Production Supervisor - 3rd Shift

About the Role

This position reports to the Production Manager and involves directing and managing plant floor operations with overall responsibility for production, quality, and related activities. The Production Supervisor will spend significant time on the production floor, working with direct reports to identify opportunities for process improvement, reduced downtime, waste reduction, cost savings, and quality enhancements—all while maintaining a safe work environment. The role includes developing, training, and mentoring manufacturing floor employees.

Responsibilities

• Commit to overall plant safety and procedures.
• Manage 3 to 30 manufacturing employees, planning, organizing, and directing day-to-day operations to exceed customer expectations.
• Increase production capacity, reduce waste, and improve flexibility while minimizing costs and maintaining quality standards.
• Ensure production output, product quality, waste reduction, and on-time shipping.
• Allocate resources effectively to optimize results.
• Implement strategies aligned with Division initiatives, providing clear direction for production employees.
• Monitor operations and take corrective actions as needed.
• Build trusting relationships with staff, recruit, manage, and develop plant employees.
• Provide leadership and drive training initiatives.
• Analyze data to identify areas of waste or overtime and implement improvement processes.
• Develop systems to track and optimize productivity, standards, metrics, and performance targets.
• Monitor, manage, and control expenses throughout the year.
• Participate in strategic planning and company processes.
• Conduct meetings to communicate company goals, objectives, and initiatives.
• Foster a "customer-focused" environment for both internal and external customers.
• Adhere to Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs) and Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs).
• Oversee continuous improvement programs.
• Communicate production needs to the Production Manager, Plant Manager, and local management team.
• Develop and analyze new methods to reduce costs, improve products, and ensure a safe working environment.
• Create a departmental vision and translate it into actionable items with specific deadlines and delegated responsibilities.
• Ensure plant operations meet or exceed safety goals by:
  • Understanding, communicating, and ensuring compliance with safety protocols and OSHA standards.
  • Participating in the Management Safety Team or assisting the Plant Safety Committee.
  • Promoting safety as a key strategic initiative and providing direction to employees.
  • Holding employees accountable for meeting safety expectations.
  • Acting as a role model for safe work practices.
  • Driving continuous improvement for safety across all plant operations.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s Degree in business, engineering, or a related field preferred, or equivalent experience.
• Minimum of 1 to 3 years of related experience and/or training in a manufacturing environment.
• Extrusion, plastic bag converting, or paper converting experience is a plus.
• Proven technical and leadership ability to deliver results using structured problem-solving.
• Ability to work effectively with minimal supervision at all organizational levels.
• Strong communication skills across all levels of the organization.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office and willingness to learn new systems.
• Superior problem-solving and coaching capabilities.
• Ability to relate to people at all levels of the organization.
• Strong team-building, decision-making, and people management skills.
• Knowledge of business and management principles, including budgeting, strategic planning, resource allocation, and human resources.
• Ability to read, analyze, and interpret complex documents and statistical information.
• Experience building computer-generated reports to measure and track departmental performance.
• Exceptional organizational, priority-setting, and time management skills.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills.

Skills

• Language Skills: Ability to read, analyze, and interpret business periodicals, professional journals, technical procedures, or governmental regulations. Ability to write reports, business correspondence, and procedure manuals. Ability to present information and respond to questions from employees, managers, clients, customers, and the public.
• Mathematical Skills: Ability to work with mathematical concepts and numerical data.
• Reasoning Ability: Ability to define problems, collect data, establish facts, and draw valid conclusions. Ability to interpret technical instructions in written or diagram form.
• Technical Skills:
  • Working knowledge of equipment design and capabilities to support efficient operation and training.
  • Understanding of cost issues to make daily decisions that reduce overall costs and identify areas for improvement.
  • Experience with budget development, adherence, and analysis.
  • Knowledge of quality standards and regulatory requirements, including wage and hour laws, environmental and waste minimization, company policies, and personnel requirements (OSHA, DEQ, EEO).

Physical Demands

• Regularly required to talk or hear.
• Frequently required to stand, walk, and sit.
• Occasionally required to use hands to finger, handle, or feel; reach with hands and arms; climb or balance; and stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl.
• Ability to lift and/or move up to 50 pounds.
• Specific vision abilities required include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and ability to adjust focus.

Work Environment

• Regularly exposed to moving mechanical parts.
• Frequently exposed to wet and/or humid conditions.
• Occasionally exposed to high, precarious places; fumes or airborne particles; and vibration.
• Noise level in the work environment is usually loud.