Sr. Manager, Manufacturing Operations

About the Role

The Senior Manager Powertrain - Operations sets the vision and strategic path for the Production and Maintenance organizations within Powertrain. This role leads production and maintenance teams, collaborating with Engineering and cross-functional teams to achieve Safety, People, Quality, Production/Delivery, and Cost KPI targets. Responsibilities include production and resource planning, coaching and mentoring leaders, launching new programs, and daily tactical execution to meet build plans while ensuring safety, quality, rate, and cost targets. The role requires guiding teams through complex issues, distilling data to solve problems, and driving continuous improvement.

Responsibilities

• Set the vision and strategic path for the Production and Maintenance organizations within Powertrain and lead the team to achieve Safety, People, Quality, Production, and Cost KPI targets.
• Execute tactical planning to achieve the production build plan with the highest safety, quality, and yield performance.
• Launch new programs, lead production ramps, and manage product design changes through resource planning, program management, and collaboration with NPI, manufacturing engineering, and design engineering teams.
• Identify production bottlenecks and address availability, efficiency, and yield constraints to achieve ramp plans.
• Coach and mentor the team on data collection, analysis, complex problem-solving, and daily improvements.
• Guide the team through root cause analysis, methodical problem-solving, and first-principle thinking.
• Maintain a culture of adherence to standardized work, documented processes, and compliance to ensure safe practices and quality specifications.
• Instill process standardization, audits, training, and continuous improvement.
• Lead the maintenance team on equipment availability, preventive/predictive maintenance, project planning, downtime data analysis, and spare parts management to achieve availability targets and build rates.
• Make quick decisions in ambiguous situations, build high-performing teams, set clear expectations, and manage performance with concise feedback.
• Develop a technical understanding of product design intent, processes, equipment operation, and line balancing to solve problems and drive improvements.
• Collaborate with HR and other teams to improve team morale and create a high-performance work environment.

Requirements

• Degree in Manufacturing, Mechanical, Chemical, Electrical, or Industrial Engineering preferred, or equivalent experience.
• 7-10 years of leadership and manufacturing experience, preferably in the automotive industry or a highly technical manufacturing environment.
• Analytical, detail-oriented, self-driven, and able to proactively communicate in a fast-paced, multicultural environment.
• Experience with process improvement methodologies, efficiency enhancements, yield and availability improvements, design of experiments, and statistical methods.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to work under pressure, manage competing demands, and meet tight deadlines.
• Hands-on experience implementing lean methodologies and world-class manufacturing practices.
• Proficiency in structured problem-solving methods (e.g., 8Ds, fishbone diagrams, 5 WHY analysis).
• Ability to foster collaboration across teams, management, and cross-functional groups.
• High-level leadership, decision-making, and interpersonal skills with a strong sense of urgency.
• Proficiency in MS Office, Visio, CAD, SPC charts, data analysis tools, JIRAs, Tableau/BI dashboards, and project management tools.

Benefits

• Competitive pay and full-time Tesla employee benefits starting on day 1.
• Medical plans with $0 payroll deduction options.
• Family-building, fertility, adoption, and surrogacy benefits.
• Dental and vision plans with $0 paycheck contribution options.
• Company-paid Health Savings Account (HSA) contributions when enrolled in the High-Deductible medical plan.
• Healthcare and Dependent Care Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA).
• 401(k) with employer match, Employee Stock Purchase Plans, and other financial benefits.
• Company-paid Basic Life, AD&D, short-term, and long-term disability insurance (90-day waiting period).
• Employee Assistance Program.
• Sick and vacation time (flex time for salaried positions, accrued hours for hourly positions) and paid holidays.
• Back-up childcare and parenting support resources.
• Voluntary benefits including critical illness, hospital indemnity, accident insurance, theft & legal services, and pet insurance.
• Weight loss and tobacco cessation programs.
• Tesla Babies program.
• Commuter benefits.
• Employee discounts and perks program.