Production Manager
Location: Woodstock, VT
Type: Full Time
Salary: $60,000- $70,000
Reports to: Vice President
We are seeking a skilled and experienced Production Manager to oversee the operations of our pottery studio. The ideal candidate will have a strong background in a production setting, combined with excellent managerial and organizational skills. The Production Manager will be responsible for overseeing the production process, managing a team of artisans, ensuring quality control, and optimizing efficiency in the studio.
Primary Responsibilities:
- Oversee the production planning + management
- Health and safety compliance
- Managing the Team
- Quality control & inventory management
- Optimizing efficiency
Oversee the production planning + management
- Leverage ERP system to aggregate sales and forecasting data as input for weekly production planning and forecasting based on inventory levels, planned promotions, upcoming product launches etc.
- Assist in budget planning and cost control measures to optimize studio operations
- Employ AI tools to create weekly work orders
Health and safety compliance
- Ensure compliance with health and safety regulations in the studio
- Implement safety protocols and procedures to minimize the risk of accidents or injuries
- Conduct regular safety inspections and address any hazards or concerns promptly
Manage the team
- Manage the studio supervisor to foster a positive work environment that promotes creativity, collaboration, and high-quality craftsmanship
- Aggregate and divide tasks and responsibilities among team members according to their skills and abilities
- Coordinate with the lead trainer on the scheduling of the weekly work orders, wheel assignments, and days off scheduling for production staff
- Focus on scaling the production team for company growth, which may include training, career development, and retention strategies
- Lead weekly production meetings, providing feedback, celebrating team successes, and opportunities for overall studio improvement
Optimizing efficiency
- Oversight of studio and its overall productivity- ensuring the team stays focused and productive
- Work with lead trainer to provide helpful insight to the pottery production team including feedback on quality of final goods and where to find efficiencies
- Work with studio technician to ensure equipment is regularly inspected, maintained, and fully operational and that tools, clay, and glaze are ordered in a timely manner
- Use AI tools to suggest equipment or process updates to increase efficiency and overall functioning of the studio
Quality control & inventory management
- Implement and maintain quality control measures to ensure that finished products meet established standards. Use AI tools to audit quality control best practices.
- Leverage AI tools to eliminate manual transactions moving pottery within the inventory system and adjusting firsts and seconds
- With the help of AI tools, create target holiday quantities based on historical sales information and to suggest pacing on production (forecasting)
- Oversee the inspection of products at various stages of production to identify and address any defects or issues
- Properly track the production workflow from assigned work orders to WIP to finished goods, both physically and digitally in our inventory management system
- Manage scheduling of large or special work orders through the production process (i.e. custom, wholesale, research and development, etc.)
- Communicate demand levels of finished goods to glaze & kiln teams so those pieces are appropriately prioritized throughout the production process
This should not be construed as an exhaustive list of all job duties and responsibilities. There may be some variation and/or development of the above duties and responsibilities without changing the general nature of the job.
Requirements:
- Proven experience in a production environment, with a strong ability to learn and refine the processes unique to pottery production
- High emotional intelligence
- Previous supervisory or managerial experience with the proven ability to constructively hold difficult conversations with employees
- Interest in mentoring employees
- Knowledge of and interest in employing AI technologies to improve efficiency and eliminate manual processes where appropriate
- Excellent organizational and time management skills, with the ability to prioritize tasks effectively
- Strong leadership abilities and the ability to motivate and inspire team members
- Attention to detail and a commitment to producing high-quality work
- Computer literacy required; this position will be trained in our ERP, NetSuite
- Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite, Google Sheets, and other relevant software applications
- Effective communication skills, both verbal and written
This job description outlines the key responsibilities and qualifications required for the role of Production Manager at Farmhouse Pottery. Candidates who possess a combination of a production background, strong managerial skills, and tech comfort will excel in this position.
If you do not have all of these experiences, please still consider applying!
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