Operations Department Manager

Bridgestone; Brits; On-site; ZAR 200 000 - 300 000; Full time

Job summary

A global tire and rubber company is seeking an Operations Department Manager in Brits to organize and manage production activities. Responsibilities include ensuring quality standards are met, driving operational targets, and maintaining a safe work environment. The ideal candidate will have a minimum of 5 years experience in manufacturing and 2 years in management. Strong communication and analytical skills are required. This role offers opportunities for growth and a supportive environment with a focus on inclusion and teamwork.

Benefits

Supportive onboarding experience

Training and mentorship

Global and dynamic work environment

Diversity and inclusion initiatives

Qualifications

• Minimum of 5 years of experience in a manufacturing environment.
• At least 2 years of management experience.
• Strong technical mastery in operations.

Responsibilities

• Organize and manage all production related activities.
• Ensure compliance with Bridgestone quality standards.
• Drive delivery of production operating targets.
• Create a safe working environment.

Skills

Planning

Leading

Organizing

Communication

Analytical Skills

Presentation Skills

Education

Minimum National Diploma in Operations Management or Industrial Engineering

Tools

Excel

Job description

Operations Department Manager -Brits

POSITION SNAPSHOT

Type of work: On site

Type of contract: Open-ended/permanent

Full/Part Time: Full time

Location: Brits, ZA

ABOUT US

Bridgestone Americas, Inc. (BSAM), headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee, and Bridgestone Europe, Middle East and Africa (BSEMEA), headquartered in Brussels, Belgium, operate collectively as a “Bridgestone West” strategic region. This region services the strategic business needs of teams across the Americas, Europe, Middle East and Africa. BSAM and BSEMEA are subsidiaries of Bridgestone Corporation, globally headquartered in Japan. Bridgestone and its subsidiaries develop, manufacture and market a wide range of Bridgestone, Firestone and associate brand products and solutions to address the needs of a broad range of customers and industries.

ABOUT THE ROLE

Job Purpose

You will be responsible for organizing and managing all production related activities. This includes but is not limited to the following:

• Coaching, training, motivating, and guiding all equipment owners, cell, process, and maintenance leaders.
• Implementing and enforcing operating policies and procedures.
• Delivering agreed production operating targets and goals.
• Implementing strategies to ensure safe and efficient production operations, continuous improvement and delivering superior quality on a consistent basis.
• Leads the implementation of the Daily Management System (DMS) in the supervised production cell.
• Manages professionals on process and maintenance as well as a team of operators to obtain the cell’s assumed goals arising from CBN (Compelling Business Need), the Master Plan and the Annual Plan of the department. Also leads the implementation of standards in the managed structure.

Responsibilities:

• Create and maintain a safe and healthy working and operating environment for all people on the manufacturing site.
• Drive delivery of agreed production operating targets and goals including OE and Warehouse Yield; production volume; conversion cost; material usage; plant and process reliability; productivity and waste reduction.
• Prepare and obtain approval for operating cost budgets and drive production cost performance to achieve agreed budgets and targets.
• Drive implementation of IWS, B-Safe and B-EMEC and any other Bridgestone manufacturing strategies and initiatives.
• Ensure compliance and strict adherence to Bridgestone quality standards.
• Monitor operations and implement corrective actions to full on time delivery of agreed production budgets and goals.
• Identify, coach and develop talent to build competency and capability to support our cell centric organization.
• Drive employee engagement and compliance with all legal and corporate policies and regulations relating to labour, safety, health, quality, and the environment.
• Guide and coordinate the activities of the team
• Management of the clean, inspect and lubricate (CIL) process
• Management of Defects Handling process • Management of the Incident Elimination process
• Managing and improving results (i.e. driving performance improvement)
• Lead execution of 90-day plans to eliminate losses using IWS tools • Lead the cell daily direction setting (DDS) meetings
• On the floor coaching of operators e.g. DMS execution, loss elimination, skills development and technical mastery
• Provide coaching to team leaders in the shift exchange DDS meetings
• Lead issue resolution “to root cause” on the floor of chronic stops
• Lead small work groups, communicate effectively, and develop short-term action plans • Overall responsibility for CFT cell output
• Conduct Health checks and identify gaps

Qualifications & Experience Required

Education, Master, other certification:

• Minimum National Diploma in Operations Management, Industrial Engineering or equivalent

Experience (years):

• Min of 5 years’ experience in a manufacturing environment
• 2 years management experience

Technical Skills:

• Experience and reasonable technical mastery in operations

Soft/Behavioral Skills:

• Planning, Leading and Organizing skills
• Communication skills and willingness to interact with shop floor staff
• A desire to be in a lead role
• Be a self-starter
• Must demonstrate knowledge/experience working with Excel
• Sound Interpersonal Skills and ability to work under pressure
• Presentation Skills
• Analytical Skills

Leadership Skills:

• Understand customer needs
• Track and measure staff performance
• Create a positive learning environment
• Enforces standards
• Technical and Functional Expertise
• Understanding of the Business
• Achieving results
• Teamwork
• Interpersonal and Communication Skills
• Leadership and Personal Effectiveness

WHAT WE OFFER

At Bridgestone, what really matter is to foster co-creation opportunities and empowering you to be creative and curious to make mobility safer, more efficient, and more sustainable for future generations. Whatever role you fill, when you represent Bridgestone, you are a valued teammate, and part of our larger mission to “Serve Society with Superior Quality”, for that, we offer you more than just a competitive payment; we will provide you:

• A supportive and engaging onboarding experience to ensure a smooth transition into our team.
• The opportunity to develop and grow, through training and regular mentorship.
• Corporate Social Responsibility activities.
• A truly global, dynamic and challenging work environment.
• Agility and work/life effectiveness and your long-term well-being.
• A diverse and inclusive team.

We are committed to create an even more inclusive culture that advances equity, embraces individuality, and helps our increasingly diverse teammates, customers, and communities thrive, by providing equal opportunities in employment. This means that all job applicants and members of staff will receive equal treatment and that we will not discriminate on grounds of gender, marital status, race, ethnicity, color, nationality, national origin, disability, sexual orientation, religion or age.