Operations Manager

Your Job

Molex is seeking an Operations Manager for our Naperville, IL site — a focused, fast-moving facility that designs and prototypes new products to support a rapidly growing optical connectivity business. You will be accountable for end-to-end operational performance for the site, with a strong emphasis on New Product Introduction (NPI), manufacturing execution, quality, safety, and continuous improvement. This role requires a hands‑on leader who can scale capability, deliver disciplined product launches, and partner closely with design, engineering, quality, supply chain, and commercial teams to accelerate time to market and increase customer value.

You will lead a compact, multidisciplinary organization of ~40 employees (technicians, operators, manufacturing engineers, quality, and supervision). The site is an innovation-focused center that connects product design with manufacturability — enabling rapid prototyping, pilot production, and learning that feeds into broader manufacturing networks.

• Lead day-to-day operations and manufacturing execution for the NPI site, ensuring safe, compliant, and on‑time delivery of prototypes and pilot volumes.
• Own NPI readiness and launch execution: develop launch plans, coordinate cross-functional readiness reviews, establish process controls, and drive early life quality.
• Coach, mentor, and develop frontline supervisors, technicians, and engineers to build capability and operational discipline.
• Implement and sustain operating systems (MOS / SQDC / PBM principles) and leverage digital tools to improve visibility, process control, and throughput.
• Establish, monitor, and own site KPIs (safety, quality, delivery, cost, first pass yield, cycle time) and use data-driven decision making to meet or exceed targets.
• Lead continuous improvement and problem-solving activities (Lean, Six Sigma tools recommended) to reduce waste, improve repeatability, and lower cost of poor quality.
• Partner with design and engineering teams to improve product manufacturability and transfer robust processes to scale-up sites.
• Conduct capacity planning for pilot runs and short-term customer commitments; advise on capital needs and resource allocation for site growth.
• Ensure compliance with corporate policies, quality management systems, and applicable regulatory or customer requirements.
• Manage site operating budget and cost control initiatives appropriate to site scale; raise and partner for larger capital or cross‑site investments.

• Bachelor’s degree in engineering, manufacturing, or business OR 10+ years in manufacturing operations.
• 5+ years of leadership experience in manufacturing or operations, including direct responsibility for NPI or pilot production environments.
• Demonstrated experience with continuous improvement methodologies (Lean, Six Sigma, value stream mapping).

• Experience in optical connectivity, connector/electronic assembly, fiber optics, or related precision electromechanical manufacturing.
• Prior success leading small innovation or pilot/manufacturing sites (20–100 employees).
• Familiarity with MOS / SQDC / Principle‑Based Management (PBM) or similar operating systems.
• Technical background with exposure to injection molding, micro‑assembly, PCB or cable assembly, or precision tooling.
• Proven record of successful NPI launches and transferring processes to higher‑volume sites.
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills; effective cross‑functional collaborator.
• Comfortable in a hands‑on, fast‑paced environment with changing priorities.

This position does not qualify for VISA Sponsorship.

In order to comply with U.S. export control laws and regulations, this position requires applicants to either provide proof of U.S. citizenship or lawful permanent resident status or be eligible to receive an export authorization (a license) under the International Traffic in Arms Regulations and/or the Export Administration Regulations.

For this role, we anticipate paying $120,000 - $160,000 per year. This role is eligible for variable pay, issued as a monetary bonus or in another form.

Our goal is for each…