Senior Manager-Production Operations

Job-ID: 107418Category: ProductionLocation: Palatine, IL, United StatesWorkplace: On-siteSchedule: Full time, 1Posted: 2026-10-30As an S&C Electric team member, you’ll work on projects that have real-world impact. You’ll help transform the grid for resilient and reliable power worldwide. S&C has more than a 100-year history of innovation and has been 100% employee-owned since 2012. We continue this legacy as a trusted, forward-thinking leader in the electrical industry. You will advance a safer, more reliable, and more resilient electrical grid. Our products help the grid adapt to severe weather and transition to clean energy. We’re big enough to be a respected industry leader but small enough for you to impact our company directly. Our commitment gives you opportunities to impact on and off the job positively. Join S&C to make an impact on tomorrow’s energy challenges and become an employee-owner.Hours•8:00 am – 5:00 pm (Mon-Fri) On Site Palatine, ILCompensationAt S&C, we are dedicated to providing competitive and equitable compensation for all our team members, and we are committed to transparency in our pay practices. The estimated annual base salary range for this position is $154,968- $205,332.60. Individual pay within this salary range is determined by several compensable factors, including performance, knowledge, job-related skills and experience, and relevant education or training. This role is also eligible for S&C’s annual incentive plan (AIP), subject to eligibility criteria.Join Our Team as a Senior Manager – Productions Operations!The Senior Manager – Production Operations is responsible for planning, overseeing, and managing the operations and production processes for the department, leading a team of Managers, Assistant Managers, and Supervisors to achieve strategic Objectives and Key Results (OKRs), and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) in safety, quality, delivery, and cost (SQDC). The Senior Manager – Production Operations focuses on strategic and tactical operations planning with a mid-term focus, contributing towards greater functional strategies, directing the smooth operations of multiple departments, driving strategic problem-solving and continuous improvement initiatives, reporting out to executive leadership on results, and making strategic adjustments and countermeasures when targets are missed.Key Responsibilities:• Health & Safety Compliance: Drive a safety-first culture, ensuring leaders understand and enforce safety rules. Ensure that health & safety is considered in all departmental plans in order to maintain and promote a safety-conscious manufacturing environment and ensure compliance with regulatory requirements and industry standards related to production operations.• Leadership & People Management: Lead, inspire, and develop a high-performing team. Role model appropriate and professional workplace behaviors, address/mediate conflicts to restore harmony, and support a positive, healthy, and inclusive workplace culture in accordance with S&C's mission, vision, values, and guiding principles. Manage departmental administrative team member processes, including but not limited to recruitment, induction, vacation management, performance reviews, performance improvement plans, and workforce/succession planning. Proactively establish, monitor, and hold team members accountable to clear responsibilities and accountabilities; provide ongoing performance feedback, both positive and developmental; address performance gaps in a timely manner; recognize and reward achievements and initiate decisions for corrective actions and terminations where required. Foster a culture that supports the growth and development of team members and proactively train, mentor, and coach team members.• Strategy Implementation: Cascade strategies to develop mid-term tactical and operational plans for the function, in line with the company’s overall business objectives, including automation, insourcing, and unattended machining. Oversee a leadership team that directs the day-to-day operations of activities within the department and span of control, ensuring the timely and cost-effective delivery of outputs to KPIs. Work with senior leaders to recommend and implement strategic adjustments to operational plans in order to meet OKRs and KPIs.• Production Planning & Operations: Lead strategic production planning initiatives, collaborating with cross-functional teams to develop a mid-term plan for the department and initiate strategies that contribute to long-term production planning. Work with leaders to optimize production schedules, identify bottlenecks, and determine capacity plans and processing methods. Evaluate machine resources to ensure continued production and minimal downtime. Establish a balance between increased productivity and reduced costs of manufacturing operations. Set mid-term productivity goals and analyze report-outs from Managers.• Lean Performance Systems: Recommend and implement goals for departmental performance improvement, supporting leaders as they identify and implement process improvements to enhance production efficiency, reduce costs, and increase overall operational effectiveness. Collaborate with other leaders to formulate high-level solutions and develop plans for how to implement improvements throughout multi-faceted functions. Serve as a change agent by influencing, communicating, and institutionalizing a culture of continuous improvement, simplification, standard work, process improvement, and lean principles.• Quality Management: Oversee the implementation of broad quality control programs, ensuring leaders fully understand quality issues and their corresponding solutions. Discuss and understand high-level, multi-faceted quality issues and help leaders formulate resolutions. Monitor and guide leaders responsible for the department’s communication of corrective action plans, resolutions, and quality results.