Plant Director I

USA Donaldson Company Inc.; Chillicothe (OH); On-site; USD 140,000 - 200,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Relocation assistance

Health benefits

401k plan

Paid time off

Job summary

Donaldson Company is seeking a Plant Director in Chillicothe, MO. You will lead all plant operations, drive safety, quality, delivery, and cost performance, and develop a high-performing leadership team to meet customer expectations.

The role requires 7+ years of manufacturing operations experience with 5+ years in people leadership. Travel up to 20% and relocation support are included.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Operations, Supply Chain, Business, or related field.
• 7+ years of progressive manufacturing operations experience, including 5+ years of people leadership.

Responsibilities

• Lead all plant operations to achieve business, customer, and operational performance goals.
• Build and sustain a strong safety culture and ensure compliance with EHS, quality, and regulatory requirements.
• Drive performance across Safety, Quality, Delivery, and Cost through clear goals, KPI management, and disciplined execution.
• Develop, engage, and hold accountable a high-performing leadership team and workforce.
• Own plant financial results, including budgets, productivity, cost reduction, inventory, and capital planning.
• Lead Lean, Six Sigma, and other continuous improvement initiatives to eliminate waste, improve flow, and increase efficiency.
• Oversee production planning, capacity, staffing, materials, and resource allocation to meet customer demand.
• Partner with cross-functional teams to align plant capabilities, priorities, and strategic plans.

Skills

Leadership

Lean Six Sigma

Change management

Strategic thinking

Education

Bachelor's degree in Engineering or related field

Tools

Oracle ERP

Job description

Donaldson is committed to solving the world’s most complex filtration challenges. Together, we make cool things. As an established technology and innovation leader, we are continuously evolving to meet the filtration needs of our changing world. Join a culture of collaboration and innovation that matters and a chance to learn, effect change, and make meaningful contributions at work and in communities.

The Plant Director leads site operations to deliver strong performance in safety, quality, delivery, and financial results through strong employee engagement. This role sets the direction for the facility, develops a high-performing team, ensures compliance, and drives continuous improvement to meet business and customer expectations. Qualified candidates must be able to work an on-site schedule at our Chillicothe, MO facility daily.

Role Responsibilities

• Lead all plant operations to achieve business, customer, and operational performance goals.
• Build and sustain a strong safety culture and ensure compliance with EHS, quality, and regulatory requirements.
• Drive performance across Safety, Quality, Delivery, and Cost through clear goals, KPI management, and disciplined execution.
• Develop, engage, and hold accountable a high-performing leadership team and workforce.
• Own plant financial results, including budgets, productivity, cost reduction, inventory, and capital planning.
• Lead Lean, Six Sigma, and other continuous improvement initiatives to eliminate waste, improve flow, and increase efficiency.
• Oversee production planning, capacity, staffing, materials, and resource allocation to meet customer demand.
• Partner with cross-functional teams to align plant capabilities, priorities, and strategic plans.

Travel: Up to 20%

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Operations, Supply Chain, Business, or related field.
• 7+ years of progressive manufacturing operations experience, including 5+ years of people leadership.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master’s degree or MBA.
• Working experience in ERP systems, preferably Oracle.
• 10+ years of manufacturing leadership experience, including plant-level or multi-function responsibility.
• Experience managing complex operations with responsibility for SQDC, inventory, and P&L performance.
• Lean Six Sigma, APICS/ASCM, PMP, OSHA, or similar certification.
• Experience leading cultural transformation, employee engagement, and operational excellence.
• Proven ability to manage safety, quality, delivery, cost, budgets, KPIs, and continuous improvement initiatives.
• Working knowledge of EHS requirements, quality systems, Lean manufacturing, and manufacturing financial drivers.
• Strong leadership, communication, problem-solving, change management, and collaboration skills.

Compensation & Benefiits

• Base salary plus compensation, subject to company performance.
• Annual incentive plan based on performance and company growth.
• Long-Term Incentive (LTI) Plan.
• Relocation assistance.
• Our comprehensive benefits program includes health benefits, retirement plan (401k), paid time away, paid leaves (including paid parental leave) and more.

Our policy is to provide equal employment opportunities to all qualified persons without regard to race, gender, color, disability, national origin, age, religion, union affiliation, sexual orientation, veteran status, citizenship, gender identity and/or expression, or other status protected by law.

Donaldson Company helps solve some of the world's most complex filtration and contamination control challenges, and is one of the largest global providers of unique filtration technologies and high-quality filters and parts. Our filtration technologies and products are used every day, in a variety of industries and environments, including aerospace, agriculture, construction, food and beverage, manufacturing, mining, power generation, transportation and many more.

Key to our success, our 14,000 employees support customers at sales, manufacturing and distribution centers from over 140 locations on six continents. The filtration market continues to grow. Customers' needs for filtration solutions continue to evolve. And the opportunities for our products and our people continue to expand.

Learn more at www.donaldson.com.