Position Overview 

The Director of Manufacturing is a senior executive responsible for the strategic, operational, and financial performance of multiple manufacturing plants producing defense-related systems, subsystems, and complex industrial products. This role ensures operational excellence, scalability, regulatory compliance, and delivery performance across a diversified product portfolio in highly regulated defense and aerospace environments.

The position combines strong executive leadership, deep manufacturing expertise, and hands-on operational governance to ensure safe, compliant, cost-effective, and resilient production across all sites.

Key Responsibilities

• Manufacturing Strategy & Multi-Plant Governance
  • Define and deploy the global manufacturing strategy aligned with corporate objectives and defense program requirements.
  • Lead and coordinate operations across multiple plants and product lines, ensuring standardization where appropriate and flexibility where required.
  • Establish governance models, operating rhythms, and performance management systems across all manufacturing sites.
  • Drive capacity planning and footprint optimization.
• Operational Excellence & Production Management
  • Ensure achievement of safety, quality, delivery, and cost (SQDC) targets across all plants.
  • Lead production planning, scheduling, and execution.
  • Implement and sustain Lean Manufacturing and Continuous Improvement systems (PDCA, 6M, Kaizen, Value Stream Management).
  • Oversee production implementation, ramp-up, rate increases, and recovery plans for critical programs.
• Quality, Compliance & Risk Management
  • Ensure full compliance with defense and aerospace standards and regulations, including AS9100/EN9100, customer military requirements, and applicable export control regulations (e.g., ITAR/EAR).
  • Identify operational risks and implement mitigation and contingency plans across sites.
  • Promote a strong safety culture and ensure compliance with EHS regulations.
• Industrialization & Manufacturing Engineering Interface
  • Partner with Manufacturing Engineering to ensure robust industrialization of new products and programs.
  • Drive manufacturability, producibility, and standardization across plants and product families.
  • Ensure tooling, equipment, automation, and infrastructure are aligned with current and future production needs.
  • Support transfer of work packages between plants and countries.
• Financial Management & Performance Control
  • Own manufacturing budgets, forecasts, and cost control for all plants.
  • Drive productivity improvements, cost reduction initiatives, and margin enhancement.
  • Establish and monitor KPIs related to efficiency, utilization, scrap, rework, and delivery performance.
  • Support long-term investment planning (CAPEX) and business cases.
• Leadership & Talent Development
  • Lead, develop, and align Plant Managers and Manufacturing Managers.
  • Build a strong leadership pipeline through coaching, mentoring, and succession planning.
  • Promote a culture of accountability, collaboration, operational discipline, and continuous improvement.
  • Drive workforce planning, skills development, and organizational scalability.

Required Qualifications

• Education
  • Bachelor’s degree in Industrial, Mechanical, Manufacturing, Aeronautical, or Production Engineering.
  • MBA or Executive Education in Operations, Business, or Leadership preferred.
• Professional Experience
  • 20+ years of experience in manufacturing and industrial operations.
  • Proven leadership of multi-plant and multi-product manufacturing environments.
  • Strong background in defense, aerospace, or other highly regulated industries.
  • Demonstrated experience managing large operational teams and complex supply chains.
• Technical & Regulatory Expertise
  • Deep understanding of:
    • Aerospace and defense quality systems (AS9100 / EN9100).
    • Complex production systems (low-rate initial production and serial production).
    • Industrial KPIs and performance management.
    • Export control and defense compliance environments.
• Leadership & Behavioral Competencies
  • Executive-level leadership with strong operational presence (hands-on).
  • Strategic mindset with strong execution capability.
  • Ability to lead through complexity, pressure, and tight delivery commitments.
  • Strong communication, negotiation, and stakeholder management skills.
  • High ethical standards and commitment to compliance and safety.
• Languages
  • Fluent in English (mandatory).
  • Additional languages are a strong asset in global operations.