Director of Manufacturing Operations

The Opportunity Visimax Technologies is an established, family-owned manufacturer of precision thin-film optical coatings and photonics components serving the aerospace, defense, medical, and advanced industrial markets. With revenue on track to grow more than 35% in 2026 and another 35% forecast for 2027, we are investing in dedicated operational leadership to support our next stage of growth. We are seeking an exceptional, hands‑on manufacturing leader who has successfully developed teams, transformed operations, and built organizations capable of sustained growth. You’ll have the opportunity to lead manufacturing operations at our 22‑person company, strengthen our culture of excellence, and build the people and systems needed to scale. This is an opportunity to make a lasting impact at a successful, rapidly growing company where your leadership will directly shape our future. The Role You will lead our manufacturing operations, with responsibility for production, scheduling, production planning, capacity management, staffing, and operational performance. Working closely with the CEO, VP Technology, and CFO, you’ll have the authority and support to build a high‑performing manufacturing organization. This is a hands‑on leadership role. You’ll spend time on the production floor, develop our people, solve problems alongside the team, and implement the systems and processes needed to support growth. Your primary responsibility is to build an organization that consistently delivers exceptional quality, reliable delivery, and outstanding customer service. This includes implementing standardized processes and work instructions, improving ERP discipline, and establishing effective management routines grounded in reliable operational data. You will use Lean manufacturing and continuous improvement principles to improve throughput, reduce variability, and eliminate recurring problems. Our customers operate in industries where process control, traceability, documentation, and quality are critical. You will strengthen our existing ISO 9001 quality management system and help prepare the organization for more demanding customer requirements and quality standards, including AS9100. Visimax’s CEO is a people‑first leader committed to cultivating a culture of excellence. We believe exceptional performance comes from developing capable people, setting clear expectations, providing the right tools, and creating an environment of trust and accountability. We are looking for someone who shares this philosophy and has demonstrated the ability to lead meaningful organizational change while bringing people along. You will have clear authority over production scheduling, capacity planning, and operational priorities. You will work in close partnership with the VP Technology, who leads equipment reliability, maintenance, and technical infrastructure. What We’re Looking For Above all, we want someone who has done this before. You have successfully led a manufacturing organization through significant growth or transformation, ideally in a small to mid‑sized business. You know how to develop people, establish accountability, and build practical management systems that improve performance. You’re equally comfortable setting strategic direction and rolling up your sleeves to solve problems on the production floor. You lead with confidence and humility, earn the trust of employees, and can point to measurable operational improvements that you personally led. The Ideal Candidate Brings Proven people leadership: A demonstrated record of developing employees, building effective teams, strengthening frontline leadership, and leading organizational change while maintaining a positive, high-performance culture. Manufacturing transformation experience: Substantial manufacturing leadership experience, including responsibility for a multi‑shift operation and a successful track record of scaling or transforming manufacturing operations. Operational systems expertise: Hands‑on success implementing production planning, ERP discipline, standardized work, performance management systems, and continuous improvement practices. Precision manufacturing experience: Experience in technically demanding manufacturing environments such as aerospace, defense, semiconductor equipment, medical devices, optics, or precision machining. Quality and process discipline: Strong knowledge of quality management systems, process control, traceability, root‑cause analysis, and corrective action. Experience with AS9100 is particularly valuable. Business and financial judgment: The ability to connect operational decisions to productivity, profitability, customer satisfaction, and sustainable growth. Experience in optical coatings is welcome but not required. We place greater value on exceptional people leadership, proven manufacturing transformation experience, and the ability to build scalable operations. What Success Looks Like In your first 90 days, you will have developed a thorough understanding of our operation, earned the trust of the team, and established dependable, data‑driven production planning and management routines. You will assess organizational capabilities, clarify responsibilities and expectations, use existing performance metrics to identify operational constraints, and develop a prioritized roadmap for transformation. Within your first year, we expect meaningful improvements in team capability, organizational accountability, production predictability, on‑time delivery, and quality performance. You will have developed stronger frontline leadership and established practical management routines that enable the operation to consistently meet its commitments without relying on individual heroics. Over the longer term, your success will be measured by the manufacturing organization’s ability to support substantial growth while maintaining exceptional quality, developing its people, and continuously improving operational performance. Compensation And Benefits We offer a competitive base salary of $130,000–$160,000, commensurate with experience, plus an annual performance‑based bonus tied to operational and business results. health insurance a 401(k) relocation assistance for the right candidate This position offers meaningful operational authority, direct access to the CEO, and the opportunity to help shape the future of a growing precision manufacturing company. The role is based on‑site in Twinsburg, Ohio. Candidates must meet U.S. person requirements under ITAR. Visimax Technologies is an equal opportunity employer. #J-18808-Ljbffr