Vice President Operations - Commercial Paint (Required)

Cherry Coatings•Madison, WI

About The Position

Cherry Coatings is a family-owned commercial paint contractor established in 1968, providing architectural, industrial, and maintenance coating services. The Vice President of Operations supports City Leaders in planning, leading, and overseeing daily operations across the company’s markets, with a strong focus on safety, quality, and production. The role requires deep experience in commercial paint operations and works closely with Project Managers, Field Managers, Foremen, employees, subcontractors, and general contractors to meet client needs and deliver successful projects. The position oversees operational performance, workforce planning, safety initiatives, quality control, production, training, recruiting, and retention. It helps teams manage project costs, schedules, change orders, labor forecasting, subcontractors, and problem jobs. The Vice President also collaborates on project approaches and product selection, supports preconstruction and buyout activities, and helps City Leaders develop new products, services, and subsidiaries. The role follows Cherry Coatings’ core values: putting others first, developing and mentoring people, responding promptly, innovating, and following through with excellence.

Requirements

Deep operations experience in commercial paint environments.
Ability to solve problems using critical thinking.
Ability to handle change and adapt easily.
Strategic thinking and planning skills.
Accountability.
Ability to mentor and motivate people.
Organization and time-management skills.
Decision-making skills.

Responsibilities

Oversee day-to-day commercial painting operations at a high level across the region.
Maintain and reinforce a safety-first culture, and establish and evaluate safety standards for employees and subcontractors.
Recruit and hire field personnel, and help recruit, onboard, evaluate, and manage subcontractors, including setting pay rates and holding them accountable.
Train and mentor Project Managers, Field Managers, and Foremen; evaluate training needs and provide solutions.
Work with Project Managers and City Leaders to allocate and move personnel appropriately across projects and ensure field teams are properly staffed.
Meet with general contractors to ensure client needs are met, protect project sequencing, resolve problems, and establish what Cherry Coatings needs to succeed.
Attend project meetings to address schedule or sequence concerns, change orders, quality, risk management, and safety.
Ensure change-order logs are maintained and extra work is accounted for; review job-cost sheets to protect profitability and control costs.
Walk jobs with Project Managers and Field Managers to assess performance and train and develop the team.
Review field-staff scheduling and labor forecasts to ensure appropriate staffing and project profitability.
Understand the requirements of different job types and how Cherry Coatings executes them; hold teams accountable for safety, quality, and production.
Identify operational problems and inefficiencies, take corrective action, and find leaner ways to execute work.
Conduct routine Field Manager and Foremen meetings using the EOS System to identify and resolve concerns and improvement opportunities.
Conduct frequent job walks to verify safety, quality, and production standards.
Work with the team to implement the vision and execution of the VTO, and assist City Leaders with developing new products, services, and subsidiaries.
Attend preconstruction meetings to support seamless project starts with field leadership and assist as other markets are developed.
Collaborate with Project Managers and Field Managers on innovative project approaches, processes, product selection, and jobsite situations.
Review schedule changes for effects on project profitability and assist with forecasting project labor costs.
Participate in buyout meetings and scope reviews for potential projects, provide field expertise, and build relationships with general contractors through meetings, calls, and entertainment.
Lead market operations, including attending L10 integrator meetings, leading L10 operations meetings, and attending L10 Project Manager meetings as needed.
Provide high-level leadership on problem jobs by walking sites, setting systems and milestones to recover performance, meeting with general contractors, holding teams accountable, and following up regularly.
Support safety initiatives, quality control, production, site walks, RPRS culture, training and mentoring, recruiting and retention, innovation and R&D, implementation, motivation, and manpower allocation.