Shop Foreman

Ritalka, Inc.; Northern (KY); Hybrid; USD 71,635,000 - 108,886,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, Dental & Vision Insurance

HSA/FSA options

401(k) with Employer Match

Term Life Insurance

Employee Assistance Program

Employee-of-the-Month and Year

RITALKA University

Job summary

RVI is seeking a Shop Foreman for its Redwood Falls facility to lead daily production, assign work, and ensure safety and quality while coordinating with other departments. The role combines hands-on leadership with active participation in production processes and continuous improvement initiatives.

The ideal candidate will drive on-time delivery, mentor staff, and communicate issues early to prevent downtime, supporting a culture of accountability and efficiency in a manufacturing setting.

Qualifications

• Manufacturing or production experience.
• Strong understanding of shop-floor workflow and production environments.
• Ability to read and follow drawings, work instructions, and production documentation.
• Demonstrated ability to organize work and manage multiple priorities.
• Strong communication and problem-solving skills.

Responsibilities

• Lead and coordinate daily production activities and decisions within the Redwood Falls facility.
• Review production priorities, work orders, schedules, and material availability to determine daily work assignments.
• Assign employees to work areas based on production needs, employee capabilities, and customer priorities.
• Monitor work throughout the day and adjust assignments as priorities or conditions change.
• Ensure employees understand production expectations, drawings, work instructions, quality requirements, and deadlines.
• Work directly alongside production employees as workload requires.
• Maintain awareness of upcoming work and proactively identify potential production constraints.
• Ensure completed work is properly documented and moved through the production process.

Job description

Salary in accordance applicable experience, ranging from $25 to $38 per hour

REASONABLE FLEX SCHEDULES & START TIMES AVAILABLE!

BENEFITS & PERKS: Medical, Dental, & Vision Insurance; HSA/FSA options, Accident & Critical Illness Insurance; Short- and Long-Term Disability; 401(k) with Employer Match; Term Life Insurance; Employee Assistance Program; Employee-of-the-Month and Year; RITALKA University; Employee Luncheons; Community Volunteering

The Shop Foreman is responsible for the day-to-day leadership and coordination of production activities at RVI's Redwood Falls facility. This is a hands-on working leadership position responsible for keeping employees productive, work orders moving, priorities aligned, and issues communicated before they impact production or customer commitments.

The Shop Foreman serves as the primary floor leader for the Redwood Falls facility and is expected to lead by example. The position will actively participate in production while coordinating employees, monitoring workflow, reinforcing RVI standards, and identifying opportunities to improve safety, quality, efficiency, and overall shop performance.

The successful candidate will bring a solutions-focused, growth-oriented mindset and will be expected to identify problems along with recommended solutions rather than simply escalating issues.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES/REPONSIBILITIES

Production Leadership & Execution

• Lead and coordinate daily production activities and decisions within the Redwood Falls facility.


• Review production priorities, work orders, schedules, and material availability to determine daily work assignments.


• Assign employees to work areas based on production needs, employee capabilities, and customer priorities.


• Monitor work throughout the day and adjust assignments as priorities or conditions change.


• Ensure employees understand production expectations, drawings, work instructions, quality requirements, and deadlines.


• Work directly alongside production employees as workload requires.


• Maintain awareness of upcoming work and proactively identify potential production constraints.


• Ensure completed work is properly documented and moved through the production process.


• Coordinate priorities with the VP of RVI and other RVI support functions.

People Leadership

• Provide clear daily direction and expectations to Redwood Falls production employees.


• Hold employees accountable for attendance, productivity, quality, safety, housekeeping, and workplace conduct.


• Help train and develop employees in production processes and equipment.


• Cross-train employees to increase flexibility and reduce dependence on individual employees or processes.


• Address minor employee concerns and production conflicts promptly and professionally.


• Escalate significant personnel or performance issues to the VP of RVI as appropriate.


• Encourage teamwork, accountability, continuous improvement, and professional communication.


• Lead by example through a positive, productive, and solutions-oriented approach.

Production Monitoring & Communication

• Monitor production progress against scheduled requirements and communicate risks early.


• Provide regular updates to the VP of RVI regarding:
  
  
  
  • Production status
  
  
  • Staffing or attendance concerns
  
  
  • Material shortages
  
  
  • Equipment issues
  
  
  • Quality concerns
  
  
  • Schedule risks
  
  
  • Capacity constraints
  
  
  • Improvement opportunities
  
  
  
  


• Work with Purchasing, Project Management, Quality, and other RVI resources to resolve production constraints.


• Communicate problems with sufficient information to support decision-making, including the cause, production impact, and recommended corrective action whenever possible.

Quality

• Ensure employees follow drawings, work instructions, revision requirements, and established manufacturing processes.


