Operations & Strategy - Director, Manufacturing Operations

• Director – Operations
• Milacron India
• ROLE SNAPSHOT
• Function
• Operations – Manufacturing, Quality, Industrial Engineering, Master Scheduling, EHS
• Reports To
• Managing Director – India
• Direct Reports
• Manufacturing / Assembly │ Quality │ Master Scheduling │ Industrial Engineering │ EHS
• Location
• Ahmedabad
• Role Type
• Full-time, Senior Leadership
• ROLE PURPOSE

The Director – Operations is the strategic custodian of Milacron India’s manufacturing and operational excellence. This role drives end-to-end Operations, Quality, Master Scheduling and Continuous improvement, ensuring alignment with the company’s growth plan, revenue targets, and EBIDTA objectives.

The position champions world-class manufacturing strategies, ERP/MRP discipline, lean practices, and quality governance, while fostering collaboration across Sales, Engineering, Finance, and global supply chain partners. As a senior leader, the Director builds organizational resilience, scalability, and a culture of continuous improvement, directly influencing customer satisfaction and shareholder value.

• KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
• Strategic Leadership and Policy
• Define and execute long-term operational strategies aligned with business growth and profitability.
• Present operational improvement ideas, revenue/cash flow strategies, and investment proposals to the MD and Board.
• Establish governance frameworks, SOPs, and compliance structures across manufacturing and supply chain.
• Drive excellence in Make-to-Order / High-Mix / Engineered-to-Order manufacturing environments involving significant customer-specific requirements and product customization.
• Manufacturing Process Excellence
• Develop and implement manufacturing plans based on market demand and business forecasts.
• Drive throughput improvement, cost optimization, and asset utilization across plants.
• Institutionalize lean manufacturing, Six Sigma, and automation initiatives.
• Build a strong culture of safety, quality, operational discipline and continuous improvement.
• Supply Chain & Logistics
• Oversee inbound and outbound logistics, import/export compliance, and vendor partnerships.
• Build resilient supply chains with VMI, JIT, Kanban, and digital visibility tools.
• Quality & Compliance
• Champion world-class quality standards across all manufacturing units.
• Act as liaison with vendors/customers to ensure compliance with ISO, EHS, and statutory requirements.
• Drive zero-defect culture and customer satisfaction metrics.
• IT & Digital Transformation
• Lead the digitization and Industry 4.0 agenda, including automation, shop-floor analytics and data driven manufacturing.
• Lead ERP/MRP system development and integration for operational efficiency.
• Implement digital dashboards, analytics, and automation tools for decision-making.
• Build IT-enabled processes to strengthen organizational agility.
• Master Scheduling & SIOP
• Oversee demand-supply balancing, capacity planning, and inventory governance.
• Ensure synchronization between Sales, Manufacturing, and Finance through monthly SIOP reviews.
• Provide executive dashboards and scenario planning to MD and leadership team.
• Team Leadership & Capability Building
• Lead and inspire teams across multiple functions and departments.
• Build leadership pipelines through mentoring, training, and succession planning.
• Foster a culture of accountability, collaboration, and continuous improvement.
• PROPOSED TEAM STRUCTURE
• The Director – Operations oversees the following direct reports and supporting desks:
• Direct Report
• Key Focus
• Team Under
• Operations / Manufacturing  
• Plant operations, Assembly, on-time delivery
• Plant Heads, Production Managers
• Quality
• World-class quality standards, compliance, audits
• QA/QC Managers, Testing team
• Industrial Engineering / Lean Management
• Ergonomic, efficient, scalable design solutions, process optimization & digitalization, Lean deployment
• Manufacturing Engineers & Lean Specialists
• Master Scheduling
• Demand-supply balancing, ERP/MRP discipline
• PPC Engineers, Schedulers
• Store / Logistics 
• Inbound/outbound logistics, vendor management, Store operations
• Store team / logistics team
• EHS
• Environment, Health & Safety governance; ISO 14001 & 45001 compliance; sustainability roadmap; risk management
• EHS team
• SUCCESS METRICS / KPIs
• Manufacturing & Operations
• Supply Chain & Quality
• IT & Governance
• Throughput improvement (%)
• EBITDA Growth
• Asset utilization
• OTD (On-Time Delivery)
• Lean/Six Sigma project closure
• Logistics cost optimization Inventory accuracy (>95%)
• Import/export compliance
• Customer satisfaction index
• Safety & compliance metrics
• ERP/MRP adherence
• Digital dashboard timeliness
• Automation ROI
• Data-driven decision-making
• IT-enabled efficiency gains
• KEY SKILL REQUIREMENTS
• Skill Dimension
• What We Are Looking For
• Technical & Operational
• Manufacturing strategy │ ERP/MRP systems │ Supply chain resilience │ Quality governance │ Lean/Six Sigma │ Automation
• Analytics & Planning
• Demand-supply balancing │ Capacity planning │ KPI dashboards │ Financial acumen │ Advanced Excel / Power BI proficiency
• Interpersonal & Leadership
• Executive leadership │ Stakeholder management │ Global vendor partnerships │ Team development │ Cross-functional collaboration
• Behavioural
• Strategic thinker │ Execution-focused │ Strong ownership mindset │ Decisive │ Continuous improvement orientation
• EXPERIENCE PROFILE
• 25+ years leadership in manufacturing operations, with deep expertise in capital equipment and machine industries.
• Operations excellence track record — leading large teams, driving transformation, digitization, and automation.
• High-mix/ Engineer-to-Order (ETO) expertise — proven success in Make-to-Order and Engineered-to-Order environments.
• Capacity scaling — established new facilities, managed large capex programs, and expanded manufacturing footprint.

Commercial & P&L acumen — strong grasp of manufacturing economics, productivity, cost, quality, and delivery, with the ability to drive profitability, optimize cash flow, and align operational decisions with financial outcomes.

• Strategic leadership — hands-on, transformational leader influencing Board/MD decisions and building world-class organizations.
• EDUCATION
• Graduate/Postgraduate in Engineering (Mechanical/Electrical preferred) with a mandatory Master’s in Business Administration (MBA).
• Additional certifications in Supply Chain, Lean/Six Sigma, or EHS will be an advantage.
• #LI-SK1