Vice President of Operations

Legacy Executive Search; Cleveland (OH); On-site; USD 150,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

Legacy Executive Search is representing a privately held industrial manufacturing client seeking a Vice President of Operations to report to the CEO. The candidate will scale operations, strengthen discipline, and preserve entrepreneurial culture and customer responsiveness.

Ideal backgrounds include 20+ years in premier operations leadership within configurable, make-to-order environments, with proven success in integrating planning, manufacturing, and quality into a scalable model.

Qualifications

• Senior operations leader with industrial manufacturing experience.
• Experience integrating manufacturing, supply chain, planning, and quality into scalable operations.

Responsibilities

• Lead Manufacturing Operations, Supply Chain, and Production Planning.
• Drive S&OP, demand forecasting, capacity planning, and inventory optimization.
• Develop lean processes and build high-performing teams.

Skills

S&OP

Demand planning

Capacity planning

Production planning

Inventory management

Manufacturing leadership

Cross-functional leadership

Education

Bachelor's degree in Engineering or Operations

Tools

ERP systems

Lean/Continuous Improvement

Job description

Our client is a privately held, $100M+ industrial manufacturing company experiencing strong growth and seeking a proven Vice President of Operations to report directly to the CEO.

This is not a turnaround. It’s an opportunity for an experienced operations executive to build upon a successful foundation, strengthen operational discipline, and help scale the business while preserving the entrepreneurial culture and customer responsiveness that have made the company successful.

Ideal Background

Senior operations leader from a custom engineered industrial manufacturing company ($100M–$500M) who has successfully integrated manufacturing, supply chain, S&OP, production planning, and inventory management into a scalable operating model. Experience in high-mix, low-volume, make-to-order, engineer-to-order (ETO), configure-to-order (CTO), job shop, or other customer solutions manufacturing environments is strongly preferred.

What You’ll Lead

• Manufacturing Operations
• Supply Chain & Procurement
• Production Planning & Scheduling
• Inventory & Capacity Planning
• Manufacturing Engineering
• Quality & Continuous Improvement
• Safety & Operational Excellence

What Success Looks Like

You will develop the operational infrastructure needed to support continued growth while improving:

• S&OP and integrated business planning
• Demand forecasting and capacity planning
• Inventory optimization
• Production scheduling and on-time delivery
• ERP utilization and operational visibility
• Lean manufacturing and continuous improvement initiatives
• Cross-functional alignment across Operations, Sales, Customer Service, and Finance

This role requires someone who can balance strategic thinking with daily operational execution while developing high-performing teams and driving accountability throughout the organization.

What We’re Looking For

• 20+ years of progressive operations leadership within industrial manufacturing
• Experience leading multiple operational functions including manufacturing, supply chain, planning, engineering, and quality
• Deep expertise in S&OP, demand planning, capacity planning, production planning, and inventory management
• Proven experience driving operational transformation and building scalable processes
• Strong ERP and manufacturing systems experience
• History of developing high-performing operations teams

Preferred Experience

The ideal candidate has built their career in custom engineered, highly configurable, make-to-order, engineer-to-order, or customer solutions manufacturing environments where production planning, supply chain coordination, inventory optimization, and operational agility are critical to success.

Leaders coming from repetitive, high-volume manufacturing environments without significant operational complexity are less likely to be successful in this role.

Leadership Style

We’re looking for someone who:

• Builds trust before driving change
• Respects the knowledge of existing teams
• Brings structure without unnecessary bureaucracy
• Leads with humility, accountability, and urgency
• Has successfully scaled operations in well known/growing manufacturing businesses

If you’ve successfully led complex industrial manufacturing operations, built world-class planning and supply chain organizations, and enjoy helping entrepreneurial companies reach the next level, we’d welcome the opportunity to speak with you.