Manufacturing Operations Manager

Formulate Labs; St. Louis (MO); On-site; USD 110,000 - 150,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive compensation

Leadership role with direct impact

Shape and scale a modern facility

High-autonomy environment

Long-term growth

Job summary

Formulate Labs is seeking a Manufacturing Operations Manager in St. Louis to own daily production execution across multiple lines, drive throughput, and maintain safety and quality. You will lead Production Associates and supervisors while coordinating with Quality and Engineering to optimize automation and workflows.

The role demands hands-on leadership in a fast-scaling environment, with a focus on operational discipline and scalable processes to support growing production volumes.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of experience in manufacturing or production operations.
• Experience managing teams in a production environment.
• Strong understanding of process-driven manufacturing workflows.
• Hands-on in a factory setting.
• Strong organizational and leadership skills.
• Ability to balance speed with quality and safety.
• High ownership mindset — you treat the facility like it's yours.
• Experience in cosmetics, personal care, food, chemical, or related industries preferred.

Responsibilities

• Own daily production output, scheduling, and execution across manufacturing lines.
• Manage and mentor Production Associates and supervisors.
• Ensure adherence to SOPs, safety standards, and quality protocols.
• Coordinate with Quality to minimize deviations and rework.
• Partner with Engineering to improve automation, workflows, and efficiency.
• Monitor KPIs such as throughput, yield, scrap, downtime, and labor efficiency.

Skills

Leadership

Production management

Team mentoring

Process optimization

Job description

About The Role

As Manufacturing Operations Manager, you will own the day-to-day execution of our production facility. You are responsible for throughput, efficiency, safety, staffing, and operational discipline across the factory floor.

About The Role

As Manufacturing Operations Manager, you will own the day-to-day execution of our production facility. You are responsible for throughput, efficiency, safety, staffing, and operational discipline across the factory floor.
This is a hands-on leadership role. You will work directly with Production, Quality, and Engineering teams to ensure batches are executed correctly, schedules are met, and systems improve continuously.
We are building a modern, automation-driven manufacturing platform -- but operational excellence still comes down to strong leadership, clear processes, and disciplined execution. You will be accountable for making the facility run smoothly and scale responsibly.
This is a full-time, onsite role based in St. Louis, Missouri.

What You'll Do

• Own daily production output, scheduling, and execution across manufacturing lines.
• Manage and mentor Production Associates and supervisors.
• Ensure adherence to SOPs, safety standards, and quality protocols.
• Coordinate closely with Quality to minimize deviations and rework.
• Partner with Engineering to improve automation, workflows, and efficiency.
• Monitor KPIs such as throughput, yield, scrap, downtime, and labor efficiency.
• Identify bottlenecks and implement process improvements.
• Oversee inventory coordination and material flow in collaboration with purchasing.
• Support scale-up initiatives as production volume increases.

What We're Looking For

• 5+ years of experience in manufacturing or production operations.
• Experience managing teams in a production environment.
• Strong understanding of process-driven manufacturing workflows.
• Comfortable being hands-on in a factory setting.
• Strong organizational and leadership skills.
• Ability to balance speed with quality and safety.
• High ownership mindset -- you treat the facility like it's yours.
• Comfort operating in a fast-moving, scaling environment.
• Experience in cosmetics, personal care, food, chemical, or related industries preferred.

What We Offer

• Competitive compensation.
• Leadership role with direct accountability over factory operations.
• Opportunity to shape and scale a modern manufacturing facility.
• High-autonomy environment with meaningful operational impact.
• Long-term growth as production capacity expands.