Operations Manager
Owens Corning · Savannah
The Operations Leader has primary responsibility for managing production operations at the manufacturing facility. This salaried leadership role directs the work of Front Line Supervisors, Operations Coordinators, and assigned operations personnel and exercises independent judgment in establishing priorities, allocating resources, managing performance, and delivering business results. The Operations Leader implements organizational strategies, standards, and practices to achieve best-in-class performance in the following areas:
- Environmental, Health & Safety – Ensuring that our employees live injury-free lives and being a model for Safer Together
- Quality – producing zero defects or failures to customer requirements
- Production surety - executing the operations strategy, meeting customer demand, and making risk based decisions on material availability
- Talent – Attracting, developing, and retaining the professionals for our future
- Cost – ensuring that the business targets are met or exceeded
The position reports directly to the Plant Leader and serves as the senior leader accountable for production operations at the plant. The Operations Leader is a member of the Natural Leadership Team (NLT), which includes leadership from Maintenance, EHS, Quality, Supply Chain/Warehouse, Finance, and Human Resources.
Job Responsibilities
Safety & Environmental Leadership
- Lead a culture where safety is a core value, ensuring a safe, secure, clean, and environmentally compliant workplace for employees, contractors, and visitors.
- Provide the leadership, resources, training, and systems necessary to drive toward zero injuries and environmental non-conformities.
- Establish clear safety expectations and accountability while recognizing and reinforcing safe behaviors.
- Utilize safety metrics, near-miss reporting, assessments, and incident trends to identify risk and continuously improve performance.
Operational Excellence
- Lead manufacturing operations to achieve objectives for safety, quality, service, productivity, cost, and environmental performance.
- Lead Autonomous Maintenance (AM), TPM, Lean, Six Sigma, standardized work, and continuous improvement to improve equipment reliability, operating efficiency, quality, and cost.
- Optimize labor, materials, equipment, and resources while ensuring production schedules, customer specifications, and quality requirements are consistently achieved.
- Establish measurable performance expectations, analyze operating results, and coordinate front-line leadership to deliver plant objectives.
Strategy & Business Results
- Translate plant strategy into clear operational priorities and lead execution of short- and long-term business plans.
- Develop and manage operating and capital plans, including manpower, production, capital investments, and resource requirements.
- Apply data-driven decision-making to improve productivity, eliminate losses and defects, control costs, and strengthen overall plant performance.
- Partner across plant functions and customer-facing organizations to align priorities, meet customer expectations, and achieve business objectives.
People, Culture & Employee Relations
- Create an inclusive, engaged, and high-performing workplace characterized by trust, accountability, teamwork, open communication, and recognition.
- Promote employee ownership of business results and strengthen engagement through consistent leadership and communication.
- Maintain positive employee and labor relations through consistent application of company policies, labor agreements, and applicable requirements.
- Monitor engagement, retention, employee feedback, and organizational effectiveness to identify opportunities to strengthen the workplace.
Talent & Leadership Development
- Build organizational capability by attracting, developing, engaging, and retaining high-performing talent.
- Develop front-line leaders and direct reports through clear expectations, coaching, performance management, development planning, and accountability.
- Build a strong internal talent pipeline and succession plans for critical roles while supplementing talent through external recruiting as needed.
- Address performance issues appropriately while recognizing strong performance and creating opportunities for employees to grow and assume greater responsibility.
Management Authority & Accountability
- Customarily and regularly direct the work of at least two full-time employees or the equivalent through assigned salaried and hourly leadership structures.
- Make, or provide recommendations given particular weight concerning, hiring, termination, promotion, discipline, advancement, compensation, and other changes in employment status for direct and indirect reports.
- Set departmental objectives, assign and direct work, assess performance, address conduct and performance concerns, and ensure leaders and employees are held accountable for results.
- Exercise discretion and independent judgment on significant operational matters, including staffing, scheduling, resource allocation, production priorities, risk response, and escalation of business issues.
Plant Leadership
- Serve as a key member of the plant leadership team, driving alignment and collaboration across Operations, Maintenance, EHS, Quality, Supply Chain, Finance, Human Resources, and other functions.
- Model effective leadership by challenging thinking, sharing best practices, providing candid and respectful feedback, and building strong cross-functional partnerships.
- Lead and support plant-wide initiatives and high-performance teams that improve overall plant and business results.
- Support the Plant Leader in executing site strategy, organizational priorities, and other critical business needs.
Experience:
- Minimum of five years of progressively responsible experience in a cross-functional, complex manufacturing environment, including direct people-leadership responsibility.
- Demonstrated experience leading cross-functional teams and plant-wide initiatives.
- Demonstrated success hiring, developing, retaining, and promoting talent.
- Experience leading in union-represented and/or non-union operations; labor-relations and collective-bargaining experience preferred.
- Formal training or demonstrated proficiency in TPM, Lean, Six Sigma, or a comparable continuous-improvement system.
- Bachelor’s degree in engineering, business, operations, or a related field preferred; equivalent relevant experience may be considered.
Knowledge, Skills & Abilities:
- Computer skills: the ability to utilize OC systems and the software necessary for this role
- Utilizing data and data collection systems, and Six Sigma methods for problem-solving and decision-making to eliminate manufacturing losses and unnecessary costs
- Creating and implementing strategic and operations plans
- Leading and motivating peers, managers and subordinates
- Effective with verbal and written communication
- Business and Financial acumen
- Understands that all business opportunities start with knowledge of how to create value for customer.\
- Strong planning, resourcing and delegation skills
- Able to engage and care for others starting with safety
- Able to achieve results fast both individually and through teams
#LI-AW1 #LI-ONSITE
About Owens Corning
Owens Corning is a branded building products leader with three complementary market-leading businesses providing roofing, insulation, and doors primarily for residential markets in North America and Europe. The company operates with an integrated go-to-market strategy and a unique set of OC Advantages™ – including its iconic brand, unparalleled commercial strength, leading technology, and winning cost position – to help customers win and grow in the market. Owens Corning is committed to helping build better and achieve more through winning partnerships, leading performance, and engaging people. Founded in 1938 and headquartered in Toledo, Ohio, Owens Corning is listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: OC). For more information, visit www.owenscorning.com.
Owens Corning is an equal opportunity employer. Except in limited circumstances such as formal apprenticeship programs, Owens Corning does not employ anyone under the age of 18.