Manager, Suspension Manufacturing

Icon Vehicle Dynamics LLC•Riverside, CA

5d•$80,000 - $100,000•Onsite

About The Position

The Manager, Suspension Manufacturing leads day-to-day production operations for an area of the plant, overseeing shift and team leads and production associates to drive output, quality, and safety results. This mid-level operations leadership role requires strong people-management experience, sound judgment, and the ability to keep a department running efficiently in a fast-paced manufacturing environment. The role combines hands-on shop-floor leadership with responsibility for managing teams, maintaining quality standards, and supporting continuous improvement across ICON's suspension systems and off-road performance product lines.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Operations Management, Industrial Engineering, Business, or a related field, or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
5+ years of progressive experience in manufacturing operations, including at least 2–3 years in a supervisory or management role.
Demonstrated experience managing teams of 40 or more employees.
Experience managing production budgets, labor planning, and cost control, with a focus on throughput, cycle times, parts per person, scrap, and rework.
Strong working knowledge of lean manufacturing principles, such as 5S, kaizen, and Six Sigma or similar approaches.
Solid understanding of OSHA regulations and manufacturing safety standards.
Strong analytical skills, including the ability to interpret production data and KPIs to drive decisions.
Excellent communication skills and experience presenting to senior leadership.
Sound judgment and composure under pressure, particularly when balancing competing production priorities.
Hands-on, floor-present leadership style paired with the discipline to manage budgets and metrics.
High accountability and follow-through; comfortable owning outcomes.
Ability to coach and develop others and build bench strength across the team.
Physical ability to stand, walk, and move throughout the shop floor for extended periods, up to a full shift, and occasionally lift up to 50 pounds.
Comfort working in a manufacturing environment with exposure to noise, machinery, and varying temperatures.
Willingness to work flexible hours, including occasional evenings and weekends, to support production needs or shift coverage.

Nice To Haves

Six Sigma Green Belt or Lean certification.

Responsibilities

Own daily, weekly, and monthly production planning to meet demand forecasts and customer delivery commitments.
Manage workflow and staffing across multiple production lines or cells, and train employees to reallocate labor and resources in real time to meet targets.
Set and monitor Overall Equipment Effectiveness, throughput, scrap rate, and on-time-delivery metrics; report performance to leadership.
Work with Engineering to analyze production shortfalls, quality escapes, and downtime events, and implement corrective actions.
Partner with supply chain and materials planning to prevent stockouts and manage work-in-progress levels.
Coordinate maintenance schedules with the facilities and maintenance team to minimize unplanned downtime.
Directly supervise shift leads, team leads, and production associates; set expectations and support employees in achieving them.
Recruit, hire, onboard, and train shop-floor staff in partnership with HR.
Conduct performance reviews, manage disciplinary actions, and handle employee relations issues in partnership with HR.
Build training and cross-skilling programs to increase workforce flexibility and reduce single points of failure.
Ensure products meet ICON's quality specifications and enforce inspection and quality-control checkpoints throughout production.
Own departmental safety performance by enforcing OSHA compliance, leading incident investigations, and driving corrective and preventive actions.
Conduct regular safety audits and toolbox talks, and champion a proactive safety culture.
Lead lean manufacturing initiatives, including 5S, kaizen, and value stream mapping, to reduce waste and improve efficiency.
Identify and lead capital or process improvement projects, developing business cases with ROI justification.
Partner with HR to standardize work instructions and best practices across shifts.
Partner with Engineering on new product introductions and manufacturability feedback.
Work with Quality Assurance on non-conformance resolution and process audits.
Collaborate with Planning and Scheduling to align capacity with sales demand.
Represent the shop-floor perspective in leadership and operations meetings.