Production Manager

WestRock Company; City of Tonawanda (NY); On-site; USD 94,000 - 157,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading packaging company seeks a Production Manager in Tonawanda, NY to provide operational leadership in manufacturing. Ideal candidates will have 5 to 7 years of supervisory experience in pulp and paper, and a track record of meeting safety and quality standards. This role encompasses staff management, process improvement, and ensuring customer satisfaction. Competitive salary and benefits offered.

Benefits

Health insurance

Flexible spending accounts

Retirement savings plans

Short-term bonus incentive

Qualifications

• 5 to 7 years of supervisory experience in pulp and paper manufacturing.
• Experience in paper engineering or integrated paper mill preferred.

Responsibilities

• Oversee production goals and manage the performance of direct reports.
• Ensure compliance with safety and quality standards.
• Direct manufacturing operations to exceed industry requirements.

Skills

Leadership

Problem-Solving

Communication

Strategic Thinking

Education

High school diploma or G.E.D equivalent

Bachelor’s degree in a related field

Tools

Microsoft Office- Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint

Job description

General Information

Job ID

ATR50346

Posting Job Title

Production Manager

Locations

NY N Tonawanda

Employment Type

Full Time

Date Posted

27-May-2025

Relocation Support

Yes

Description & Requirements

Smurfit Westrock (NYSE:SW) is a global leader in sustainable paper and packaging solutions. We are materials scientists, packaging designers, mechanical engineers and manufacturing experts with a shared purpose: Innovate Boldly. Package Sustainably. Guided by our values of integrity, respect, accountability and excellence, we use leading science and technology to move fiber-based packaging forward.

Operations Manager – North Tonawanda, NY

The Opportunity

The Operations Manager is responsible for establishing the safety, quality, cost, and operating output of the facility. This position provides overall operational leadership support to align to the mill's strategic plan. This role is responsible for day-to-day management of the department’s supervisory staff. An Operations Manager is responsible for achieving production goals, managing the performance of direct reports, making sound operational decisions, and troubleshooting customer issues.

Major Job Responsibilities

How you will impact Smurfit Westrock:

Business Excellence

• Direct manufacturing operations to ensure manufacturing standards are met and exceed all industry and customer requirements
• Formulate solutions to minimize lead time and maximize product quality, productivity, and profit margin
• Forecast financial requirements to inform annual budget development, schedule expenditures, analyze variances, and capital projects
• Provide technical expertise when necessary to resolve operational issues
• Ensure the timely production of quality products that meet or exceed customer expectations
• Ensure staffing is appropriate to meet workload requirements and productivity standards
• Champion of maintaining or enhancing a culture of continuous improvement
• Stay abreast of continuous improvement best practices and apply to WestRock
• Direct engineering initiatives to address shop floor issues and manufacturing concerns to ensure continuous product and process improvements
• Provide opportunities for maintenance staff to build functions that support the needs of production
• Achieve safety, environment, quality standards to meet and exceed performance and production metrics
• Proactively manage departmental metrics that impact cost (e.g., downtime, make-readies, run speed and waste)
• People and Culture
• Develop coaching plans to ensure timely and consistent feedback to employees and conduct annual performance reviews
• Analyze root causes and solve employee or customer issues effectively and in a timely manner
• Foster a team atmosphere, provide vision, and demonstrate support of the company’s core values Job
• Work cross-functionally with department heads to create a long-term strategic plan to forecast mill/plant performance
• Provide a safe work environment for employees and ensure compliance with environmental policies and procedures
  
  

Critical Skills / Capabilities

• Leadership: Leads and motivates a team of people to achieve performance excellence; ability to read people and situations and adjust approach; accordingly, proactively leads and enforces initiatives that drive organizational effectiveness; teaches others how to build trust-based relationships
• Problem-Solving: Applies knowledge to frame, simplify and solve complex issues; focuses on identifying root causes to create solutions in a timely and decisive manner; reconciles conflicting and/or incomplete information to develop solutions
• Decision-Making: Uses strong problem-solving skills and supporting information to arrive at optimal decisions in an appropriate timeframe; knows when to decide and/or when to seek additional input, and drive for consensus
• Strategic Thinking: Develops short and long-term courses of action that support the organization's overall vision and mission; balances business, technical, and operational issues when determining a strategy; identifies problems with current strategies and suggests ways to resolve them; incorporates knowledge of WestRock’s goals/strategy as well as competitive, customer, supplier, industry, or marketplace trends into strategic plans; capitalizes on opportunities and manages risks
• Communication: Creates and delivers engaging presentations to internal and external audiences; develops new communication strategies and approaches to communicate data, insights, and critical messages resulting in clear understanding
• Growth and Results Oriented: Delivers personal or organizational results by successfully influencing others (i.e. co-workers, other teams, external partners, etc.) within a matrixed organization; delivers high quality work within the stipulated time period to achieve maximum results
• Process-Oriented: Plans, designs, and manages processes while focusing on refining and improving to increase efficiency and effectiveness; understands process inputs, activities, outputs, roles and sequencing
  
  

Technical Skills

• Microsoft Office- Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint
• Process Management
• Data historian software (i.e., Process Book)
• Other Qualifications:
• To perform the duties of the job, this role requires:
• Occasionally ascending/descending stairs
• Occasionally reaching by extending fingers on one hand
• Occasionally reaching by extending one arm
• Occasionally using fingers to grasp with one hand Job
• Occasionally using fingers to type with one hand
• The spoken exchange of ideas to be performed loudly less than 25% of the time
• The spoken exchange of ideas to be performed quickly 25-50% of the time
• Ensure the safe and accurate determination of accuracy and neatness of work or making general observations of facilities or structures
  
  

Work Environment

• Frequently works indoors, in an environment that is climate controlled
• Occasionally works outdoors in natural environmental conditions (both hot and cold)
• Occasionally works indoors in an environment that is not climate controlled and has high temperatures
• Occasionally works indoors in an environment that is not climate controlled and has low temperatures
• The role is frequently sedentary, which entails sitting or being stationary
• Occasionally stands or walks for 3-6 hours at a time
• Occasionally stands or walks for more than 6 hours at a time
• Noisy work environment; maintain strict adherence to safety rules and regulations
• Fast-paced work J.I.T (just-in-time) environment
  
  

Experience

• Required: 5 to 7 years of supervisory experience in pulp and paper manufacturing
• Preferred: Paper engineering, chemical engineering, or integrated paper mill experience
  
  

Education

• Required: High school diploma or G.E.D equivalent
• Preferred: Bachelor’s degree in a related field
  
  

Smurfit Westrock is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We strive to create and maintain a diverse workforce where everyone feels valued, respected, and included. Smurfit Westrock does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, age, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or any other basis protected by federal, state or local law.

The salary range for this position is $94,125.00 - $156,875.00, depending on your role, level, and location. The benefits for this role may include short-term bonus incentive, health insurance, flexible spending accounts, health savings accounts, retirement savings plans, life and disability insurance programs, and a number of programs that provide for both paid and unpaid time away from work. Your actual pay will be based on your work location and other factors, such as your skills, experience, and education. To learn more about the specific salary range for your preferred location, please contact your recruiter during the hiring process.