Volution Ventilation UK
Operations Director (Manufacturing - Reading & Crawley)
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Operations Director – Reading & Crawley
Reporting to:
UK Operations Director
Location:
Reading 75%, Crawley 25%
No of Reports:
8 direct reports (approx. 250 direct and indirect employees)
Package:
Competitive salary, company bonus, private medical (single), car allowance, pension, 25 days annual leave plus bank holidays, and more.
At Volution Group plc, our purpose is to provide healthy indoor air, sustainably via our Ventilation Products and Services. Volution Group plc is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE250 index.
Role profile:
The Operations Director is responsible for the strategic and operational leadership of two high-volume manufacturing sites (Reading & Crawley), ensuring the safe, efficient, and profitable delivery of all manufacturing, assembly, warehousing, logistics, and operational support activities, supporting sustainable growth, capacity expansion, and long-term business success.
The role provides leadership to the site management teams and operational workforce, driving high levels of customer service through strong operational delivery, productivity, and a culture of operational excellence and continuous improvement. The Operations Director sets the standards for a high-performance, inclusive culture, while ensuring strong alignment with the company’s strategic objectives.
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Responsibilities:
- Develop and implement the UK operational strategy across two manufacturing sites, aligned with the company’s UK and Group business objectives.
- Translate business strategy into practical operational plans that improve performance, profitability, and customer service.
- Provide overall accountability, prioritisation, and decision-making across manufacturing, assembly, warehousing, logistics, planning, and operational support functions at the Reading and Crawley sites.
- Provide leadership to site leadership teams, ensuring consistency of standards, processes, and performance across both locations.
- Lead, coach, and develop Managers, with a particular focus on strengthening communication, people management, and employee engagement.
- Lead organisational change, transformation, and business improvement initiatives, with a particular focus on employee engagement and the development of a strong health & safety culture.
- Manage operational expenditure while achieving agreed financial targets.
- Drive operational efficiency through standardisation, automation, and Lean Manufacturing principles.
- Lead continuous improvement programmes using Lean Manufacturing methodologies, including 5S and equivalent approaches to improve productivity, Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE), inventory management, and operational costs.
- Monitor operational performance and lead root cause analysis (RCA), implementing effective corrective and preventative actions where required.
- Champion effective visual data management to support performance monitoring and decision-making.
- Lead investigations into significant site operational incidents and ensure effective corrective and preventative actions are identified and implemented.
- Ensure effective internal and external cross-functional communication and alignment to resolve operational challenges and support customer and business requirements.
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Skills and Experience:
- Significant experience of high-volume manufacturing operations in a leadership role
- Experience managing complex operations including; planning, supply chain, production, assembly, warehouse, logistics.
- Strong track record of delivering operational transformation and continuous improvement
- Lean Manufacturing qualification is desirable
- IOSH qualification is desirable
- Resilience and comfortable working in fast-paced environment
- Excellent communication skills and stakeholder management
- Strong analytical and problem-solving abilities
- Financial and commercial acumen
- Strong project management capabilities
You can learn more about us here; https://www.volutiongroupplc.com/
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