Director of Overseas Manufacturing

Chefman•Mahwah, NJ

1d•$165,000 - $195,000•Onsite

About The Position

Chefman is seeking a Director of Overseas Manufacturing and Quality to enhance partnerships with their overseas manufacturing network and ensure the consistent and precise production of their growing product portfolio. This role requires a hands-on leader with factory floor experience who can identify and resolve process and quality issues directly with factory teams. The position serves as a key liaison between design/product development in Mahwah and manufacturing partners in China, ensuring seamless translation of designs into scaled production. The ideal candidate will have deep manufacturing expertise, ideally 10-15 years with one organization, and a passion for being present where products are made. Extensive travel to China is required.

Requirements

10-15+ years of progressive manufacturing leadership experience, ideally with significant tenure at a single organization producing consumer electronics, small appliances, or similar consumer hardware products.
Direct, hands-on experience running or closely overseeing factory floor operations.
Demonstrated track record of driving measurable improvements to product quality, yield, and profitability through close factory partnership.
Deep, working-level understanding of injection molding, sheet metal, electromechanical assembly, and tooling processes, built through genuine hands-on experience.
Strong background in structured root-cause problem solving and driving continuous improvement initiatives with manufacturing partners.
Experience developing and aligning SOPs and best practices across multiple factory sites.
A natural inclination to stay close to product design conversations and offer manufacturing perspective early in the process.
Strong reporting and documentation discipline.
Willingness and ability to travel extensively to China, including extended stays as needed.
A career history reflecting deep, sustained expertise built over time.
Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, or related field.
Mandarin fluency strongly preferred.

Nice To Haves

Experience with connected/IoT consumer products is a strong plus.

Responsibilities

Lead manufacturing strategy and execution across the overseas partner network, from tooling and assembly process design through high-volume mass production.
Partner with Product Development and Industrial Design teams to incorporate manufacturing expertise into design decisions, supporting manufacturability, cost efficiency, and quality.
Champion consistency and best-practice alignment across factory SOPs, assembly procedures, and quality control standards.
Maintain a strong, regular presence on assembly lines to stay close to daily production and build collaborative relationships with factory teams for continuous improvement.
Build and maintain rigorous reporting and documentation systems for leadership visibility into yield, quality performance, and production trends.
Lead structured root-cause investigations (8D, 5-Why, Fishbone) and partner with factory teams to implement durable solutions.
Serve as the senior point of contact for resolving complex production challenges, balancing quality, cost, and delivery.
Build and develop a team of manufacturing and quality engineers.
Evaluate and help develop new manufacturing partnerships and capacity.
Own the manufacturing cost and efficiency relationship, driving continuous improvement in profitability alongside quality.