Director of Production Operations

Hartmann Young; St. Louis (MO); On-site; USD 170,000 - 250,000; Full time

Job summary

Hartmann Young Limited is seeking a Production Operations Director to lead manufacturing operations, drive strategic goals, and manage a team of technicians and managers. The role ensures delivery, quality, and customer satisfaction while guiding change and performance metrics across the plant.

The position requires strong leadership, extensive manufacturing experience, and a deep understanding of cGMP and quality systems to meet regulatory requirements and business targets.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, or related field.
• 5–10 years of mid to senior management experience in manufacturing.
• Strong knowledge of cGMP compliance and quality systems.
• Excellent communication and leadership skills.

Responsibilities

• Develop and implement short and long range goals aligned with profitability targets.
• Set strategic leadership goals for section heads in large scale, pilot plant, and technical services organisations.
• Oversee manufacturing operations to ensure safety, quality, productivity, and efficiency.
• Develop, implement, and monitor KPIs and performance metrics for the department and organisation.
• Prepare for productive customer visits and ensure schedule adherence.
• Analyse costs, operations, and forecast data to meet business and financial objectives.

Skills

Leadership & people mgmt

Quality systems

cGMP knowledge

Communication skills

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry or Chemical Engineering

Job description

The Production Operations Director is responsible for leading operation initiatives and managing manufacturing operations and personnel. This role ensures adherence to delivery dates, customer specifications and quality standards, as well as serves as the primary point of contact for customer relations. The role involves leading a team of technicians, shift managers, supervisors, and production coordinators. The Director of Production Operations will drive company change, goal setting and implement performance metrics for manufacturing operations.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

Strategy and Planning

• Develop and implement short and long range goals and objectives that align with business growth and profitability targets.
• Set strategic leadership goals for key section heads within the large scale, pilot plant, and technical services organisations.
• Review operational plans to assess manufacturing capacity requirements and make recommendations to improve capacity utilisation and support business development planning.
• Develop, implement, and maintain Key Performance Indicators and monitoring systems to drive high levels of performance within the department and across the organisation.

Operations and Compliance

• Oversee manufacturing operations to ensure safety, quality, productivity, and efficiency, working collaboratively with the management team to prevent and resolve operational, quality, financial, and facility issues.
• Partner with Quality and Regulatory departments to drive high performance in cGMP compliance and ensure operations meet organisational requirements for quality management, health and safety, legal, and environmental standards.
• Ensure proper planning and effective execution of production activities to minimise downtime and maximise output per the production schedule, working closely with supporting departments to maintain schedule adherence.
• Proactively lead local efforts to prepare for and execute productive customer visits.
• Analyse activities, costs, operations, and forecast data to assess progress toward goals and initiate corrective action as needed to meet business and financial objectives.
• Perform other related duties as may be reasonably assigned in the course of business.

Good Manufacturing & Documentation Practices

• Perform all documentation in compliance with ALCOA++ principles and site SOPs.
• Adhere to applicable cGMP documents including SOPs, batch records, protocols, change controls, and controlled forms.
• Keep all required cGMP training current and **escalate** quality concerns along with proposed solutions to the Quality department.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, or a related field
• Minimum 5–10 years of mid to senior management experience in a manufacturing or process environment
• Demonstrated understanding of the responsibilities and functions of key departments within a pharmaceutical or industrial manufacturing facility
• Strong knowledge of cGMP compliance, technical operations, and quality systems within a manufacturing environment
• Proven ability to identify, develop, and inspire leaders at multiple levels of the organization
• Excellent communication skills with the ability to present strategy and performance clearly to site and functional leadership