Operations Department Head

Corning Incorporated; Glendale (AZ); On-site; USD 110,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

Corning Incorporated seeks an Operations Department Head for the Phoenix, AZ plant to lead a large, multi-shift production team, driving safety, quality, and throughput through data-driven decision making and Lean leadership.

You will own production planning, KPI development, cost control, and continuous improvement initiatives, collaborating with Quality, Engineering, Supply Chain, Maintenance, and other functions to deliver world-class manufacturing performance aligned with business goals.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering or related field.
• 5+ years in high-volume manufacturing or plant operations.
• 3+ years leading multi-shift teams and KPIs.
• Proven supervisory experience in a manufacturing environment.
• Experience using production data to drive decisions.
• Familiarity with safety regulations and quality systems.

Responsibilities

• Own execution of production plans to meet demand and targets.
• Lead manufacturing leaders and hourly teams across shifts.
• Establish and drive KPIs including safety and quality.
• Provide daily direction on priorities and performance expectations.
• Champion continuous improvement and root-cause analysis.
• Maintain quality standards and adherence to specs.
• Lead Lean and Six Sigma initiatives to reduce waste.
• Manage budgets, labor utilization, and costs.
• Ensure safety compliance and training.
• Collaborate with Quality, Engineering, Supply Chain, Maintenance, and others.

Skills

Leadership

Cross-functional collaboration

KPI management

Lean manufacturing

Six Sigma

Safety compliance

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Engineering

Advanced degree preferred

Tools

ERP systems

Production data systems

Job description

The company built on breakthroughs. Join us. Corning is one of the world’s leading innovators in glass, ceramic, and materials science. From the depths of the ocean to the farthest reaches of space, our technologies push the boundaries of what’s possible.

Requisition Number: 77446

The company built on breakthroughs. Join us.

Corning is one of the world’s leading innovators in glass, ceramic, and materials science. From the depths of the ocean to the farthest reaches of space, our technologies push the boundaries of what’s possible.

How do we do this? With our people. They break through limitations and expectations– not once in a career, but every day. They help move our company, and the world, forward.

At Corning, there are endless possibilities for making an impact. You can help connect the unconnected, drive the future of automobiles, transform at-home entertainment, and ensure the delivery of lifesaving medicines. And so much more.

Come break through with us.

The Specialty Materials segment manufactures products that provide more than 150 material formulations for glass, glass ceramics and fluoride crystals to meet demand for unique customer needs. Consequently, this segment operates in a wide variety of commercial and industrial markets that include display optics and components, semiconductor optics components, aerospace and defense, astronomy, ophthalmic products, telecommunications components and cover glass that is optimized for portable display devices.

Role Purpose

The Operations Department Head oversees all aspects of the assigned production area and end-to-end manufacturing operations at the Phoenix plant. This role leads and develops a large, multi-shift production team, ensuring employees have the tools, resources, training, and guidance needed to perform safely and effectively. The position owns production planning and execution, drives a strong safety and quality culture, and establishes, monitors, and improves key performance indicators across the production floor. Through data-driven decision-making, Lean leadership, and continuous improvement, the role optimizes efficiency, cost, quality, yield, uptime, labor effectiveness, and throughput to achieve business, service, and profitability objectives.

Key Responsibilities

• Own execution of production plans and schedules to meet customer demand, maximize throughput, and achieve cost, quality, delivery, inventory, safety, service, and growth targets.
• Lead, coach, and develop manufacturing leaders and hourly production teams across a multi-shift operation; ensure staffing, training, performance management, and employee engagement support safe and reliable operations.
• Establish, track, communicate, and drive improvement of production KPIs, including safety, quality, yield, uptime, scrap, labor efficiency, output, schedule adherence, and asset effectiveness.
• Provide daily direction to production leaders on operating priorities, established procedures, escalation needs, and performance expectations.
• Champion process control, change management, and root cause problem solving to improve process capability, reduce variation, and strengthen operational stability.
• Maintain quality standards for assigned products and processes, ensuring adherence to specifications, quality systems, customer expectations, and manufacturing best practices.
• Lead Lean, Six Sigma, and continuous improvement initiatives that reduce waste, improve flow, increase equipment reliability, and deliver measurable cost and productivity improvements.
• Manage budgets, resource plans, labor utilization, and production costs to optimize manufacturing performance and minimize waste while supporting business priorities.
• Own safety performance for the production area and ensure compliance with regulatory requirements, internal standards, training requirements, and safe work practices.
• Collaborate closely with Quality, Engineering, Supply Chain, Maintenance, Logistics, and other support departments to align priorities, remove production barriers, support customer commitments, and drive cross-functional accountability for operational results.
• Apply current manufacturing best practices, production data, automation concepts, and emerging technologies to improve performance, reliability, and decision-making.
• Deploy Corning’s talent management programs within the department to attract, develop, and retain manufacturing talent; ensure salaried employees have meaningful training and development plans.

Experiences/Education - Required

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Operations, Business, or a related field required; advanced degree preferred.
• 5+ years high-volume manufacturing, production, or plant operations environment
• 3+ years of progressive leadership experience in a high-volume manufacturing, production, or plant operations environment, including responsibility for multi-shift teams, production execution, KPI performance, and continuous improvement.
• Demonstrated ability to lead large, multi-shift manufacturing teams, including salaried leaders and hourly production employees.
• Successful and proven supervisory, team leader, section supervisor, or department leadership experience in a manufacturing plant environment.
• Proven ability to use production data and KPIs to drive operational decisions, improve performance, and communicate results across plant and business leadership.
• Knowledge of quality control procedures, manufacturing standards, customer requirements, and disciplined problem solving.
• Understanding of manufacturing processes, equipment reliability, maintenance coordination, and production support systems.
• Familiarity with safety regulations, compliance requirements, incident prevention, and safety management systems.
• Proven capability to manage, coach, direct, develop, and hold accountable salaried exempt, non-exempt, and hourly employees.