General Manager

Smurfit-Westrock; Houston (TX); On-site; USD 120,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

Smurfit Westrock, a leader in sustainable packaging, seeks a General Manager responsible for the plant's performance and profitability. You will oversee safety, quality, cost and productivity in a manufacturing setting, leading a diverse team and coordinating with Sales, Logistics, and Quality to drive value.

Applicants should bring 7–10 years of progressive management experience, strong budgeting skills, and a track record of delivering improvements.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in business or engineering strongly preferred.
• 7–10 years of progressive management experience in the industry.
• Minimum 7 years of Manufacturing/Operations experience.
• Proven track record of goal setting and leadership of diverse teams.
• Strong financial management and capital budgeting knowledge.
• Excellent strategic planning and analytical skills.
• Ability to adapt communication to audience and drive profitability.

Responsibilities

• Maintain plant profitability and ensure safety and quality requirements are met.
• Manage P&L, capital expenditures, manufacturing costs, and operating efficiencies.
• Develop and implement business plans aligned with company goals and strategic vision.
• Build a high performing team and drive change initiatives.
• Drive continuous improvement initiatives tied to business direction.
• Collaborate with Corporate Sales Managers to identify growth opportunities.
• Oversee production to meet short-term and long-term objectives.
• Coordinate with other areas to serve cross-location customers.
• Provide leadership in planning with Production Managers of related operations.
• Review customer requirements to identify improvement opportunities.

Skills

Leadership

Budget management

Strategic planning

Team development

Operational excellence

Education

Bachelor’s degree in business or engineering

Job description

Smurfit Westrock (NYSE:SW) is the go-to leader and partner of choice in sustainable packaging. We are dedicated to creating efficient and scalable paper and packaging solutions to help solve complex packaging challenges. Guided by our values of safety, loyalty, integrity and respect, we are committed to delivering meaningful value for shareholders, customers, employees and the communities where we operate.

Summary:

As General Manager you will have full responsibility for the performance and profitability of the plant facility. This includes managing and focusing on measures associated with safety, quality, cost, and productivity in a manufacturing plant.

How you will impact WestRock:

• Maintain the plant’s profitability and ensure all safety and quality requirements are met.
• Manage P&L, capital expenditures, manufacturing costs and operating efficiencies to improve plant profitability.
• Develop and implement business plans that align with company goals and overall strategic vision.
• Build a high performing team and work collaboratively to drive change initiatives within the organization.
• Drive and implement continuous improvement initiatives tied to the strategic business direction.
• Build partnerships with your Corporate Sales Managers to identify Business Unit growth opportunities and maintain relationships with key accounts.
• Build and develop diverse plant leadership, work teams.
• Oversee production to meet short-term and long-term divisional objectives to achieve optimum efficiency.
• Build effective alliances with other Areas/Plants, Sales, Logistics, Production, Safety and Quality Managers to better serve customers that cross multiple locations.
• Provide leadership and guidance on the coordination of plant activities through planning with Production Managers of Corrugated and Converting operations to ensure the manufacturing objectives are accomplished in a timely and cost-effective manner.
• Review customer requirements and specifications to identify improvement opportunities and implement solutions to increase customer satisfaction.
• Coordinate and maintain ongoing, effective, safety plans to ensure program adoption and implementation.
• Offer new ideas to support fulfillment of department goals and procedures for continuous improvement, retention of customer base, company profitability, and employee job satisfaction.
• Develop and manage defined communication channels across various stakeholder groups to build effective relationships and produce superior products.
• Monitor and control waste management to manage production costs and reduce environmental impacts.

What you need to succeed:

• Bachelor’s degree in business or engineering strongly preferred.
• Bring 7-10 years of progressive management experience in the industry along with proven experience in budget and financial management.
• Must have a minimum 7 years of Manufacturing/Operations experience.
• Have a proven track record of goal setting and achievement and demonstrated ability to build, lead, and motivate diverse teams.
• Ability to initiate projects in pursuit of greater profitability, anticipate potential problems and address them early.
• Ability to facilitate the development of others’ knowledge and skills.
• Demonstrated knowledge of capital management (P&L and capital budgets) and analyzing financial data.
• Must possess excellent strategic planning and analytical skills.
• Ability to operate with the customers’ best interest in mind.
• Ability to respond quickly to changing demands, processes, and updated information.
• Communicate effectively with the ability to adjust communication style based on audience.

Candidates are required to undergo a drug screening after receiving a conditional job offer, but before starting employment.

Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, protected veteran status or other characteristics protected by state or federal law.