Manager, Operations

Oil-Dri Corporation of America•Mounds, IL

23h•Onsite

About The Position

The Plant Operations Manager is responsible for the overall safe, efficient, and reliable operation of the plant. This position provides leadership and direction for plant operations, maintenance, production, safety, quality, personnel, and continuous improvement. The Plant Operations Manager ensures production objectives are achieved while maintaining a strong safety culture, regulatory compliance, equipment reliability, product quality, and effective cost control.

Requirements

5+ years of progressive experience in plant operations, manufacturing, mining, aggregate, processing, or a similar industrial environment.
Previous supervisory or management experience required.
Strong knowledge of industrial production and maintenance practices.
Demonstrated ability to lead employees in a demanding operating environment.
Strong understanding of workplace safety and regulatory requirements.
Excellent communication, organizational, and problem-solving skills.
Ability to make sound decisions under pressure and effectively prioritize competing demands.

Nice To Haves

Strong mechanical and electrical troubleshooting knowledge preferred.
Experience with preventive maintenance and CMMS systems preferred.
Mining, aggregate, heavy manufacturing, or mineral processing experience.
MSHA experience and familiarity with Part 46 or Part 48 training requirements, as applicable.
Experience managing both operations and maintenance functions.
Experience with major plant shutdowns and capital projects.
Experience with reliability programs, root-cause analysis, and continuous improvement.
Experience managing operating and maintenance budgets.

Responsibilities

Direct and oversee daily plant operations to meet production, quality, and efficiency objectives.
Establish daily operating priorities and coordinate manpower, equipment, materials, and resources.
Monitor production rates, equipment performance, downtime, product quality, and operating costs.
Identify operational problems and implement corrective actions.
Ensure operating procedures and established production standards are followed.
Coordinate plant activities with management, maintenance, quality, engineering, sales, and other departments.
Maintain effective communication between shifts and departments.
Ensure the plant is adequately staffed and operating efficiently.
Provide leadership and direction to maintenance personnel and maintenance activities.
Ensure preventive, predictive, and corrective maintenance programs are effectively implemented.
Prioritize maintenance work based on safety, production requirements, equipment condition, and business needs.
Monitor equipment availability, downtime, repair costs, and recurring failures.
Support troubleshooting of mechanical, electrical, hydraulic, pneumatic, instrumentation, and process equipment.
Coordinate planned shutdowns, major repairs, equipment installations, and capital projects.
Ensure maintenance work orders and equipment records are properly maintained.
Develop strategies to reduce unplanned downtime and improve equipment reliability.
Provide visible leadership and accountability for plant safety.
Ensure employees follow company safety policies, procedures, and applicable regulations.
Conduct regular safety meetings, inspections, audits, and workplace observations.
Ensure appropriate training and qualification of employees.
Support incident investigations and ensure corrective actions are completed.
Ensure proper implementation of lockout/tagout, machine guarding, electrical safety, confined-space, fall protection, and other applicable safety programs.
For mining operations, ensure compliance with applicable MSHA requirements and site-specific standards.
Lead, coach, and develop operations and maintenance employees.
Establish clear performance expectations and hold employees accountable.
Assist with hiring, training, performance evaluations, disciplinary actions, and workforce planning.
Develop strong supervisors and frontline leaders.
Promote teamwork, communication, professionalism, and employee engagement.
Manage staffing, scheduling, overtime, and vacation coverage to meet operational requirements.
Monitor labor, maintenance, parts, contractor, energy, and operating expenses.
Identify opportunities to reduce costs while maintaining safety, quality, reliability, and production.
Monitor production KPIs and develop action plans when performance falls below expectations.
Assist with annual planning, capital budgeting, equipment replacement, and plant improvement projects.
Lead initiatives to improve plant productivity, efficiency, reliability, and overall performance.
Analyze production losses, downtime, equipment failures, and process inefficiencies.
Utilize root-cause analysis to eliminate recurring problems.
Establish and monitor key performance indicators, including: Safety performance, Production output, Equipment availability, Unplanned downtime, Preventive maintenance compliance, Maintenance backlog, Product quality, Labor efficiency, Operating costs.
Promote a proactive culture focused on continuous improvement and accountability.