Operations Manager

ALIGN PRECISION – Clearwater, Florida

Position Summary

ALIGN PRECISION is seeking an exceptional Operations Manager to lead manufacturing operations at our beautiful Clearwater, Florida facility. This is a high-impact leadership role for a proven manufacturing professional who combines deep technical expertise in CNC machining and engineering with outstanding people leadership skills.

The ideal candidate is a servant leader who thrives on developing high-performing teams, driving operational excellence, and creating a culture of accountability, continuous improvement, and employee engagement. This individual will be responsible for ensuring world-class performance in safety, quality, delivery, cost, and workforce development while supporting the strategic growth of the business.

Key Responsibilities

Leadership & People Development

• Lead, coach, and develop supervisors, team leads, machinists, programmers, engineers, and support staff.
• Foster a culture built on accountability, teamwork, respect, and continuous improvement.
• Establish clear performance expectations and provide regular feedback, coaching, and mentoring.
• Drive employee engagement, retention, succession planning, and leadership development initiatives.
• Promote a positive, safety-first work environment where employees can perform at their highest level.
• Partner closely with Human Resources on recruiting, training, performance management, and workforce planning.

Manufacturing Operations

• Direct daily operations across CNC machining, production, scheduling, quality, maintenance, and manufacturing support functions.
• Ensure on-time delivery while maintaining the highest standards of quality and operational efficiency.
• Monitor key performance indicators (KPIs) and implement corrective actions to achieve operational objectives.
• Optimize labor utilization, machine capacity, workflow, and resource allocation.
• Lead cross-functional efforts to eliminate bottlenecks and improve throughput.

Engineering & Technical Leadership

• Collaborate with Manufacturing Engineering and Quality teams to improve processes and production performance.
• Apply strong knowledge of CNC machining, programming, tooling, fixturing, and manufacturing best practices.
• Support new product introductions, process development, and manufacturing readiness initiatives.
• Drive technical problem-solving activities utilizing root cause analysis and corrective action methodologies.

Lean Manufacturing & Continuous Improvement

• Champion Lean Manufacturing principles throughout the organization.
• Lead Kaizen events, value stream mapping, 5S initiatives, visual management programs, and waste reduction efforts.
• Develop and execute continuous improvement projects focused on productivity, quality, safety, and cost reduction.
• Establish a culture where continuous improvement is embedded into daily operations.

Business Performance

• Manage operational budgets and support achievement of financial objectives.
• Analyze operational data to identify trends, risks, and opportunities.
• Develop action plans that improve profitability while maintaining exceptional customer satisfaction.
• Support strategic planning and long-term growth initiatives.

Qualifications

Required

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Manufacturing, Operations Management, or related field; equivalent experience may be considered.
• 10+ years of progressive manufacturing leadership experience.
• Significant experience in CNC machining and precision manufacturing environments.
• Demonstrated success leading large production teams in a high-performance manufacturing setting.
• Strong understanding of Lean Manufacturing, Six Sigma, and continuous improvement methodologies.
• Proven ability to build, develop, and retain high-performing teams.
• Excellent communication, leadership, coaching, and conflict-resolution skills.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving capabilities.

Preferred

• Experience within aerospace, defense, medical device, or other highly regulated manufacturing industries.
• Lean Six Sigma certification.
• Experience with ERP/MRP systems and advanced manufacturing technologies.
• Multi-site manufacturing leadership experience.

What Success Looks Like

The successful Operations Manager will:

• Build a culture where employees are engaged, empowered, and accountable.
• Develop future leaders and strengthen organizational capability.
• Improve safety, quality, delivery, and productivity performance year over year.