Director of Operations, Industrial

Korn Ferry; Milwaukee (WI); On-site; USD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Job summary

Korn Ferry, on behalf of our client, is seeking a Head of Global Operations to lead multi-site manufacturing excellence across North America and Asia. The role emphasizes cost, quality, safety, and service, with a focus on building regional capability and standardizing processes.

The successful candidate will drive strategic manufacturing plans, develop regional talent, and coach leaders to sustain long-term performance in a complex global environment.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited university or college; MBA preferred.
• 10+ years of progressive operations leadership, overseeing multiple sites.
• Experience with Tier 1 or Tier 2 ERP systems (e.g., SAP, Oracle, Microsoft Dynamics) in manufacturing.
• Cross-disciplinary background across manufacturing, supply chain, sourcing, engineering, logistics, or finance.
• Proven leadership of diverse teams including both exempt-level plant management and nonexempt employees.
• Strong strategic planning and executive-level communication skills.
• Analytical skills to translate ERP data into actionable insights for senior leadership.
• Change management experience leading technology transitions or system-driven process improvements.
• Ability to travel domestically and internationally.

Responsibilities

• Standardize and maintain operating systems to drive repeatable processes across locations.
• Lead end-to-end resource planning across the US to achieve regional revenue, profit, and service targets.
• Act as a fact-centered strategic partner for Finance, Supply Chain, and Engineering.
• Establish and scale a regional safety culture with leadership engagement and risk reduction.
• Ensure governance and compliance with policies across sites.
• Create and execute an annual regional improvement plan for safety, quality, delivery, and cost metrics.
• Expand regional data collection and rapid improvement cycles; enable useful control systems.
• Own organizational health, ensuring teams understand work systems and resources are aligned.

Skills

ERP systems (SAP/Oracle/Microsoft Dyn)

Multi-site operations leadership

Strategic planning

Data analysis

Leadership/people management

Communication

Cross-functional collaboration

Travel readiness

Education

Bachelor’s degree

MBA preferred

Job description

Korn Ferry has partnered with our client on their search for the role, Head of Global Operations.

Company Overview:

Our client is a publicly traded, U.S.-headquartered global manufacturer of industrial solutions. With approximately 6,000 employees, operations in more than 30 countries, and fiscal 2025 revenue of approximately $1.5 billion, the company serves a diversified customer base. The organization is continuing to expand its capabilities through innovation, operational excellence, and strategic acquisitions.

The Opportunity:

The Head of Global of Operations holds a leadership responsibility for the operational performance across the company’s multinational manufacturing operations. This role oversees the strategic alignment of multiple plants to ensure excellence in quality, service, cost, compliance, and safety. As a leader, you will be responsible for developing regional talent, optimizing cross-site production flow, and ensuring regional revenue and profit targets are met. This role is the primary architect of the multi-site strategic manufacturing & operations plan, ensuring it is positioned to meet both current and future business demands. The successful candidate will be a multi-site operations leader who combines manufacturing & supply chain depth, Lean operating discipline, data fluency and the leadership maturity to build capability through others. This is not a pure "fixer" role; it requires a servant leader who can coach, standardize, influence and scale sustainable performance

Scope:

The Head of Global of Operations will have responsibility for multiple facilities across North America and Asia.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

• Operational Excellence: Standardize and maintain operating systems that drive repeatable processes and lead standard work across multiple locations, fostering a culture of continuous improvement and visual performance management.
• Strategic Resource Planning: Lead end-to-end resource planning-including people, assets, space, and systems across the US to achieve regional revenue, profit, and service targets.
• Cross-Functional Partnership: Act as a fact-centered strategic partner for global functions (Finance, Supply Chain, Engineering), driving improvements that transcend individual plant boundaries.
• Safety Leadership: Establish and scale a regional safety culture underpinned by reflexive leadership engagement and the systematic removal of risk-related behaviors across all sites.
• Governance & Compliance: Ensure all company, regulatory, and customer-specific policies are integrated and followed by site leadership teams throughout the region.
• Regional Roadmap Development: Create and execute an annual regional improvement plan that provides a credible roadmap for advancing safety, quality, delivery, and cost metrics.
• Data-Driven Capability Building: Expand regional competency in data collection and rapid improvement cycles, ensuring sites can implement useful control systems and act on performance data.
• Organizational Development: Serve as the primary owner for organizational health, ensuring employees understand work systems and that sites are adequately resourced to withstand leadership attrition.

Required Knowledge, Skills & Abilities:

• Education: Bachelor’s degree from an accredited university or college. MBA is preferred.
• Experience: A minimum of 10 years of progressive operations leadership, including overseeing multiple sites.
• Systems Proficiency: Experience working with Tier 1 or Tier 2 ERP systems (e.g., SAP, Oracle, Microsoft Dynamics) in a manufacturing environment.
• Multidisciplinary Background: Proven experience across multiple disciplines such as manufacturing, supply chain, sourcing, engineering, logistics, or finance.
• Leadership: Extensive experience managing diverse teams, including both exempt-level plant management and nonexempt employees.
• Communication: Proven strategic planning and communication skills, with the ability to influence at the executive level.
• Analytical Skills: Proven ability to analyze metrics, financial reports, and performance data to effectively translate complex ERP data into actionable business insights for senior leadership.
• Change Management: Proven experience leading teams through technology transitions or system-driven process improvements.
• Travel: Ability to travel both domestically and international.

Leadership style:

• Servant leader who builds trust, coaches leaders and creates ownership close to the work
• Data-driven operator with the ability to translate complexity into clear priorities for senior leadership
• Cross-functional partner who works effectively with R&D, Engineering, Finance, Supply Chain and HR
• Change leader who balances urgency with respect for existing culture, people and site-level realities