Vice President of Manufacturing

About the role

The Vice President of Manufacturing will serve as a key member of NCC’s Strategic Planning Leadership Team. This role will help set company direction and implement business strategy, focusing on ensuring manufacturing excellence, driving strategic growth, and leading a high-performing team.

Responsibilities

• Earn world-class safety, quality, delivery, and cost performance through refined Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and accountability systems.
• Own end-to-end manufacturing operations across three locations, including fabrication, welding, wire forming, tube bending, powder coating, assembly, and distribution functions.
• Optimize production systems for high-mix, low-to-medium volume manufacturing while balancing customer responsiveness with operational efficiency.
• Develop agile planning and scheduling processes that support rapid shifts in demand.
• Ensure flawless execution for strategic customers with demanding service expectations.
• Build a manufacturing organization to support growth, automation, and continued market expansion.
• Partner closely with ownership on capital planning and equipment investments to achieve facility optimization initiatives.
• Ensure manufacturability of new product introductions while identifying opportunities to expand capacity, improve flexibility, and enhance NCC’s competitive advantage.
• Lead, mentor, and develop a team of senior operation professionals with oversight for 250+ team members across three locations and three shifts.
• Foster a culture that promotes safety, ownership, collaboration, continuous improvement, and operational discipline.
• Collaborate closely with plant leadership and HR leadership to create a best-in-class workforce planning model that delivers effective training, management, retention, and meaningful career progression.
• Provide collaborative and entrepreneurial leadership, serving as a key member of the executive leadership team.

Requirements

• Gained 10-12+ years of progressive manufacturing and operations leadership or senior-level production experience, including a minimum of 5 years in a high-mix, low/medium volume or fast-changeover environment.
• Experience with fabricated metal products, including welding, forming, cutting, and assembly.
• Knowledge of specific machinery such as hand and robotic welding, automated turret punch and fiber laser combination, wire straightener and grid welder, rapid color-change powder coat system, quick change automated press brake, Bescutter software and cutting head, and heavy electrical capacity.
• Strong manufacturing engineering know-how alongside solid Quality Management System (QMS) leadership and Corrective Action Preventative Action (CAPA) discipline.
• A track record of improving On-Time Delivery (OTD), quality, safety, labor productivity, and cost reduction, as well as experience leading root-cause problem solving, corrective actions, and customer issue containment.
• Experience with retailer compliance, audit readiness, packing/labeling discipline, EDI/ASN rigor, shipping accuracy, and EH&S systems.
• Strong people leadership and change management know-how alongside a solid dose of emotional intelligence.
• Experience overseeing a team of 100+ indirect reports.
• Proactive communication skills and ability to interact at all levels with diplomacy and tact.
• Management style and personal values align with NCC’s core values and culture.
• Willingness and ability to flex between strategic and tactical priorities, serving as a hands-on leader as necessary.
• Superior people and project management skills and proactive mindset.
• Developed a solid business and financial acumen, well-honed negotiation skills, and tech-savvy.
• Experience with capital expense planning and ERP/MRP systems.
• Prior P&L ownership or budget management experience.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in engineering, operations, manufacturing, industrial technology, or related field.
• MBA/MEBA or advanced degree preferred.

Skills

• Lean manufacturing principles and continuous improvement methodologies.
• High-mix, low-to-medium volume manufacturing expertise.
• Manufacturing engineering and QMS leadership.
• People leadership and change management.
• Financial acumen and negotiation skills.

Benefits

• Competitive base salary with an annual bonus opportunity.
• Comprehensive benefits package including multiple health insurance options, paid life insurance, paid time off (PTO), paid holidays, parental leave, educational assistance, annual profit sharing, casual dress, and a 401K plan with company match.

Pay

National Cart Company offers a competitive base salary with an annual bonus opportunity.

Schedule

This position is to be based on-site at our headquarters office in Saint Charles, Missouri. The role requires daily on-site presence with occasional travel to our facilities based in Reno, Nevada, and Olyphant, Pennsylvania, and as necessitated by business and growth initiatives.