Director of Operations

Director of Operations

Location: On-Site

Reports To: CEO

Direct Reports: Machinists, Plastics Technicians, Assemblers, Shipping, Technical Coordinator (9 total)

Compensation

                 Total Compensation Target: $120,000 - $150,000+ annually

                 Base Salary: $80,000 - $90,000 annually

Performance bonus is calculated quarterly based on measurable operational financial results that are within the Director of Operations control. The structure is designed to reward ownership, accountability, and measurable operational improvement.

                 Bonus is tied to:

·      Operational Contribution Margin (OCM)

·      On-Time Delivery (OTD)

·      Quantity Returned Rate (QRR)

·      CEO Evaluation

Role Overview

The Director of Operations owns Operational Contribution Margin (OCM) through disciplined execution of production, purchasing, labor efficiency, scrap control, supplier accountability, and on-time delivery performance.

This is a hands-on leadership role in a growing manufacturing company. The Director of Operations is directly responsible for protecting and improving margin by eliminating operational waste, enforcing purchasing discipline, improving production flow, and holding suppliers and internal teams accountable.

This position holds full authority over production scheduling, purchasing strategy, supplier performance, incoming quality enforcement, inventory discipline, and backlog management.

Success in this role is measured by Operational Contribution Margin, quality control, and reliable on-time delivery.

What This Role Must Know

A successful candidate should have strong working knowledge of:

• Manufacturing process flow and bottleneck identification
• Production scheduling and throughput management
• Purchasing discipline and supplier accountability
• Inventory control and working capital management
• Quality control and defect reduction systems
• Operational margin drivers within a manufacturing environment
• Lean operational principles and practical process improvement
• Basic financial literacy, including cost drivers and margin impact

This role requires the ability to translate operational improvements directly into financial performance.

What This Role Must Be Comfortable With

The right person for this role is comfortable with:

• Owning operational results end-to-end
• Working inside a small business environment where systems must be built and improved
• Making decisions with incomplete information and solving problems quickly
• Managing both production personnel and supplier relationships
• Implementing operational discipline and accountability across the shop floor
• Balancing operational efficiency with product quality and delivery performance
• Being directly responsible for measurable operational performance metrics
• Leading operational improvement initiatives rather than maintaining the status quo

This role is best suited for someone who prefers building and improving systems rather than simply maintaining existing processes.

Candidate Profile

The strongest candidates for this role typically come from environments where they have:

• Managed manufacturing operations or production systems
• Driven measurable improvements in efficiency, quality, or margin
• Implemented process improvements in growing manufacturing organizations
• Demonstrated the ability to take ownership of operational performance

This is a hands-on operational leadership role, not a purely administrative position.

Compensation

Compensation includes a competitive base salary plus a performance-based bonus tied directly to Operational Contribution Margin, Quantity Return Rate (QRR), and on-time delivery metrics.

This structure rewards disciplined operational leadership and measurable financial improvement.

Ideal Candidate Profile

• Experience leading production in a small-to-mid-sized manufacturing environment
• Has personally owned purchasing and supplier accountability
• Has implemented measurable scrap reduction and efficiency improvements
• Comfortable working without corporate support infrastructure
• Thinks in terms of financial outcomes, not just operational activity
• Speaks in numbers and measurable results
• Demonstrates ownership mentality and accountability

What Success Looks Like

Within 6–12 months:

• Operational Contribution Margin stabilizes and improves
• Scrap is measured and trending downward
• Purchasing is consolidated and disciplined
• Supplier credits are tracked and recovered
• Backlog is stable and predictable with lead time improvement
• CEO operational involvement is significantly reduced

This is a leadership role for someone who wants ownership, accountability, and the opportunity to materially impact a growing manufacturing company.