Senior Manager Technical Operations

Reports to:

Senior Vice President of Operations and Engineering Direct Reports: 23 Position Type/

Hours:

Full-time salary position. Core working hours are Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. or as required.

The Technical Operations Manager is responsible for leading project management and technician groups in the successful execution of complex custom web conversion, packaging, and coating machinery projects from receipt of order through installation. This role ensures projects are executed safely, on time, on budget, and to the highest technical and quality standards while driving operational excellence, cross-functional coordination, and continuous improvement.

The Technical Operations Manager bridges engineering, production, supply chain, and customer-facing functions to deliver complex, low-volume, highly customized machinery.

• Lead and develop Project Managers, Process Engineers, Mechanical Technicians, Electrical Technicians, and Sub-Assembly Technicians.
• Build high performance through coaching, mentoring, and training.
• Foster a culture of accountability, safety, and continuous improvement.
• Conduct performance evaluations and support career development planning.

• Oversee execution of multiple concurrent custom automation projects.
• Ensure projects meet scope, schedule, cost, and quality objectives.
• Ensure project scope definition and clarity adequately prepares project team for success.
• Monitor project KPIs including margin, cost of materials, labor efficiency, change orders, and milestone performance.
• Remove execution barriers and resolve cross-functional conflicts.
• Escalate risks appropriately and drive corrective action plans.

• Plan and balance appropriate resources across projects.
• Forecast labor requirements and support hiring decisions.
• Optimize technician utilization, efficiency, and throughput.

• Ensure mechanical and electrical builds meet engineering intent, project scope deliverables, and company standards.
• Oversee machine assembly, wiring, debug, integration, and factory acceptance testing (FAT).
• Drive standardization of build practices, documentation, and quality controls.
• Ensure that as-built changes are communicated and documented with the engineering team.
• Partner with engineering to improve design-for-assembly and manufacturability.

• Improve labor efficiency, lead times, and project predictability.
• Encourage project teams to innovate machine and component improvements.
• Develop and standardize project execution methodologies.
• Use data-driven metrics to identify bottlenecks and optimize workflow.
• Own labor cost performance and contribute to gross margin improvement.
• Review project budgets and forecast material and labor costs.
• Drive productivity improvements that increase throughput and profitability.

• Participate in customer meetings as needed to support technical execution.
• Support installation planning and field service readiness.
• Evaluate warranty claims and implement changes to ensure product quality and reduced warranty costs.
• Coordinate closely with Engineering, Supply Chain, Sales, and Service teams.

• BELIEVE IN PEOPLE
• FEARLESS INNOVATION
• INTEGRITY
• PASSIONATE & TENACIOUS
• SERVANT LEADERSHIP

Above all, this position should demonstrate a passion for serving others and a commitment to play a key role in creating a people-first, value-based culture that delivers our purpose of "serving people by solving problems". Steps to success include:

• Always lead by example — act the way you expect others to act
• Ask for feedback and welcome suggestions on improvements that can be made.
• Be aware of team members doing the right thing, then acknowledge and encourage them.
• Care for your team members personally by being empathetic and encouraging work/life balance.
• Delegate, encourage team members to innovate, and be the first to pick up the pieces with them if things don’t go as planned.
• Encour…