Plant Manager

We are partnering with a well-established manufacturing organization to identify a Plant Manager to lead operations at a growing West Michigan manufacturing facility. This leader will oversee approximately 150 production and office employees and will have broad responsibility for plant performance, people leadership, operational execution, and continuous improvement.

This is an opportunity for a hands-on, strategic operations leader who enjoys developing teams, improving processes, and driving measurable results. The Plant Manager will work closely with cross-functional leaders to ensure the facility operates safely, efficiently, and profitably while consistently meeting customer expectations.

• Provide overall leadership for plant operations, including production, quality, maintenance, materials, shipping/receiving, and production planning.
• Lead and develop a team of approximately 150 production and office employees, creating a culture of accountability, collaboration, continuous improvement, and high performance.
• Establish and execute operational strategies that support business growth, profitability, customer satisfaction, and long-term plant performance.
• Drive continuous improvement and Lean manufacturing initiatives throughout the facility, identifying opportunities to improve productivity, reduce costs, shorten lead times, and improve quality.
• Establish and monitor key performance metrics to ensure the plant consistently achieves daily, monthly, quarterly, and annual objectives.
• Partner with Finance to develop and manage the plant budget, understand cost drivers, and identify opportunities to improve profitability.
• Collaborate closely with Human Resources, Quality, Engineering, Maintenance, Safety, Supply Chain, Finance, and other functional leaders to ensure strong cross-functional execution.
• Ensure appropriate production planning, inventory management, scheduling, logistics, quality systems, and operational processes are in place and consistently followed.
• Foster a positive, team-oriented work environment through effective communication, coaching, mentoring, talent development, and performance management.
• Develop and execute improvement plans when performance falls short of expectations, using data and structured problem-solving to identify root causes and drive sustainable solutions.
• Promote a culture of safety and ensure employees have the resources, training, and support needed to perform their jobs safely and effectively.
• Participate in strategic planning and identify opportunities to leverage technology, processes, and capabilities to support profitable growth.
• Make sound, timely decisions while building alignment across the organization and ensuring effective implementation.

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Business, Operations, Manufacturing, or a related discipline.
• 5+ years of leadership experience within a manufacturing environment
  , with increasing responsibility for operations and people leadership.
• Experience leading a manufacturing facility, production operation, or significant portion of a plant is strongly preferred.
• Demonstrated experience implementing Lean manufacturing principles and continuous improvement methodologies.
• Strong understanding of manufacturing operations, production planning, quality, cost management, and operational performance.
• Working knowledge of financial and cost accounting principles, with the ability to understand how operational decisions impact profitability.
• Proven ability to develop, coach, and retain high-performing teams.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills with the ability to use data to identify opportunities and make sound business decisions.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with the…