Director Operations III

Donaldson•Bloomington, MN

1d•Hybrid

About The Position

Donaldson is seeking a US Operations Director III to provide senior manufacturing leadership with enterprise accountability for the performance, strategic direction, and operational excellence of multiple manufacturing facilities across the United States. This leader will drive best-in-class outcomes across people leadership, safety, quality, delivery, and cost, while building scalable operating models that support sustained, profitable growth for the businesses served. Serving as a key member of the operations leadership team, this role partners closely with commercial, product management, and supply chain leadership to align manufacturing capabilities with business strategy, customer expectations, and long-term growth objectives. Donaldson is committed to solving the world’s most complex filtration challenges and is continuously evolving to meet the filtration needs of our changing world. The role requires a hybrid schedule at the Bloomington, MN office.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree
10+ years of progressive manufacturing operations or plant management experience
5+ years of senior leadership experience
Experience overseeing and influencing performance across multiple manufacturing locations

Nice To Haves

Demonstrated success leading multi-site manufacturing organizations
Strong track record in strategic process design and enterprise deployment
Deep expertise in Operational Excellence, including cross-functional integration
Lean / Six Sigma Black Belt certification
Advanced capability in goal deployment, strategic planning, and organizational transformation
Broad technical knowledge across manufacturing management, supply chain, and quality systems
Proven ability to lead, influence, and align senior cross-functional stakeholders

Responsibilities

Provide strategic and operational leadership for multiple U.S. manufacturing plants, ensuring consistent execution, strong governance, and alignment to corporate objectives.
Develop and lead the execution of manufacturing strategies that drive continuous improvement in operational performance, employee engagement, environmental health and safety, sustainability, quality, and supply chain effectiveness.
Champion scalable, standardized manufacturing operating models and global lean initiatives.
Ensure plants become leaders in lean manufacturing and quality systems, driving measurable improvements in productivity, throughput, and overall manufacturing effectiveness.
Maintain rigorous oversight of financial and operational performance to ensure achievement of profit plan expectations, including management of incremental and decremental performance.
Lead cost reduction initiatives and disciplined capital investment planning.
Partner with commercial, product management, and enterprise operations leaders to ensure manufacturing strategies support market demand, customer satisfaction, and on-time delivery performance while reducing past due shipments.
Build strong leadership pipelines and operational capability through targeted employee development programs, succession planning, and cultural reinforcement of accountability and continuous improvement.
Ensure full compliance with all corporate policies, regulatory requirements, and local laws while proactively managing operational risk across all reporting plants.
Continuously strengthen organizational capability through industry benchmarking and active participation in relevant professional and industry forums.