Sr Director, Project Management - Manufacturing Transformation

About the role

The Sr. Director, Project Management – Manufacturing Transformation leads the strategy, governance, and execution of Excelitas' multi-site manufacturing transformation portfolio. This role builds and leads a project/program management function that drives standardization, operational excellence, and measurable performance improvement across manufacturing operations. Based in Pittsburgh, the Sr. Director partners with plant leadership, operations, engineering, supply chain, and finance to translate strategic transformation goals into structured programs, with clear governance, milestones, and ROI tracking. This role will travel 60% of the time across Excelitas manufacturing sites.

Key Responsibilities

• Own the manufacturing transformation roadmap, translating enterprise strategy into a structured portfolio of programs and projects across multiple sites.
• Build and lead a project management function/PMO for manufacturing operations, including standard methodology, governance cadence, and reporting.
• Partner with plant and operations leaders to identify, prioritize, and sequence transformation initiatives (e.g., lean/continuous improvement, automation, facility consolidation, systems/ERP rollouts, capacity expansion).
• Establish and track KPIs for transformation programs (cost savings, throughput, quality, on-time delivery, safety) and report progress to executive leadership.
• Lead cross-functional project teams, ensuring clear scope, budget, timeline, and risk management for each initiative.
• Drive change management efforts to ensure sustained adoption of new processes, systems, and ways of working at the site level.
• Manage program budgets and business cases, working closely with Finance to validate ROI and track realized benefits.
• Identify and mitigate cross-site risks and interdependencies; escalate and resolve roadblocks.
• Develop, mentor, and grow project/program management talent; build organizational project management maturity.
• Serve as a key advisor to senior operations leadership on transformation strategy, sequencing, and resourcing.

Qualifications & Experience

• Bachelor's degree in engineering, operations management, business, or related field; MBA or advanced degree preferred.
• 10+ years of progressive experience in manufacturing operations, project/program management, or operational excellence, including 5+ years in a leadership role.
• Experience with site consolidations required.
• Experience with greenfield and/or brownfield start-ups required.
• Demonstrated success leading large-scale manufacturing transformation, operational excellence, or PMO-building initiatives in a multi-site environment.
• Strong knowledge of Lean, Six Sigma, or comparable continuous improvement methodologies; PMP or equivalent project management certification preferred.
• Proven ability to influence senior stakeholders and lead cross-functional teams without direct authority.
• Experience managing multi-million dollar program budgets and building/tracking business cases.
• Strong analytical, communication, and change-management skills.
• Experience in a regulated or precision manufacturing environment (e.g., optics, photonics, aerospace/defense, medical device) is a plus.