Associate Director, Manufacturing Operations - Water Cooled

About the Role

The Associate Director, Manufacturing Operations is responsible for leading all aspects of an assigned manufacturing value stream. This position provides strategic and operational leadership across production, manufacturing engineering, supply chain coordination, quality, scheduling, and continuous improvement activities.

The successful candidate will drive operational excellence while ensuring customer commitments are met through effective management of cost, quality, delivery, safety, and productivity objectives.

This role is onsite five days per week and leads multiple managers and supervisors responsible for a complex manufacturing operation.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead manufacturing operations for an assigned value stream, ensuring performance against safety, quality, delivery, cost, and productivity metrics.
• Develop and execute operational strategies that support business growth and customer requirements.
• Drive continuous improvement initiatives focused on cost reduction, efficiency gains, and operational excellence.
• Oversee production planning, scheduling, and sequencing to maximize throughput and resource utilization.
• Lead cross-functional problem solving involving manufacturing, engineering, supply chain, quality, suppliers, and customer stakeholders.
• Direct manufacturing engineering activities and implementation of process improvements.
• Champion innovation initiatives, including advanced manufacturing technologies and automation.
• Establish operational objectives and ensure achievement of performance targets.
• Partner closely with customers to understand business needs and ensure exceptional service levels.
• Lead equipment investment and facility improvement initiatives that support long-term operational strategy.
• Develop, coach, and mentor managers, supervisors, and engineering leaders while building organizational capability.

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Manufacturing, Operations Management, or technical field.
• Minimum 10 years of relevant manufacturing leadership experience; OR Advanced Degree with a minimum of 8 years of experience.
• 3+ years experience leading leaders, managers, and cross-functional teams.
• 3+ years managing manufacturing operations, plant operations, or value stream performance.
• 3+ years in production systems, manufacturing engineering, quality systems, and continuous improvement methodologies.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience within HVAC, industrial equipment, engineered products, or data center manufacturing environments.
• Lean Manufacturing, Six Sigma, or Operational Excellence experience.