Full relocation assistance available
▪️ Significant long-term growth opportunities within a large manufacturing organization
If you have experience leading large manufacturing teams and enjoy improving operations, developing people, and driving measurable results, we would welcome a confidential conversation.