Production Supervisor - PDU Cables 1ST SHIFT

ENGINEERED PRODUCTS CO•Minnetonka, MN

6d•Onsite

About The Position

The Production Supervisor leads day-to-day PDU cable manufacturing operations for an assigned shift at the Minnetonka, Minnesota facility. The role oversees employee performance, safety, quality, training, scheduling coordination, and continuous improvement, and works with Manufacturing, Engineering, Scheduling, Quality, Human Resources, and other support teams to ensure customer orders are produced safely, accurately, efficiently, and on time. The supervisor provides direct leadership to approximately 15–35 production employees, depending on staffing, product mix, and business needs, and supports consistent leadership coverage across Minnesota and Iowa operations. The role coordinates production flow, work orders, materials, labor, line setups, changeovers, quality checks, testing, packaging, and shipment readiness. It supports employee onboarding, training, coaching, attendance and performance management, and continuous improvement. The position uses company systems for timekeeping, employee reviews, labor and production reporting, and related administrative work. Work takes place in both office and production/warehouse settings, with significant time on the manufacturing floor. The environment may involve varying temperatures, industrial equipment, forklift traffic, and moderate to high noise. The role requires frequent walking and standing, climbing stairs, occasional lifting, and periodic computer and administrative work. Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying may be required up to 50 pounds on an inconsistent basis. The position is full-time, regular, and exempt. The typical work week is Monday through Friday; Saturday shifts and overtime are required as business demands. The shift start time is 5:00 a.m. The posting contains conflicting shift labels, listing the role as both 1st shift/AM shift and, in one position-title line, 2nd shift.

Requirements

At least 5 years of manufacturing, production, or operations experience.
Experience leading teams in a fast-paced production environment with accountability for safety, quality, delivery, productivity, and employee performance.
Ability to supervise, evaluate, train, coach, and motivate production employees.
Strong understanding of production flow, work order execution, shift handoffs, labor planning, quality expectations, and continuous improvement.
Ability to learn and apply PDU cable assembly processes, components, tools, testing expectations, customer requirements, and safety standards.
Strong verbal and written communication skills across shifts, locations, departments, and leadership levels.
Strong computer, email, ERP, reporting, and Microsoft Office skills; ability to learn timekeeping and production reporting systems.
Organization, self-motivation, reliability, prioritization, and attention to detail.
Proactive, positive leadership style and ability to build trust, reinforce accountability, and support a respectful team environment.
Ability to identify issues, analyze risk, problem-solve production concerns, escalate appropriately, and support timely corrective action.
Ability to lead consistently while adapting to operational differences between Minnesota and Iowa locations.
Regular and consistent attendance; compliance with company policies, safety procedures, and PPE requirements.
Ability to work in office and production/warehouse environments, spend significant time on the manufacturing floor, and move throughout production and warehouse areas for extended periods.
Ability to sit, stand, walk, bend, reach, climb stairs, and occasionally lift, push, pull, or carry up to 50 pounds on an inconsistent basis.
Ability to use a computer, telephone, handheld devices, basic office equipment, production systems, and reporting tools.
Ability to wear required PPE and follow safety expectations at the assigned location.
Typical Monday–Friday work week, with Saturday shifts and mandatory overtime as business demands.

Nice To Haves

Prior supervisory or lead experience.
Experience with cable assembly, electrical assembly, PDU production, warehouse operations, or related manufacturing.
Working knowledge of Lean Manufacturing practices, including 5S, standard work, root cause problem solving, and continuous improvement.
Certificate, associate degree, or related coursework in manufacturing, supervision, operations management, electrical assembly, or a related field.

Responsibilities

Supervise production employees assigned to the PDU Cables shift and location, generally overseeing approximately 15–35 employees.
Set daily expectations, assign work, monitor productivity, address operational barriers, and ensure effective shift handoffs.
Oversee PDU cable assembly production, including line readiness, work order priorities, material availability, tooling, labeling, testing, quality checks, packaging, and shipment readiness.
Monitor schedules, labor capacity, customer priorities, and material constraints; coordinate with Scheduling, Purchasing, Warehouse, and Manufacturing leadership to resolve issues.
Maintain and improve production processes, safety requirements, equipment, fixtures, tools, and work instructions.
Ensure employees follow build instructions, customer specifications, electrical safety requirements, quality standards, and handling practices.
Create and maintain on-the-job training covering tool safety, assembly, inspection, ERP transactions, quality procedures, and cross-training.
Partner with Human Resources and Manufacturing leadership on staffing, onboarding, attendance, employee relations, performance coaching, corrective action, and retention.
Monitor labor costs, attendance, overtime, timecards, labor allocation, and staffing coverage.
Use company systems for employee reviews, time-off requests, labor reporting, production activity, and reports.
Monitor product quality, identify defects and trends, and assist with corrective action addressing rework and process gaps.
Partner with the Manufacturing Manager to meet safety, quality, delivery, productivity, efficiency, labor utilization, rework, and schedule-attainment targets.
Conduct 5S activities and continuous improvement projects in the PDU Cables production area.
Communicate order status, production concerns, shortages, and process updates across Production, Quality, Warehouse, Scheduling, Customer Service, Sales, and other departments.
Coordinate line setups, changeovers, job staging, equipment readiness, and shift start-up.
Track actual versus planned performance, analyze variances, identify root causes, and support solutions that protect safety, quality, delivery, and customer commitments.
Work with Maintenance, Engineering, and Manufacturing leadership to improve methods, tooling, fixtures, equipment, ergonomics, standards, and documentation.
Lead shift meetings, production huddles, and employee communications covering priorities, safety, quality, staffing, and production updates.
Maintain production reports, shortage logs, shift notes, escalation updates, and other records supporting continuity across Minnesota and Iowa operations.
Promote a respectful, accountable, safety-focused culture and encourage employees to identify improvement opportunities.
Assign work, monitor performance, support training and cross-training, review timekeeping, address attendance and conduct concerns, provide feedback, participate in reviews, support corrective action, and escalate employee relations matters.
Perform other duties as assigned.