Director of Manufacturing Operations
Established Metal Manufacturer
On-Site | Full-Time | Leadership Role
About the Opportunity
Our client is a multi-generational, family-owned metal plating and finishing company with over 50 years of operating history. Known for reliability, technical capability, and long-standing customer partnerships, this organization serves electrical and industrial manufacturing clients in a complex, 24/7 production environment.
The business has built a reputation on trust, quality, and consistency. Now, it is entering its next phase of evolution.
We are seeking a Director of Manufacturing Operations to stabilize, professionalize, and re-accelerate performance — while preserving the culture and customer loyalty that has defined the company for decades.
This is not just a plant leadership role. It is an opportunity to run and shape a business with full ownership mindset — aligning people, process, and profitability in a legacy manufacturing environment.
The Role
The Director of Manufacturing Operations will serve as the senior operational leader of the facility, overseeing production, workforce management, financial performance, and customer execution.
This leader will bring structure, accountability, and commercial discipline while earning the trust of a tenured, close-knit team.
Success in this role means:
- Improving throughput and lead times
- Strengthening operational reliability
- Building a healthy, accountable culture
- Enhancing customer confidence and experience
Key Responsibilities:
Operational & Production Leadership
- Lead 24/7 plating operations across multiple production lines (rack, barrel, high-mix jobs)
- Improve throughput, reduce lead times, and increase scheduling clarity
- Drive equipment uptime through preventative maintenance and ownership clarity
- Improve coordination between quoting, scheduling, production, and customer communication
- Maintain strict quality, safety, and compliance standards
Financial & Commercial Accountability
- Own plant-level P&L performance
- Diagnose job-level profitability by customer, line, and job type
- Implement pricing discipline and surcharge mechanisms aligned with raw material volatility
- Evaluate labor efficiency, overtime usage, and workforce strategy
- Introduce clear financial dashboards connecting production metrics to margin performance
- Partner with ownership on working capital and capital allocation decisions
Culture & Leadership
- Clarify roles, decision rights, and accountability across teams
- Build trust while setting firm expectations
- Create visible operational wins and improve morale
- Address performance issues respectfully but decisively
- Stabilize and retain key technical and leadership personnel
- Lead through influence — earning buy-in before driving change
What We’re Looking For:
Required Experience
- Senior operations leadership experience in manufacturing or process-driven environments
- Experience in metal-based, industrial, chemical, or production-heavy settings
- Proven success stabilizing or turning around underperforming operations
- Experience managing hourly, multi-shift workforces
- Strong P&L ownership and cost management background
- Demonstrated ability to balance people leadership with operational accountability
Preferred Background
- Metal finishing, plating, or surface treatment
- Metal stamping, machining, fabrication, or industrial coatings
- Privately held or family-owned manufacturing businesses
- Environments with cost volatility and high customer responsiveness demands
Core Traits
- Calm, confident authority
- Strong listener who processes complexity before acting
- Systems thinker who simplifies chaos into priorities
- Builder of trust and culture
- Commercially intuitive and customer-centric
- Comfortable making tough decisions with empathy
Why This Role Is Compelling
- Join a stable, 50+ year-old, family-owned manufacturer
- Lead a respected operation with deep customer loyalty
- High visibility and influence with ownership
- Opportunity to shape the next chapter of the business
- True operational ownership — not just maintenance leadership
- Strong long-term growth potential
Compensation & Benefits
- Competitive base salary $100-$135k (commensurate with experience)
- Performance-based incentive structure
- Comprehensive benefits package
- Health, dental, vision coverage
- Retirement plan
- Paid time off
- Long-term leadership opportunity within a stable organization