• Reinforce RVI workmanship and quality standards throughout production.


• Ensure required inspections and testing are completed before product moves to the next operation or shipment.


• Assist with investigating defects, rework, and recurring quality issues.


• Help identify root causes and implement corrective actions to prevent repeat problems.


• Stop or correct work when quality requirements are not being met.

Safety & Housekeeping

• Promote and enforce safe work practices throughout the facility.


• Ensure employees properly use tools, equipment, and required personal protective equipment.


• Immediately address unsafe conditions or behaviors.


• Maintain an organized, clean, and professional production environment.


• Ensure production areas, tools, materials, and equipment are properly maintained and stored.


• Communicate equipment maintenance or repair needs before they create unnecessary downtime.

Continuous Improvement

• Identify opportunities to improve production flow, workstation layout, tooling, material handling, and labor efficiency.


• Help develop and standardize repeatable production processes.


• Encourage employees to identify improvement opportunities and participate in implementing solutions.


• Assist management with evaluating labor requirements, production capacity, and potential bottlenecks.


• Support implementation of new equipment, processes, products, and customer programs.


• Promote a culture focused on solutions rather than problems, accountability rather than excuses, and continuous improvement rather than "the way we've always done it."

QUALIFICATIONS

Required

• Manufacturing or production experience.


• Strong understanding of shop-floor workflow and production environments.


• Ability to read and follow drawings, work instructions, and production documentation.


• Demonstrated ability to organize work and manage multiple priorities.


• Strong communication and problem-solving skills.


• Ability to provide direction and hold coworkers accountable professionally.


• Willingness and ability to perform hands‑on production work.


• Basic computer skills and ability to use RVI production systems and documentation.

Preferred

• Previous lead, supervisor, or foreman experience.


• Wire harness, electrical assembly, cable assembly, or related manufacturing experience.


• Experience with wire processing, crimping, looming, soldering/splicing, testing, or similar manufacturing processes.


• Experience working with ERP/MRP or manufacturing scheduling systems.


• Experience with Lean Manufacturing, 5S, continuous improvement, or similar production methodologies.

Physical Requirements

• Ability to stand and work in a manufacturing environment for extended periods.


• Ability to safely lift and move materials consistent with production requirements.


• Ability to use hand tools, production equipment, and material handling equipment as required.


• Ability to perform repetitive manufacturing and assembly tasks when assisting production.


• Overall Objective

EXPECTATIONS

Key Performance Expectations - success in this position will be measured by the Shop Foreman's ability to:

• Keep scheduled work moving through the facility.


• Meet production and customer delivery requirements.


• Maintain acceptable labor productivity and efficiency.


• Reduce avoidable downtime and production delays.


• Maintain RVI quality standards and reduce rework.


• Identify material and production constraints early.


• Improve cross-training and employee capability.


• Maintain a safe, organized, and professional facility.


• Communicate problems early and accurately.


• Bring potential solutions and recommendations when raising problems.


• Create accountability while maintaining a productive team environment.

Leadership Expectations

The Shop Foreman is expected to demonstrate RVI's leadership expectations through their daily actions.

• Take Ownership – Treat the performance of the Redwood Falls facility as your responsibility.


• Communicate Early – Problems should be communicated while there is still time to solve them, not after a deadline has been missed.


• Bring Solutions – When identifying a problem, make every reasonable effort to understand the cause and recommend a path forward.


• Lead by Example – Demonstrate the productivity, professionalism, quality, safety, and attitude expected from the team.


• Develop the Team – Share knowledge, cross‑train employees, and help employees become more capable and independent.


• Embrace Improvement – Be willing to challenge existing processes when a safer, faster, higher‑quality, or more efficient method is available.

The Shop Foreman's primary objective is simple:

Keep the Redwood Falls facility safe, productive, accountable, and moving forward while ensuring RVI delivers quality products to its customers on time.

Many tasks include their own work and/or the review of work of others in the department. The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by people assigned to this position. They are not to be construed as an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties, and skills required. All personnel may be required to perform duties outside of their normal responsibilities from time to time, as needed.

RVI Overview

RVI is a full-service provider of high-quality, reliable wire harnesses and control boxes, that fosters strong collaborative relationships to support your business growth. We strongly believe that in order to achieve success for both RVI and our clients, a valued partnership, based on integrity, is critical.

Why You Should Apply Here

RVI is a family-owned company that focuses on creating jobs in rural communities in the upper Midwest; purposefully deciding to create jobs away from the chaos of larger metro areas. Our company values help to foster strong relationships with not only our employees and customers, but also our communities. We take pride in finding careers that fit the person rather than a person to fit a job which allows us all to do extraordinary things with ordinary people.

We are an equal opportunity employer and consider all qualified applicants equally without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran status, or disability status.