Automotive Manufacturing & Digital Operations Subject Matter Expert

Contract role Automotive Manufacturing & Digital Operations Subject Matter Expert

for client at Georgetown, KY. Please let me know if you or any of your friends would be interested in this position.

• Experience in automotive manufacturing or other complex discrete manufacturing environments.
• The Automotive Manufacturing & Digital Operations Subject Matter Expert (SME) provides senior-level expertise in manufacturing operations, manufacturing systems, operational analytics, and digital transformation within automotive and discrete manufacturing environments.
• This role bridges shop-floor operations, engineering, manufacturing systems, data, and business strategy, helping organizations understand current-state capabilities, identify improvement opportunities, and develop practical digital solutions that deliver measurable operational and business value.
• The SME works closely with manufacturing, engineering, IT/OT, quality, supply chain, and business leadership to translate operational challenges into scalable solutions and ensure that digital initiatives are grounded in real-world manufacturing requirements.
• Experience & Qualifications Significant experience in automotive manufacturing or other complex discrete manufacturing environments.
• Deep understanding of manufacturing operations and plant processes.
• Experience applying operational data and analytics to improve manufacturing performance.
• Experience leading or supporting digital transformation initiatives.
• Strong understanding of the relationship between people, processes, technology, and data in manufacturing environments.
• Experience working directly with manufacturing leadership, engineering, IT/OT, and shop-floor teams.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, facilitation, and communication skills.
• Ability to operate effectively at both the strategic and shop-floor levels.
• Manufacturing Operations & Process Expertise Provide subject-matter expertise across automotive manufacturing processes, plant operations, production systems, and supporting functions.
• Analyze manufacturing workflows, value streams, material flows, production constraints, and operational performance.
• Identify opportunities to improve productivity, quality, throughput, cost, flexibility, and overall equipment effectiveness.
• Facilitate shop-floor assessments, process discovery, and Gemba-based analysis to understand operational challenges and improvement opportunities.
• Translate business and operational requirements into practical technology and process solutions.
• Manufacturing Systems Evaluate how manufacturing systems support production processes and business requirements.
• Define system capabilities, functional requirements, information flows, and integration points.
• Support the development of manufacturing system architectures and digital manufacturing roadmaps.
• Assess opportunities to connect engineering, manufacturing, quality, supply chain, and operational data.
• Operational Analytics & Data Use operational data to identify trends, performance gaps, root causes, and improvement opportunities.
• Help establish the data structures, relationships, and context required for effective operational analytics.
• Support development of dashboards, analytics solutions, and performance-management systems that provide actionable information to plant personnel and leadership.
• Connect operational metrics to financial and business outcomes where appropriate.
• Digital Transformation Develop and support digital transformation strategies for manufacturing organizations.
• Develop practical roadmaps for implementing digital manufacturing capabilities. Identify opportunities to eliminate manual processes, improve information flow, automate decision-making, and increase operational visibility.
• Cross-Functional Leadership Serve as a trusted advisor to manufacturing and business leadership.
• Facilitate workshops involving operations, engineering, IT, OT, quality, supply chain, and other stakeholders.
• Translate technical concepts into business and operational language for leadership teams.
• Work effectively with both technical teams and front-line manufacturing personnel.