Plant Manager (Roanoke Rapids)

Job Overview

The Plant Manager is a key member of the leadership team and reports directly to President of Commercial at Myers Industries. This position is responsible for the safe, efficient, and profitable operation of Roanoke Rapids, NC manufacturing facility through the development of people, implementation of Lean Manufacturing principles, and rigorous execution of standardized processes. The Plant Manager leads all aspects of Safety, Quality, Delivery, Cost, and People performance while fostering a culture of accountability, continuous improvement, operational excellence, and employee engagement. This role is responsible for achieving plant financial objectives, improving operational performance through data-driven decision-making, and developing future leaders capable of sustaining long-term business growth. The Plant Manager serves as a visible leader on the production floor, driving problem-solving, reinforcing process discipline, eliminating waste, and ensuring the organization consistently meets customer expectations while supporting the growth and development of its employees. Other duties may be assigned or reassigned at any time.

Duties and Responsibilities

• Ensure that the health and safety of all employees remains the number one goal.
• Drive a zero-incident safety culture through proactive leadership, audits, corrective actions, and employee engagement.
• Build and develop a high-performing team capable of meeting the needs of the business, its customers, and its people while living the company values.
• Build and manage the annual operating budget aligned to the commercial forecast, strategic objectives, and profitability targets.
• Communicate business objectives, plans, performance, and expectations to all employees to maximize engagement and accountability.
• Lead value stream operations including current-state and future-state value stream mapping and execution of improvement plans.
• Implement and sustain Lean Manufacturing principles including standard work, visual management, waste elimination, and continuous improvement initiatives.
• Establish and reinforce a culture of process discipline, accountability, and operational excellence throughout the facility.
• Own and improve key performance indicators related to Safety, Quality, Delivery, Cost, Inventory, Productivity, OEE, and Lead Time.
• Ensure all business objectives are met by understanding key constraints, critical process flow, staffing, scheduling, and capacity requirements.
• Provide hands-on leadership while utilizing standardization, continuous improvement, and sharing of best practices to deliver best-in-class operational performance.
• Lead structured root cause analysis and problem-solving activities to eliminate recurring issues and improve performance.
• Build a team culture that recognizes achievement, rewards excellence, and encourages continuous improvement and professional growth.
• Develop and implement cross-training and succession planning programs that increase workforce flexibility and prepare future leaders.
• Partner with all functional areas to positively impact culture and achieve business objectives.
• Proactively manage new product introductions to ensure successful implementation within the value stream.
• Lead, coach, and develop direct and indirect reports including Production, Quality, Maintenance, Engineering, Planning, and other assigned functions.
• Champion employee involvement in continuous improvement activities and drive sustainable change throughout the organization.
• Other duties may be assigned.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

• Strong background in Lean Manufacturing, Continuous Improvement, Value Stream Mapping, Standard Work, and waste elimination.
• Experience planning, executing, and sustaining operational improvements.
• Ability to develop operational plans and effectively manage resources.
• Ability to analyze and interpret data and utilize KPI dashboards to drive performance.
• Knowledge of human resource principles, employee relations, and leadership development practices.
• Strong coaching and mentoring skills with the ability to develop employees to their full potential.
• Strong financial acumen including budgeting, cost management, and profitability improvement.
• Excellent written, verbal, presentation, and interpersonal communication skills.
• Ability to engage others, build trust, and create alignment across functions.
• Ability to create an equitable, inclusive, and cooperative work environment.
• Ability to make timely decisions using sound logic, data, and business judgment.
• Experience leading change, driving accountability, and implementing sustainable improvements.
• Strong organizational skills and a commitment to execution, follow-through, and process discipline.

Education and Experience

• Bachelor's Degree in Engineering, Operations Management, Business, Manufacturing, or related field preferred.
• Minimum 7-10 years of progressive manufacturing leadership experience preferred.
• Lean Manufacturing training required; Six Sigma Green Belt or Black Belt preferred.
• Demonstrated success implementing continuous improvement and operational excellence initiatives.
• Experience managing budgets, KPIs, workforce development, and plant performance improvement programs.
• Experience in rubber manufacturing or related process manufacturing environment preferred.

Work Conditions & Physical Requirements

The physical demands and work environment characteristics described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Work conditions are consistent with a manufacturing plant environment. The Plant Manager requires a moderate degree of physical fitness, as the role requires him/her to lift up to 35 lbs. This role also requires some standing and walking throughout the Quality Laboratory area as required. The Quality Supervisor must also be able to work near moving mechanical machinery, and must be able to work in an environment with high noise levels (hearing protection required in some areas).