Manager, Americas Productivity and Cost Engineering

Vertiv Group•Westerville, OH

About The Position

The Senior Manager, Americas Productivity and Cost Engineering is dedicated to accelerating productivity and efficiency across Americas manufacturing plants and major operations projects. The role owns the regional productivity pipeline and benefit-realization process, converting plant actions into verified cost and capacity outcomes and providing leadership with clear visibility into performance, risks, and decisions required. The position works closely with plant managers, finance, the Vertiv Operating System, planning, quality, safety, supply chain, manufacturing engineering, and project leaders. It establishes operating standards, evaluates improvement opportunities, validates financial benefits, tracks execution, and partners with operations and finance to improve labor efficiency, conversion cost, capacity utilization, and project returns. Expected activity allocation is approximately 60% regional productivity governance and benefit realization, 25% targeted site intervention, and 15% capability building and standardization. The preferred location is Westerville, Ohio, though another major Americas manufacturing location may be considered. There are no direct reports. The role requires 25% travel, including regular visits to manufacturing sites in the United States and Mexico. No special physical requirements are listed. The successful candidate is expected to embrace Vertiv’s Core Principles and Behaviors and help execute its Strategic Priorities. Vertiv will employ only individuals legally authorized to work in the United States; sponsorship is not available for this position.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in industrial engineering, manufacturing engineering, mechanical engineering, systems engineering, or a closely related field.
Seven or more years of progressive experience in industrial engineering, manufacturing engineering, operational excellence, cost reduction, or productivity leadership.
Demonstrated success delivering measurable productivity and cost improvements in a complex manufacturing environment.
Experience supporting multiple plants and influencing plant leaders without direct reporting authority.
Strong working knowledge of labor standards, work measurement, line balancing, capacity analysis, manufacturing cost structures, and financial benefit validation.
Ability to connect operational metrics to financial results and distinguish cost avoidance, capacity creation, and realized savings.
Advanced analytical capability using Microsoft Excel, enterprise data systems, and data-visualization tools.
Strong project-management, problem-solving, facilitation, and executive-communication skills.
Professional proficiency in English.
Ability to travel 25%, including regular visits to manufacturing sites in the United States and Mexico.
Legally authorized to work in the United States; sponsorship is not provided.

Nice To Haves

Master’s degree in engineering, operations, or business administration.
Lean Six Sigma Black Belt or comparable advanced continuous-improvement certification.
Training or demonstrated knowledge in manufacturing cost accounting, standard costing, and capital-project financial analysis.
Experience in engineered-to-order, configure-to-order, or complex assembly manufacturing.
Spanish language capability.

Responsibilities

Establish and own a consistent regional productivity governance process covering all Americas plants and major operations projects.
Maintain a prioritized productivity and efficiency initiative pipeline with accountable owners, milestones, risks, investment requirements, and monthly benefit realization.
Develop plant productivity baselines, annual targets, and forecasts using earned standard hours, labor hours, conversion cost, material usage, overhead absorption, capacity utilization, and other agreed measures.
Evaluate proposed initiatives and validate expected labor, material, overhead, capacity, inventory, quality, lead-time, and cash impacts before approval.
Partner with plant and regional finance to ensure savings are measurable, auditable, and reflected appropriately in budgets, forecasts, and standard costs.
Partner with Advanced Manufacturing Engineering and manufacturing sites to conduct targeted industrial engineering studies, including time studies, labor standards, staffing models, line balancing, layout, material flow, equipment utilization, and capacity analysis.
Standardize industrial engineering methods, templates, assumptions, and benefit-calculation rules across the region.
Ensure productivity improvements are sustainable and do not compromise employee safety, product quality, customer delivery, or regulatory compliance.
Review plant and project performance, identify gaps and root causes, and drive recovery plans when benefits or milestones are at risk.
Prepare concise monthly reporting for operations leadership on performance to target, projected outcomes, major variances, risks, and required decisions.
Establish regional productivity methods and governance requirements; challenge or return unsupported benefit claims; and escalate initiatives materially off plan. Final financial recognition remains subject to finance approval.