Manufacturing Operations Manager

Work Schedule

Standard (Mon-Fri)

Environmental Conditions

Adherence to all Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) Safety Standards, Office, Some degree of PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) required (safety glasses, gowning, gloves, lab coat, ear plugs etc.), Warehouse

Job Description

As part of the Thermo Fisher Scientific team, you’ll discover meaningful work that makes a positive impact on a global scale. Join our colleagues in bringing our Mission to life every single day to enable our customers to make the world healthier, cleaner and safer. We provide our global teams with the resources needed to achieve individual career goals while helping to take science a step beyond by developing solutions for some of the world’s toughest challenges, like protecting the environment, making sure our food is safe or helping find cures for cancer.

About the Role:

As the Manufacturing Operations Manager, you will lead, direct and optimize manufacturing operations to safely deliver high-quality products on time, at the right cost, and in line with customer and business requirements. You will be accountable for operational performance across Safety, Quality, Delivery, Cost, Inventory, Productivity and People, while building the capability and capacity required to support sustainable business growth.

As a key member of the Site Leadership Team, you will translate business priorities into disciplined daily execution, develop high-performing production leaders and teams, and champion Practical Process Improvement (PPI), Lean Manufacturing, 5S and structured problem solving. You will partner closely with Engineering, Quality, Supply Chain, Planning, Finance, Human Resources, EHS and other support functions to improve flow, strengthen operational reliability, increase customer responsiveness and create a culture of ownership, accountability and continuous improvement.

What You'll Do:

Safety, Health & Environment

• Lead and promote a strong Safety First culture across all manufacturing operations, ensuring safety is embedded in daily leadership, planning and decision-making.

• Ensure manufacturing activities comply with applicable workplace health, safety, environmental and regulatory requirements, as well as Thermo Fisher Scientific EHS standards.

• Drive proactive hazard identification, risk assessment, incident prevention and corrective-action closure within production areas.

• Participate in and support investigations of safety incidents and near misses, ensuring root causes are understood and sustainable corrective actions are implemented.

• Conduct regular safety engagement activities, workplace inspections and leadership safety walks, and ensure identified actions are closed in a timely manner.

• Ensure employees are trained, competent and authorized to perform work safely and in accordance with approved procedures and controls.

Manufacturing Operations

• Lead daily manufacturing operations to achieve site production, customer and business requirements across Safety, Quality, Delivery, Cost and Inventory.

• Ensure production schedules are executed safely, efficiently and in accordance with approved quality standards, work instructions and customer requirements.

• Optimize labor, equipment, production-cell and material utilization to maximize throughput, capacity utilization and operational efficiency.

• Develop and execute manufacturing plans that align labor, skills, work bays, tooling and production capacity with current demand and future growth requirements.

• Drive disciplined daily management through tier meetings, visual management, standard work, escalation and structured problem solving.

• Review operational performance, identify gaps and implement timely countermeasures to protect customer commitments and site objectives.

• Lead production supervisors, team leaders and manufacturing employees to deliver consistent shift-to-shift execution and strong operational handovers.

Quality Excellence

• Ensure products are manufactured in accordance with customer specifications, approved processes and applicable quality-system requirements.

• Partner with Quality and Engineering to strengthen process capability, product quality and Right First Time performance.

• Lead structured problem-solving, root cause analysis and corrective-action implementation for manufacturing quality issues.

• Reduce defects, scrap, rework, out-of-box failures and customer complaints through effective process controls, standard work and employee ownership.

• Support internal, customer and external audits and ensure manufacturing-related findings and actions are addressed effectively.

Operational Excellence, PPI, Lean Manufacturing & 5S

• Champion Practical Process Improvement (PPI), Lean Manufacturing and 5S principles across manufacturing operations.

• Develop, implement and sustain world-class 5S standards across production areas, including workplace organization, housekeeping, visual management and standard work.

• Establish regular 5S audits, ownership routines and corrective-action follow-up to ensure improvements are sustained.

• Lead continuous improvement initiatives focused on waste elimination, improved flow, reduced cycle time, increased capacity and productivity improvement.

• Use Lean and PPI tools such as Value Stream Mapping, Kaizen, standard work, visual management, root cause analysis and problem-solving boards to improve end-to-end performance.

• Build employee capability and engagement in continuous improvement by coaching teams to identify problems, implement countermeasures and sustain gains.

• Partner with Engineering and Maintenance to improve equipment effectiveness, process reliability and manufacturing capability.

Leadership & People Development

• Lead, coach and develop production supervisors, team leaders and manufacturing employees to build a high-performance and highly engaged organization.

• Set clear expectations, establish accountability and ensure employees understand how their daily performance contributes to customer and site objectives.

• Conduct regular coaching, performance discussions and development planning, and address performance gaps in a timely and constructive manner.

• Develop succession plans, skills matrices, cross-training plans and talent pipelines to strengthen manufacturing capability and organizational resilience.

• Promote teamwork, respect, inclusion, ownership and continuous learning across the manufacturing organization.

• Ensure effective communication of business priorities, operational changes, performance results and key site messages to manufacturing teams.

Financial & Cost Management

• Manage manufacturing operations within approved budget and cost expectations while maintaining safety, quality and customer delivery performance.

• Drive productivity, labor-efficiency and cost-reduction initiatives and ensure benefits are measurable, validated and sustained.

• Monitor direct labor, overtime, manufacturing expenses and productivity performance and implement actions to address unfavorable trends.

• Identify opportunities to improve manufacturing profitability through better utilization, flow, standardization, automation and waste reduction.

