Director Manufacturing

Lonza•Vacaville, CA

4d•$179,000 - $305,000•Onsite

About The Position

This pivotal leadership role is accountable for safe, compliant, and efficient upstream manufacturing operations in alignment with cGMP, Lonza Quality Systems, and customer commitments. The role provides end‑to-end operational, financial, and people leadership for large‑scale manufacturing assets, with clear ownership of performance, readiness, and results. As a visible site and network leader, you will enable strong cross‑functional collaboration, customer engagement, and inspection readiness while leading change and continuous improvement through Lean principles. You will own execution of production plans, optimizing throughput, labor, and cost while maintaining the highest standards of safety and quality. This role is ideal for a seasoned manufacturing leader who thrives in complex, highly regulated environments and is motivated by building high‑performing teams and resilient manufacturing systems.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Life Sciences or related discipline
10+ years of GMP/Bio-manufacturing experience with proven operational leadership skills.
Strong communication and team management abilities.
Experience presenting ideas and influencing outcomes.
Ability to mentor and lead diverse teams.
Adherence to cGMPs is required at all times during the manufacturing of APIs.
Ensure compliance to EHS policies and guidelines applicable within the department.

Responsibilities

Lead change and continuous improvement, embedding Lean principles and developing organizational capability and culture.
Lead, coach, and develop manufacturing leadership teams; build succession plans and high-performance, accountable teams.
Drive continuous improvement across processes, equipment, and systems in partnership with MSAT, Engineering, Quality, Facilities, EHS, and Supply Chain.
Own area financial performance, including budget planning, cost/variance. control, and contribution to COGS and profitability.
Serve as single-point operational accountability while influencing matrixed. network stakeholders to deliver outcomes.
Promote a strong, people centric, proactive safety and quality culture mindset across all levels of the organization.
Make decisions regarding maintenance and CapEx timelines while maintaining short term operational effectiveness and long-term optimization of overall harvest stagger.