General Manager - Precision Machining

Gradel Pro Search•Denver, NC

14h•Onsite

About The Position

The General Manager is responsible for the overall leadership and performance of a facility specializing in complex, close-tolerance components for space, aerospace, and defense applications. The role has full responsibility for the operating company's profit-and-loss performance, customer relationships, manufacturing operations, quality, workforce development, and strategic growth. The General Manager develops and executes the annual operating plan, aligning revenue objectives with capacity, technical capabilities, customer commitments, and profitability expectations. This is a visible, hands-on leadership role requiring work on the shop floor, with customers, and as part of the corporate executive leadership team. The General Manager balances daily operating discipline with longer-term priorities including customer diversification, capacity expansion, automation, organizational development, and capital investment. The position reports to the Chief Executive Officer of the parent company and maintains a strong on-site presence while collaborating regularly with corporate leadership and other operating-company leaders.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in engineering, manufacturing, operations, business, or a related discipline; substantial directly relevant leadership experience may be considered in lieu of a degree.
10 or more years of progressively responsible manufacturing experience.
5 or more years of senior leadership responsibility within a machining, aerospace, defense, or similar technical manufacturing environment.
Demonstrated responsibility for the financial performance of a plant, business unit, or operating company.
Working knowledge of manufacturing financials, including revenue, gross margin, EBITDA, labor utilization, overhead absorption, working capital, and capital investment.
Experience leading multidisciplinary functions such as operations, engineering, quality, production planning, supply chain, and customer service.
Demonstrated success improving safety, quality, delivery, productivity, and profitability.
Strong customer-management, negotiation, communication, and organizational-development skills.
Expected to maintain a strong on-site presence while collaborating regularly with corporate executive leadership and leaders of other operating companies.

Nice To Haves

Direct experience leading a precision CNC machining operation serving space, aerospace, or defense customers.
Understanding of complex simultaneous 5-axis machining, mill-turn operations, automation, pallet systems, and unattended production.
Experience machining titanium, Inconel, stainless steel, aluminum, and other aerospace materials.
Familiarity with AS9100D, ISO 9001, ITAR, CMMC, NIST SP 800-171, and customer-specific quality requirements.
Experience with new-product introduction (NPI), first-article inspection (FAI), program transfers, and production scaling.
Experience improving customer and program diversification.
Familiarity with ERP-based scheduling, job costing, capacity planning, and performance reporting.
Experience within a private-equity-backed or multi-site manufacturing organization.
Lean, Six Sigma, or comparable continuous-improvement training.
MBA or advanced technical or business degree.

Responsibilities

Own the company's P&L and cash-flow performance; develop the annual operating plan, budget, and accurate forecast.
Translate business objectives into priorities and measurable expectations, monitor results, and take corrective action when performance falls short.
Improve margins through disciplined pricing and job costing, and increase labor efficiency and capacity utilization.
Evaluate capital investments based on customer demand, strategic fit, and financial return.
Lead site functions across manufacturing and administration; ensure production schedules are realistic and properly resourced.
Improve throughput, machine utilization, setup time, labor productivity, first-pass yield, and on-time delivery; monitor key operating metrics.
Promote lean practices and 5S, preventive maintenance, standard work, root-cause problem-solving, and a safe, professional workplace.
Maximize productive use of automated 5-axis systems and unattended capacity; coordinate resources to increase productive spindle hours and schedule extended and lights-out production while protecting quality and equipment reliability.
Identify production constraints and lead efforts to remove them; develop repeatable processes that support revenue growth faster than labor or overhead, and base equipment and facility investments on sustainable demand.
Coordinate engineering, programming, production, and quality from quotation through delivery; oversee new program launches from manufacturability review through production readiness.
Improve established processes, cycle time, handling, tool life, process stability, and unattended runtime.
Maintain compliance with AS9100D, ISO 9001:2015, and ITAR requirements; monitor quality, ensure prompt containment and effective corrective action, and maintain audit readiness, traceability, controlled information, and customer confidentiality.
Maintain key customer relationships and serve as the senior escalation point; partner with the corporate commercial team to win customers and expand accounts.
Diversify the customer and program portfolio while protecting strategic accounts; lead customer visits and business reviews, support contract negotiations and major quote decisions, and ensure quotations reflect technical risk and capacity needs.
Establish clear approvals for pricing and major commercial commitments.
Build an effective leadership team with clear authority and accountability; maintain a strong facility presence and communicate openly with employees.
Build staffing and technical depth, develop successors for critical leadership and technical roles, and support career paths for technical employees and emerging leaders.
Promote teamwork, disciplined execution, continuous learning, and personal accountability while preserving technical craftsmanship and collaborative culture as the company grows.
Participate in corporate leadership meetings and portfolio initiatives; share capacity and technical knowledge, surface cross-company opportunities, and transfer work when it improves service or balances capacity.
Use corporate resources to strengthen site performance and support growth, support customer programs that benefit from the parent company's broader capabilities, and preserve site autonomy while meeting corporate strategic and financial objectives.