Director of Operations - Manufacturing

Director of Operations

Who we are:

Atkore is forging a future where our employees, customers, suppliers, shareholders, and communities are building better together - a future focused on serving the customer and powering and protecting the world.

With a global network of manufacturing and distribution facilities, Atkore is a leading provider of electrical, safety and infrastructure solutions.

Who we are looking for:

We are currently looking for a Director of Operations to be based out of Harvey, IL. Reporting to the Vice President of Operations, this person will be responsible for leadership of all operations on the Harvey campus.

The ideal candidate will have a business, engineering, or finance degree (or equivalent experience). Experience in lean manufacturing, Six Sigma, or business system-based company is a requirement.

This role requires a strong cultural leader with a unique balance to lead a very large operation and the ability to be focused on working on the business. At times each day, this leader must step into tactical operations and be capable of working in the business to stay connected with various levels of leadership from frontline leads to tenured operations leaders. Beyond the core operational experience, the ideal candidate has experience working commercially or alongside multiple General Managers as partners.

What you'll do:

• Drive business results (SQDC)




• Own the plant scorecard for key business metrics for the Harvey campus and the responsibility for countermeasures when necessary
• Effective Partner with Lean Improvement Team to drive improvements
• Continue developing a culture of safety accountability
• Own the monthly production planning process and drive excellence within sales, inventory, and operations planning (SIOP)
• Understand customer experience requirements from three distinct strategic business unit leaders and drive improvements/changes
• Partner directly with the local controller to drive P & L comprehension to implement cost effective systems of control over capital, operating expenditures, manpower, and capital asset maintenance




• Build a high performing team




• Own the ongoing process of prioritizing frontline talent acquisition needs and work with the local human resources business partner
• Continue to build and structure the appropriate leadership team to support a growing and expanding business
• Provide direction, development and leadership as well as hiring and other performance management responsibilities
• Mentor and coach talent across the organization to define and achieve areer and personal objectives, improve performance or resolve work-based performance issues.
• Facilitate a world class program to acquire, develop, and retain the workforce of the future; including ownership for frontline immersion and technical training




• Continue to transform the structure of lean daily management to world class levels




• Reinforce a culture that goes to Gemba to drive actions
• Drive accountability for short-term and long-term actions with unrelenting sustainability
• Lead an operational excellence approach to include implementation of Lean concepts such as SMED, TPM, OEE practices and optimizing operations for profitability
• Working with lean leaders to develop business systems knowledge and Lean Manufacturing to include KPI visual reporting and actively participate in Lean Daily Management activities, including GEMBA walks and Kaizen events.

What you'll bring:

• 10+ years of demonstrated experience as the most senior leader in a large, unionized manufacturing environment with vertical integration or multiple sites
• Confirmation that you are driven by leading an organization with three levels of technical leaders
• Experience in leading in a union environment.
• A documented track record of sustainable productivity and volume growth
• A mix of formal training and experience with lean, operations management, policy deployment (Hoshin Kanri), business acumen and leadership

Within 3 months, you'll:

• Complete Atkore immersion including leading a large Kaizen event
• Gain a solid understanding of current transformational activities especially related to workforce development and maintenance excellence
• Be embedded into the business deep enough to complete the monthly SIOP preparation and review session

Within 6 months, you'll:

• Understand and drive changes to strategy to correct any unfavorable trends especially net productivity and gross throughput
• Recommend staffing changes/moves to improve business performance
• Lead all tactical and strategic initiatives on the campus including but not limited to weekly SQDC reviews, monthly forecasting, deep dives, strategy deployment initiatives, etc.

Within 12 months, you'll:

• Be completely accountable for all results from raw material receiving to finished goods shipping
• Be prepared to complete all annual budgeting activities and headcount changes
• Own a long-term strategy for capital expenditures and volume growth

Atkore is a four-time Great Place to Work certified company and a two-time Top Workplaces USA award winner! We're committed to creating an engaged, aligned workforce driven by a collaborative culture. Our team strives for breakthrough results and stays focused on being standout leaders. We consistently live the Atkore mission, strategic priorities, and behaviors consistent with our core values.

Join our team and align yourself with an industry leader!