General Manager-- Manufacturing

Job Description

The position is located in Brainerd, MN. No remote work option is available must be on site.

The General Manager serves as the senior operational leader for our manufacturing site. This role is responsible for delivering safe, high quality, on time, and cost effective operations while building a culture rooted in Mission, Vision, and Core Values. The GM translates strategy into execution, drives operational performance, develops leaders, and ensures strong cross functional alignment across all departments.

Core Responsibilities

Provide clear leadership, communication, and strategic direction for all plant functions.

Translate company strategy into executable plans with measurable targets.

Anticipate site needs and lead long range planning for people, equipment, and capacity.

Foster a culture of accountability, continuous improvement, and employee engagement.

Ensure strong performance in safety, quality, productivity, delivery, and cost.

Optimize workforce planning, equipment utilization, material flow, and facility layout.

Own the plant’s P&L and partner on budgets, forecasting, and financial performance.

Lead, mentor, and develop departmental managers and emerging leaders.

Promote a culture focused on safety, teamwork, learning, and recognition.

Build strong partnerships with Engineering, Quality, HR, Safety, Finance, and IT.

Lead continuous improvement efforts including A3s, 5 Why, Kaizen, and PDCA.

Success Profile

Knowledge – Manufacturing processes, workflows, plant performance metrics; strong financial and business acumen.

Competencies – Strategy execution, decision making, collaboration, emotional intelligence, accountability.

Experience – Leading operations in manufacturing, cross functional leadership, talent development.

Personal Attributes – Resilient, collaborative, motivating, accountable.

Job Requirements

Must Have:

Bachelor’s degree in engineering, Operations, Business, or related field

7–10+ years of progressive manufacturing leadership experience

Strong financial acumen and P&L ownership experience

Proven success leading plant operations and teams

Proficiency with ERP systems

Nice to Have:

Master’s degree (MBA or related)

Plant Manager or senior operations leadership experience

LEAN/CI certification or equivalent experience\nCompany Description

Brainerd Lakes Economic Development Corporation is helping to hire this position for a member company. We work with companies in our area to help them expand and grow in MN.

Full-time