Career Options
General
Manufacturing is defined as managing a production operation and leading a team of people to take materials/components and make a finished product. It is a core function in companies that generate the majority of their revenues through providing customers a physical product. Manufacturing has received growing attention in the last 10 years due to the emphasis on quality, increased productivity, Lean Manufacturing and customer focus. Global competition and technology are driving companies to invest in cutting-edge manufacturing processes. For this reason, production plants are typically fast-paced and results-driven environments that are constantly changing and improving processes to meet customer demands. While companies invest a lot of money in state-of-the-art technology, people and teams are the keys to utilizing the technology and the systems in order to get results. For this reason, manufacturing requires strong team leaders. To learn more about the Manufacturing career field, watch the video below where former junior military officers in various stages of a manufacturing leadership career describe their experience.
Key Connecting Points
Technical Skills
Manufacturing facilities are technical in nature and always changing (companies constantly upgrade technology to improve production results). Most plants use a combination of mechanical, electromechanical, electrical, and electronic systems.
Team Leadership
Manufacturing Team Leaders are responsible for leading a team of 10 to 40 people who make a product or a component of a product. They motivate their team to achieve quality, quantity, cost, and process improvement goals.
Continuous Improvement
Manufacturing is the foundation of profitability of a company. Thus, Manufacturing Team Leaders drive improvements to lower production costs (making their product more profitable) and improve quality.
Possible Job Titles
- Production Supervisor
- Work Center Manager
- Maintenance Supervisor
- Manufacturing Team Leader
- Facilitator
- Manufacturing Manager
Sample Job Description
Manufacturing: Please keep in mind the following job description is just one of many possible Manufacturing job descriptions.
To support their business model, the manufacturing operation is state-of-the-art and constantly evolving, using cutting-edge concepts such as high-performance teams, JIT, Kaizen, TQM, continuous flow, cellular manufacturing, SPC, and computer-integrated manufacturing. Due to the demand for their products, this manufacturing operation is a dynamic, rapidly changing, and fast-paced environment. You will start your career as a Team Leader where you will lead and guide production teams in one of the functional areas of the plant. You will be responsible for planning, directing and coordinating all activities of your team to meet and exceed production goals. You will work closely with your team to create programs for their career development, skill enhancement, and performance improvement. You will get involved in production planning, managing budgets, determining staff requirements, identifying training requirements, developing training programs, monitoring product quality performance, and initiating and implementing process improvement programs to improve the performance and efficiency of your team. You will evaluate production processes, analyze and resolve production bottlenecks, and initiate ways to enhance production capabilities to meet consumer demand. This position will allow a successful candidate to have many future career opportunities throughout the company (manufacturing, marketing, sales, etc.).
Career Tips
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