Plant Manager

RESPONSIBILITIES

A leading global provider of advanced engineered solutions for the aerospace and transportation industries. The company’s primary businesses focus on jet engine components, aerospace fastening systems, and titanium structural parts necessary for mission-critical performance and efficiency in aerospace and defense applications, as well as forged wheels for commercial transportation. The company is transforming the next phase of more fuel-efficient, quieter aerospace engines and sustainable ground transportation.

The Plant Manager position is responsible for providing leadership to and managing all business operations of Plant 5 in Whitehall, MI.

Job Responsibilities

• Maintains high ethics and values in the workplace.
• Ensures compliance with all EHS rules required for the operation.
• Maintains Employee Engagement at high levels, including through regular all-employee meetings and communications.
• Partners with the Ti-Cast/HIP Director of Operations to develop and execute strategic plans, through the use of Hoshin or other planning tools.
• Partners with Ti-Cast/HIP Director of Operations to support the development of new market opportunities from proposal through market realization.
• Coordinates hiring/headcount plans with the Campus HR team.
• Coordinates with the Campus EHS team to continuously reduce workplace risks and environmental impacts.
• Coordinates with the Ti-Cast/HIP Finance team in achieving Ti-Cast/HIP P&L targets.
• Provides direct oversight of Engineering, Manufacturing, Quality Control, and Maintenance functions of the operation, assuming lead responsibility for quality, on-time delivery, productivity, continuous improvement, and cost improvement.
• Participates in the annual planning process for Ti-Cast/HIP and in monthly forecast reviews for Plant 5.
• Prepares for and directs monthly business reviews of the operation with Senior Management teams.
• Develops an awareness for the customer’s product and service needs and maintains or enhances customer relations.
• Establishes criteria to measure short- and long-term growth and “external gross profit” and regularly evaluates results against these performance standards.
• Takes action to correct unsatisfactory conditions that may arise in any phase of the business operation and directs necessary actions to accomplish forecasted objectives.
• Provides clear leadership on issues related to asset management, including management of inventory levels and OEE of critical assets within targets.
• Analyzes production capacity against demand projections to identify bottlenecks and proactively resolves them through utilization of Lean Concepts, procurement of additional assets, or both.
• Drives the development of talent throughout the team and ensures viable succession plans for key team members.

Job Roles

• Business minded: Owns P&L with an entrepreneurial mindset; understands internal and external customers and products, anticipating needs with a future orientation; provides vision and guidance toward enterprise goals.
• Enterprise and systems perspective: Understands the role of the plant as part of a larger system both within the segment and organization; considers the relationship between the business for which they are responsible and other components within the matrix, deferring where enterprise needs supersede individual plant needs to champion the “win together” strategy; translates corporate and segment action to plant level; works against natural silos and gains perspectives from other aspects of the enterprise.
• Risk and change adept: Recognizes internal and external risk factors and plans accordingly where possible; initiates change while remaining responsive to factors outside prediction; proactive in the service of continuous improvement.
• Culture curator: Sets the tone for work environment, expectations, and accountability within the plant; leader by example; celebrates successes and creates an environment of performance; manages the tension of 24/7 operation and time away from work; does not allow excuses or busy nature of work to prevent personal connection or recognition; prioritizes safety and quality.
• Team facilitator: Enables interactions between sub-teams and senior staff; scales systems and empowers others to ensure continuation of performance in his/her absence.
• Talent advocate: Coaches, mentors, and creates experiences to develop talent from within the plant and on the broader campus, within segment and overall enterprise; prioritizes investment in people as the best means to achieving meaningful and measurable outcomes; grows pool of potential successors.
• 360-degree communication and relationship: Understands how to message and contribute up, across, and down the chain of command and actively cultivates relationships with the bargaining unit, customers, and other key stakeholders; crafts communication and relates based on audience; understands “why” and communicates that as part of a larger consistent narrative vision for the overall business and plant.
• Influence and empowering: Trusts direct reports to interpret and execute throughout the plant and supports local-level decision making and accountability; becomes involved in necessary ways but does so judiciously, maintaining a strategic perspective; works closely with peers and segment VP to craft and execute strategy as an advocate; manages perceptions and bridges gaps between other stakeholders; collaborates with stakeholders to remove roadblocks.
• Spirit of inquiry: Maintains a posture of curiosity and consultative questioning; knows the business well enough to identify the right stakeholders and the right questions to diagnose or inform; provides accountability through data rigor and additional inquiry.
• Synthesis: Manages copious data points and translates them for broader communication, customizing to specific situations or workgroups throughout the plant; communicates forecasts to suppliers; creates executive summaries in collaboration with other senior leaders.
• Customer coordination: Responds directly to customer inquiries, delegating or arranging as required; seeks customer input and balances the needs of a variety of external customers to ensure delivery and quality; interfaces with customer and internal stakeholders (NPI, etc.) to anticipate future needs, strategizing accordingly.

QUALIFICATIONS

Basic Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in an Engineering, Manufacturing, or Business discipline from an accredited institution.
• Minimum 10 years of manufacturing experience; at least 7 years within a leadership capacity.
• Experience must include financial P&L, leading manufacturing excellence, customer management, and driving improvements through the implementation of lean manufacturing principles.
• Employees must be legally authorized to work in the United States. Verification of employment eligibility will be required at the time of hire. Visa sponsorship is not available for this position.

Preferred Qualifications:

The successful candidate will have the following:

• Experience driving improvement through the implementation of lean manufacturing principles, total quality practices, six sigma.
• Strong leadership skills that create an engaged employee environment.
• Strong customer management skills.
• Ability to drive improvement through the implementation of lean manufacturing principles, six sigma.
• Demonstrated results in leading manufacturing excellence.
• Strong technical understanding of manufacturing processes.
• Strong analytical, communication, interpersonal, organizational, and negotiation skills.
• Strong financial literacy.