• Support capital expenditure proposals and business cases for capacity, capability, safety, quality and productivity improvements.

Supply Chain, Inventory & Customer Delivery

• Partner with Planning and Supply Chain to ensure production plans are aligned with customer demand, material availability and site capacity.

• Improve schedule adherence, On-Time to Promise performance and backlog recovery through disciplined production planning and execution.

• Support inventory optimization, material-flow and inventory-accuracy initiatives while maintaining the materials required to protect customer delivery.

• Increase manufacturing responsiveness and flexibility to accommodate changing demand, product mix and customer priorities.

• Collaborate across functions to identify and mitigate production constraints, supplier risks and material shortages before they impact customers.

Maintenance & Asset Management

• Partner with Maintenance and Engineering to maximize equipment availability, production-cell reliability and manufacturing uptime.

• Support preventive and predictive maintenance programs and ensure production teams provide effective operational ownership and basic care of equipment.

• Participate in capital projects, equipment upgrades, new-product introductions and process-improvement initiatives that increase manufacturing capability and capacity.

• Ensure production equipment, tooling and work areas are maintained in a safe, organized and fit-for-purpose condition.

Stakeholder Management & Site Leadership

• Participate as a key member of the Site Leadership Team, contributing to site strategy, operating plans, capacity planning and business improvement priorities.

• Collaborate effectively with Engineering, Quality, Supply Chain, Planning, Finance, Human Resources, EHS and other functions to deliver integrated site outcomes.

• Build strong working relationships with customers, suppliers, contractors and external stakeholders where required to support operational performance.

• Provide clear, concise and data-based updates to site leadership on manufacturing performance, risks, constraints, recovery plans and improvement priorities.

Education

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Manufacturing, Operations Management, Business or a related discipline; equivalent relevant experience will be considered.

• Postgraduate qualification in Operations Management, Engineering, Manufacturing or Business Administration is advantageous.

• Lean, PPI or Six Sigma certification is preferred; Lean Six Sigma Green Belt or higher is highly regarded.

Experience

• Minimum of 8-10 years of progressive experience in manufacturing operations, including significant experience in a complex or regulated manufacturing environment.

• Minimum of 5 years of leadership experience managing production teams, supervisors or team leaders with accountability for operational performance.

• Demonstrated success delivering improvements in Safety, Quality, Delivery, Cost, Inventory and Productivity through disciplined operating systems and continuous improvement.

• Proven experience leading PPI, Lean Manufacturing, 5S, Kaizen or structured problem-solving initiatives and sustaining improvements over time.

• Experience managing performance through KPIs, tiered daily management, visual management and data-driven corrective actions.

• Experience leading cross-functional change, capacity expansion, operational recovery or manufacturing transformation initiatives.

• Experience with advanced, industrial, electronics, mining, defence, automotive, aerospace or similarly complex manufacturing environments is advantageous.

• Experience working in a global or matrix organization is preferred.

Knowledge, Skills, Abilities

• Strong manufacturing-operations leadership capability with a practical understanding of production planning, labor management, capacity, flow, standard work and operational control.

• Strong working knowledge of PPI, Lean Manufacturing, 5S, Kaizen, Value Stream Mapping, root cause analysis and structured problem-solving methodologies.

• Demonstrated ability to translate business demand and customer priorities into executable production plans, resource requirements and operating rhythms.

• Strong understanding of quality management systems, process control, Right First Time principles and corrective-action governance within a regulated environment.

• Strong financial and commercial acumen, including budget management, labor productivity, cost control, capital justification and benefit tracking.

• Working knowledge of ERP/MRP systems, production scheduling, inventory management and operational data analysis.

• Strong leadership and coaching skills with the ability to build accountability, engagement, capability and a culture of continuous improvement.

• Excellent problem-solving, prioritization and decision-making skills, with the ability to remain effective under changing priorities and operational pressure.

• Strong stakeholder-management, influencing and communication skills, including the ability to align cross-functional teams and communicate effectively at all levels.

• Ability to analyze operational data and metrics, identify trends and constraints, and translate findings into clear actions and measurable outcomes.

• Strong digital literacy, including Microsoft Office and relevant manufacturing, planning, reporting and data-visualization systems.

• Embodies Thermo Fisher Scientific's 4i values of Integrity, Intensity, Innovation and Involvement.

Benefits

Join our team and take advantage of these great benefits! Apply now to learn more about the full range of benefits we offer.

• Health & Wellbeing: Join a company that prioritizes your health & wellbeing with comprehensive benefits, wellness programs, and an Employee Assistance Program providing confidential support for personal and work-related issues.

• Flexibility: Balance your work and personal life with flexible arrangements.

• Extra Leave: Benefit from generous leave policies, including the option to purchase additional leave, paid birthday leave, and company paid parental leave.

• Charitable Giving & Volunteering: Make an impact with paid volunteer time to support non-profit organizations that matter to you.

• Learning & Development: Advance your career with access to online courses via Thermo Fisher Scientific University Plus and LinkedIn learning, workshops, and mentorship programs for continuous learning and skill development.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Australia WGEA Employer of Choice for Gender Equality

Our Mission is to enable our customers to make the world healthier, cleaner and safer. Watch as our colleagues explain 5 reasons to work with us. As one team of 125,000+ colleagues, we share a common set of values - Integrity, Intensity, Innovation and Involvement - working together to accelerate research, solve complex scientific challenges, drive technological innovation and support patients in need. #StartYourStory at Thermo Fisher Scientific, where diverse experiences, backgrounds and perspectives are valued.

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