What are the responsibilities and job description for the Manufacturing Operations Manager position at Evolve HR Solutions?
Lead the Transformation. Build the Culture. Drive the Results.
Location: Skokie, IL
Our client is a respected industrial manufacturer serving critical infrastructure and industrial markets. They are seeking a Manufacturing Operations Manager (Value Stream Manager) to lead a key value stream and help drive the next phase of operational excellence.
This is not a maintenance role.
This is an opportunity for a hands-on manufacturing leader to step into a highly visible position and help shape the future of a growing operation. You'll inherit a solid team, a supportive leadership structure, and the opportunity to build a culture centered on accountability, continuous improvement, and operational performance.
The organization is at an important point in its evolution. Leadership has invested heavily in building a stronger manufacturing foundation and is now seeking a leader to elevate performance, establish standards, and foster a true culture of continuous improvement across the operation.
You'll partner closely with the Operations Manager and lead production, planning, supply chain coordination, and shop-floor execution to improve productivity, capacity utilization, delivery performance, and overall operational effectiveness.
What You'll Be Responsible For
- Leading daily manufacturing operations across the assembly value stream
- Developing supervisors and front-line leaders
- Driving safety, quality, delivery, and productivity performance
- Improving labor utilization and capacity efficiency
- Establishing standard work and visual management systems
- Driving Lean Manufacturing initiatives, including 5S, SMED, flow improvements, waste reduction, and problem-solving activities
- Partnering with Supply Chain and Planning to improve execution and throughput
- Using data and KPIs to drive decision-making and accountability
- Building a culture where continuous improvement becomes part of how the business operates every day
We're looking for a manufacturing leader who is comfortable on the shop floor, who can bring:
- 5 years of manufacturing leadership experience
- Experience leading production teams through change and improvement initiatives
- Strong understanding of Lean Manufacturing principles and practical application
- Experience with capacity planning, labor utilization, throughput improvement, and operational metrics
- CNC machining, precision manufacturing, assembly, or industrial manufacturing experience
- Ability to coach, mentor, and develop leaders and front-line teams
- Strong analytical and problem-solving capabilities
- Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Operations, Supply Chain, or related field preferred
Lean certifications are welcome, but practical leadership experience and demonstrated results are far more important than certificates.
You will be successful if you deliver the following in your first year:
- Stabilized operations and established clear performance expectations
- Built trust with production teams and peers
- Implemented meaningful standard work and KPI management processes
- Identified and executed several high-impact operational improvement initiatives
- Helped create a stronger culture of ownership, accountability, and continuous improvement
This role could be an excellent fit for leaders coming from organizations known for operational excellence.
If you're the type of leader who enjoys solving problems, coaching teams, improving processes, and seeing the direct impact of your work on the factory floor, we'd like to talk with you.