Director of Operations

Director of Manufacturing Operations

Confidential Pennsylvania, United States (On-site)

Location: Northeastern Pennsylvania

Work Arrangement: On-site

Compensation: $165,000–$180,000 base salary, with flexibility for an exceptional candidate

The Opportunity

A well-established manufacturing organization in Northeastern Pennsylvania is seeking an experienced Director of Manufacturing Operations to lead day-to-day manufacturing operations and help shape the next phase of the facility’s growth and development.

This is a highly visible leadership position for a manufacturing leader who combines strong operational expertise with exceptional people leadership. The successful candidate will have meaningful autonomy to lead the operation, strengthen the management team, develop talent, improve accountability, and build a high-performing plant culture.

This opportunity is best suited for someone who wants to build and improve an organization, not simply maintain the status quo.

Key Responsibilities

· Lead day-to-day manufacturing operations and overall plant execution.

· Drive strong performance in production, delivery, labor productivity, quality, safety, cost, and equipment reliability.

· Build a fair, consistent, accountable, and team-oriented workplace culture.

· Develop a strong supervisory and frontline leadership organization.

· Coach and develop internal talent while identifying areas where additional capabilities are needed.

· Establish stronger succession planning, cross-training, and workforce development practices.

· Strengthen preventive maintenance, equipment reliability, and operational discipline.

· Oversee manufacturing, maintenance, warehouse/shipping, facilities, and plant workforce activities.

· Manage staffing levels, overtime, shift structures, and workforce deployment.

· Participate in budgeting and manage operating performance against established plans and KPIs.

· Challenge legacy processes and implement practical improvements where better approaches exist.

· Partner effectively with HR, quality, safety, planning, and other functional leaders.

· Support continuous-improvement, capital, and automation initiatives.

· Maintain a visible leadership presence on the plant floor and respond with urgency when operational issues arise.

What We’re Looking For

The ideal candidate is a proven manufacturing leader with demonstrated success leading both operations and people.

Strong candidates will bring:

· Significant manufacturing leadership experience.

· Experience directly leading hourly manufacturing teams and frontline supervisors.

· Demonstrated success building strong teams and improving organizational culture.

· Multi-shift manufacturing experience.

· Strong understanding of plant KPIs, labor productivity, cost, quality, safety, and operational performance.

· Experience developing supervisors and creating succession and cross-training strategies.

· Experience strengthening maintenance and equipment reliability.

· Financial acumen, including experience with operating budgets and performance against plan.

· A continuous-improvement mindset and experience with Lean, OEE, visual management, root-cause analysis, or similar methodologies.

· The judgment and confidence to make difficult decisions when necessary.

Experience leading organizational change, a turnaround, or a manufacturing operation through a period of significant transformation is highly valued.

A bachelor’s degree in engineering, operations, business, or a related discipline is welcomed but not required . Demonstrated manufacturing leadership, judgment, emotional intelligence, and results are more important than formal educational credentials.

Leadership Style

We are looking for a leader who is:

· Fair, consistent, and highly accountable.

· Credible with both hourly employees and management.

· Visible and engaged on the plant floor.

· Direct and comfortable addressing difficult issues.

· Emotionally intelligent and an effective communicator.

· Decisive without being authoritarian.

· Collaborative, low-ego, and solutions-oriented.

· Comfortable challenging established practices when improvement is needed.

· Able to operate independently with significant autonomy.

· Focused on developing people rather than simply managing processes.

Schedule & Location

This is a fully on-site leadership role in Northeastern Pennsylvania . The position is primarily first shift; however, the Plant Manager must be willing to be present during off-shifts, weekends, early mornings, or urgent operating situations when necessary.

Candidates should live within reasonable commuting distance of the facility or be willing to relocate. Relocation assistance is available for the right candidate.

Compensation

The anticipated base salary range is $165,000–$180,000 , with additional flexibility for an exceptional candidate.

Confidential Search

This search is being conducted confidentially. Additional information regarding the organization and opportunity will be shared with qualified candidates at the appropriate stage of the process.