Director of Operations, NA

Join to apply for the Director of Operations, NA role at JOST International . Description Position: Director Operations – North America Reports to: Chief Operating Officer (COO) Americas Location: Grand Haven, MI (with travel across North American sites) Direct Reports: Plant Manager (TN) & Plant Manager (MI) About The Company For more than 70 years, JOST has been shaping the future of transportation with innovation, safety, and customer focus at its core. Founded in 1952 in Germany with the development of the first cast‑steel fifth wheel, JOST has grown into a global leader supplying the commercial vehicle and agricultural industries with trusted, high‑quality solutions. With its portfolio of leading brands — JOST, ROCKINGER, TRIDEC, Quicke, and Hyva — the company today is a Tier 1 supplier recognized worldwide for excellence in fifth wheels, landing gear, towing hitches, steering systems, front loaders, and hydraulic solutions. The 2025 acquisition of Hyva marked a significant milestone, expanding JOST’s reach into hydraulic cylinders, tippers, and components for transport and waste handling, and strengthening its position across both On‑Highway and Off‑Highway applications. Headquartered in Germany with operations on five continents, JOST continues to drive industry standards through engineering expertise, a commitment to quality, and strong partnerships with OEMs and fleets around the world. Position Summary The Director of Operations – North America is a senior operational leader responsible for driving manufacturing excellence, operational discipline, and transformational performance across JOST’s North American footprint, including facilities in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. This leader will oversee end‑to‑end operations—including production, safety, quality, supply chain, engineering, continuous improvement, and capital planning—to ensure world‑class performance in safety, delivery, quality, and cost. The ideal candidate is a proven architect of lean transformation, known for humility, team‑first leadership, and the ability to build high‑performance cultures. This individual brings a servant‑leadership mentality, strong analytical acumen, and the credibility to influence at all levels while maintaining a low‑ego, highly disciplined approach to leadership. Key Responsibilities Operational Leadership & Execution Lead all operations across North America with full P&L accountability for manufacturing performance (safety, quality, delivery, cost, and inventory). Build and maintain a disciplined operating system including daily management, tiered accountability, and standardized leader work. Drive operational stability, repeatability, and adherence to robust processes, ensuring that improvements sustain. Lean Transformation & Continuous Improvement Serve as the senior champion for Lean, Operational Excellence, and waste elimination across the region. Lead Kaizen events, value‑stream mapping, standardization, and deployment of lean tools consistent with TPS‑based methodologies. Embed CI culture into every department with measurable gains in productivity, cost reduction, and quality. Drive simplification of processes and organizational design to improve flow, reduce lead times, and optimize working capital. Safety, Quality & Compliance Ensure a world‑class safety culture built on proactive hazard identification, mitigation, and employee engagement. Strengthen quality systems and lead systemic problem solving using structured methodologies (8D, PDCA, A3). Ensure compliance with all regulatory requirements, internal standards, and customer specifications. People Leadership & Culture Development Build, mentor, and develop a high‑performing operational leadership team across all sites. Foster a culture of accountability, transparency, and cross‑functional collaboration. Demonstrate humility, emotional intelligence, and strong interpersonal skills—leading without ego and enabling others to succeed. Promote talent development, succession planning, and leadership pipeline growth at all levels. Manufacturing Strategy & Footprint Optimization Develop and implement long‑term manufacturing strategies aligned with Americas and Global business objectives. Lead footprint optimization including capacity planning, automation/digitization initiatives, vertical integration opportunities, and local‑for‑local sourcing. Participate in capital planning and capital appropriation requests (CAR) with strong business case development and ROI methodology. Support M&A integration including operational due diligence and post‑closing synergy realization. Supply Chain, Planning & Logistics Collaborate closely with Supply Chain, Purchasing, and Logistics to ensure on‑time material availability, supplier performance, and efficient flow of product. Improve S&OP maturity, forecasting accuracy, and production scheduling discipline. Optimize transportation, inventory levels, and warehouse operations to improve cost and service. Customer & Cross‑Functional Engagement Engage with OEM and Tier‑1 customers to support audits, business reviews, capacity analyses, and launch readiness. Partner with Engineering and Program Management to ensure flawless new‑product introduction (APQP, PPAP, launch readiness). Support Sales and Commercial teams in customer negotiations by providing accurate operational cost models, manufacturing scenarios, and capacity plans. Required Qualifications & Experience Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Operations, Supply Chain, or related field (MBA or MS preferred). 10–15+ years of progressive manufacturing leadership experience within Tier‑1 automotive, commercial vehicle, heavy equipment, or industrial manufacturing environment. Demonstrated success leading large multi‑site operations (U.S. and Mexico experience strongly preferred). Proven track record of end‑to‑end lean transformation—not just incremental improvements. Expertise in implementing structured operating systems (lean/TPS, LSW, tiered meetings, Gemba leadership). Strong experience with safety programs, quality systems, and regulatory compliance. Demonstrated capability to lead automation, robotics, and digitization initiatives. Experience with high‑mix, medium‑volume manufacturing; metal fabrication, welding, machining, or complex assemblies is highly beneficial. Financial acumen with experience managing multi‑site budgets, CapEx, inventory, and operational KPIs. Exceptional leadership presence—confident yet humble, disciplined yet collaborative. Leadership Competencies Servant Leadership: Places the success of employees and customers above personal ego. Operational Rigor: Naturally disciplined in process, metrics, structure, and follow‑through. Systems Thinker: Can connect process, people, KPIs, and flow into a cohesive performance system. Change Agent: Drives cultural transformation while bringing teams along with empathy and clarity. Fact‑Based Decision Making: Uses data, structured problem solving, and analytical rigor. Team Builder: Elevates people, develops successors, and promotes accountability. Strong Communicator: Explains complex operational concepts clearly and credibly. Success Measures (First 12–24 Months) Sustained improvement in SQDCI metrics across all sites. Stabilization and rollout of a common Operating System across North America. Measurable reductions in labor cost, scrap, rework, and WIP. Physical Requirements Work is generally performed in an office setting. While performing duties of this job, the employee will regularly sit, stand, walk, reach, bend, twist and occasionally will be required to stoop, kneel, lift or move objects of 51 pounds or less with or without assistance. Referrals increase your chances of interviewing at JOST International by 2x. Get notified about new Director of Operations jobs in Grand Haven, MI . #J-18808-Ljbffr