• Reporting: Analyzes reports and reviews provided by first-line supervisors. Communicates regularly with upper management regarding problems impacting production. Reports issues regarding production, quality, maintenance, or personnel to senior and executive leadership.• Budget Management: Develop and manage the function’s budget, ensuring accuracy and appropriate allocation of resources to maximize ROI and the achievement of larger functional strategies and objectives. Approve expenditures for the achievement of operational goals and work with senior leaders to identify investment opportunities for gains towards mid-term goals.• Compliance: Understand and comply with all applicable Company policies and rules.• Maintain regular and punctual attendance.• Attend in-person or virtual meetings as requested or required.• Communicate effectively and respectfully with others.• Drive a car or other vehicle.• Other responsibilities as assigned.What you’ll need to succeed:Required • Bachelor’s degree in a technical discipline such as Engineering, or a related field.• Beliefs in, and alignment with, S&C Guiding Principles and Core Values• 10+ years of manufacturing experience in an industrial metals fabrication environment, including advanced CNC machining, welding, laser cutting, forming, punching, stamping and related finishing operations. • 5+ years of supervisory or management experience in a fabrication environment leading hourly and salaried employees. • Leadership experience in workforce planning, scheduling, and staffing, employee development, coaching, and performance management. Experience managing multiple shifts is preferred.• Knowledge of precision machining processes and practices within a high mix, low-to-medium volume environment.• Demonstrated track record of lean manufacturing leadership, sustained improvements, and KPI attainment.• Great leadership skills within a multi-level manufacturing environment, with an ability to lead, guide, motivate, and delegate to deliver results.• Sound critical thinking, organizational, planning, and project management skills, and creative problem-solving when obstacles arise.• Great interpersonal skills to establish meaningful relationships built on mutual trust and respect, navigate and resolve conflict, moderate behaviors, and foster collaborative working relationships amongst a diverse audience.• Excellent communication skills, (written, verbal, listening, and presentation) ability to liaise with internal and external stakeholders at all levels, from leadership to support staff, and present influentially to achieve buy-in from executives, managers, and team members.• Sound analytical skills with the ability to use and analyze data to drive informed decisions, problem-solve difficult issues, and leverage data and learnings to drive continuous improvement.• Proven success partnering across teams, creating effective partnerships at all levels, and collaborating at an operational level.• Adapts to change and different ways of doing things quickly and positively and finds ways to get things accomplished, even when faced with challenges. • Proficient computer skills, including Microsoft Office Suite (Excel, Word, Outlook) and preferably, Oracle.Preferred• Master’s degree in Operations Management, Engineering, Business Administration, or a related field.• Six Sigma Certification(s).• Certified Lean Six Sigma (CLSS).• Certified Manager of Quality/Organizational Excellence (CMQ/OE).S&C Electric is committed to equal-opportunity employment. All employees and applicants will be considered without regard to age, color, disability, gender, national origin, race, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, protected veteran status, or any other classification protected by federal, state, or local law. If you are an individual with a disability and need an accommodation to complete the application, please email us at View email address on click.appcast.io. No fixed deadline#LI-KD1About the companyIn 1909, S&C Electric Company transformed the delivery of safe, reliable electricity with the invention of the Liquid Power Fuse. Today, as the world faces extreme weather events and the demand for electricity grows, S&C continues to innovate and advance the electrical grid, ensuring reliable and resilient power for homes, communities, and critical infrastructure around the world.With a diverse, global workforce and core values around integrity, safety, and quality, S&C is a trusted industry leader and top workplace that offers meaningful careers to more than 3,500 team members. As a people-first organization, S&C is committed to fostering an inclusive and collaborative workplace where team members advance their careers through robust talent-development programs and involved leadership. S&C’s deeply rooted belief diversity fosters greater creativity, innovation, and success guides the company to advance and sustain a diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplace culture. S&C provides a comprehensive and competitive benefit package that includes the following (eligibility requirements apply):Health and Welfare Benefits: Medical & Prescription, Dental, Vision, Health Care and Dependent Care Flexible Spending Accounts, , Health Savings Account (HSA), Group Life Insurance, optional Supplemental Life and AD&D Insurance, Wellbeing Resources including Employee Assistance Program and Family Forming Benefits (i.e., Adoption and Fertility support)Leave Benefits: Vacation Time, Sick Time, Paid Holidays and Company Shutdown days, Short-Term Disability, Long-Term Disability, Other Leaves, Paid Parental Time and Military LeaveRetirement Benefits: 401(k) Retirement Savings and Employee Stock Ownership Plan (KSOP) offering traditional and Roth 401(k) options and an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) component; KSOP participants can receive annual ESOP company contributions of over 11% of eligible earnings (3% Core, up to 3.5% Match, Variable Periodic).