Director, Environmental, Health & Safety (EHS)

Apogee Enterprises · Wausau

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Position Summary

The Director of EHS for Architectural Metals is responsible for ensuring the health and safety of employees, protecting the environment, plant protection/security programs, and maintaining compliance with regulations through initiatives and fostering collaboration across multiple sites to support the organization's overall success.

Key Responsibilities

• Enterprise EHS Strategy

• Develop and execute a multi-year Metals EHS strategy aligned with business growth, operational excellence, and employee engagement objectives.
• Establish long-term EHS priorities, roadmaps, and performance targets across all Metals locations.
• Serve as a strategic advisor to the Metals Leadership Team on safety, environmental, security, and occupational health risks and opportunities.

• Building One Metals EHS System

• Lead the standardization and integration of EHS processes, systems, governance, and performance expectations across all Metals locations.
• Identify and implement best practices while reducing unnecessary variation between sites.
• Establish common metrics, leading indicators, reporting standards, and accountability mechanisms.

• Culture Transformation

• Lead the development of a proactive safety culture that moves the organization beyond compliance toward personal ownership, risk recognition, and continuous improvement.
• Partner with operational leaders to embed EHS accountability into leadership expectations and performance management processes.

• Leadership Team Influence

• Partner with Corp EHS, ELT, Directors, and Site Leaders to integrate EHS considerations into business strategy, capital planning, operational decisions, and organizational change initiatives.
• Influence decision-making through data, risk assessment, and business case development.

• Data, Analytics & Leading Indicators

• Develop and leverage EHS analytics, leading indicators, and trend analysis to proactively identify risk and drive business decisions.
• Utilize data to prioritize resources, improve performance, and reduce operational risk.

• Occupational Health

• Partner with Occupational Health to develop strategies related to injury prevention, return-to-work programs, ergonomics, employee wellness, and regulatory compliance.

• Capital & Business Planning

• Partner with Operations, Engineering, and Finance to ensure EHS considerations are incorporated into capital projects, facility expansions, equipment purchases, and business growth initiatives.

• Talent Strategy

• Develop and execute a Metals EHS talent strategy, including succession planning, capability development, leadership coaching, and organizational design to support future business needs.

• Risk Management & Governance

• Establish and maintain an enterprise EHS risk management framework, including risk identification, assessment, mitigation, and tracking.
• Lead enterprise-wide risk reviews and ensure alignment with corporate risk management processes.
• Ensure robust governance, audit readiness, and internal controls across all Metals operations.
• Oversee incident investigation standards and ensure root cause discipline and systemic corrective actions.

• Regulatory Strategy & External Interface

• Ensure compliance with all applicable EHS regulations while proactively monitoring and preparing for emerging regulatory changes.
• Serve as the primary interface with regulatory agencies, auditors, and external stakeholders.
• Lead permitting strategies and ensure environmental compliance for existing and new operations.

• Incident & Crisis Management

• Establish and lead enterprise incident response and crisis management protocols.
• Provide leadership during significant incidents, ensuring timely escalation, communication, and recovery.
• Drive organizational learning from serious incidents across all sites.

• Contractor & Supply Chain EHS

• Often a major risk area that gets underemphasized.
• Develop and enforce contractor EHS management standards across all Metals locations.
• Ensure EHS expectations are embedded within procurement and supply chain processes.
• Monitor contractor performance and integrate them into site safety culture.

Experience & Skills

• Education:

• Bachelor’s degree in a related field, MBA/Graduate Degree preferred.

• Experience:

• 15+ years of progressive Environmental, Health & Safety leadership experience within a complex manufacturing environment.
• Demonstrated experience leading multi-site EHS programs and teams.
• Experience developing enterprise-wide EHS strategies and driving organizational change.
• Experience influencing executive leadership and operating in a matrixed organization.

• Required Skills:

• Strategic thinking and enterprise risk management capability
• Ability to translate EHS risk into business impact and financial terms
• Change management and culture transformation expertise
• Executive presence and ability to influence senior leadership decision-making
• Strong knowledge of regulatory frameworks (OSHA, EPA, etc.) and compliance systems
• Incident investigation methodologies 
• Ability to lead through ambiguity and drive standardization across diverse operations
• Contractor and supply chain EHS management expertise

• Preferred Skills:

• Ability to understand, interpret, and write instructions, procedures, etc.
• Must exhibit a professional behavior and attitude, technically and personally, in all aspects of the work environment and always demonstrate respect for all others.
• Manage direct reports on the EHS Team and provide guidance to EHS Liaisons at other locations.

Work Environment

This position may require travel to various Architectural Metals locations (20%). Regularly works in both office and manufacturing environments, requiring adherence to safety protocols.

Our Benefits

Apogee and our brands are an Equal Opportunity Employer.

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