Production Manager
The Production Manager leads daily manufacturing operations in a low-volume, high-mix environment, overseeing production personnel, driving operational efficiency, and ensuring safety, quality, and output targets are consistently met. This role plays a pivotal part in launching and ramping up a new patcher vehicle production line, establishing processes, building teams, and creating sustainable operational structure as the line grows. The position requires a hands-on manufacturing leader who effectively balances people leadership with operational execution, owns key performance metrics, and drives continuous improvement across the production floor.
Responsibilities
- Lead and oversee daily production operations within a low-volume, high-mix manufacturing environment.
- Supervise production personnel, including approximately 20 employees per production line and 23 direct reports.
- Manage labor allocation and staffing levels based on changing production demand and manpower needs.
- Own and track key production KPIs and operational metrics to drive performance and meet production objectives.
- Plan and schedule production activities to ensure on-time completion of units and projects.
- Provide coaching, mentorship, and performance feedback to supervisors and production employees to build capability and accountability.
- Drive employee engagement, retention, and development while managing diverse personalities on the production floor.
- Support new product introductions and the implementation of new manufacturing processes and production lines, including the patcher vehicle line.
- Coordinate multiple projects and production priorities simultaneously in a dynamic manufacturing environment.
- Identify, lead, and execute continuous improvement and process improvement initiatives to enhance efficiency, quality, and safety.
- Create and refine structure, processes, and workflows across the production floor to support scalable operations.
- Ensure compliance with safety, quality, and production standards, policies, and procedures.
- Collaborate with leadership and cross-functional teams to influence workflows and drive operational improvements.
- Help establish production flow, line layout, and operating standards for the new patcher vehicle production line.
- Monitor production performance and take proactive action to address issues, remove bottlenecks, and improve throughput.
Essential Skills
- Production management experience in a manufacturing environment.
- Prior experience managing manufacturing teams, including leading 12 or more employees in a production environment.
- Experience overseeing approximately 20 employees per production line.
- Experience managing 23 direct reports in a supervisory or management capacity.
- Strong employee leadership skills, including coaching, accountability, and retention.
- Ability to manage diverse personalities and drive performance on the production floor.
- Experience managing production lines and manufacturing operations.
- Solid understanding of production KPIs and operational metrics, with proven KPI and metric ownership.
- Experience with manpower planning and labor utilization, including flexing labor based on production demands.
- Production planning and scheduling experience within a manufacturing facility.
- Demonstrated process improvement and continuous improvement experience.
- Project management experience in a manufacturing or industrial environment.
- Experience launching new products or implementing new manufacturing processes.
Additional Skills & Qualifications
- Agricultural equipment manufacturing experience.
- Industrial manufacturing experience, including heavy equipment, machinery, or industrial manufacturing.
- Low-volume, high-mix manufacturing experience.
- Experience with new product launch or production startup environments.
- Lean manufacturing experience and familiarity with continuous improvement methodologies.
- Technical or manufacturing-related education, such as Industrial Technology or a related field.
- Experience creating and implementing manufacturing processes and production workflows.
- Comfort working in a dynamic environment where wearing multiple hats and balancing people leadership with operational execution is required.
Why Work Here?
Employees enjoy the opportunity to lead within a growing agricultural and industrial manufacturing organization while having a direct impact on the launch and success of a new patcher vehicle production line. The role offers high visibility with direct access to leadership and decision-makers, enabling meaningful influence on processes, workflows, and operational improvements. Team members benefit from the chance to shape culture, drive employee development, and elevate production performance in a diverse low-volume, high-mix manufacturing environment that provides variety and engaging operational challenges. A fast and focused interview process, coupled with strong leadership engagement, supports a responsive and supportive hiring experience.
Work Environment
The role is based within an agricultural equipment manufacturing facility operating as a low-volume, high-mix environment rather than high-volume assembly manufacturing. Approximately 80 units or projects are completed per month, providing variety in products and production requirements. A new patcher vehicle production line is being introduced, offering the Production Manager the opportunity to help establish processes, production flow, and operational structure from the ground up. The environment favors candidates with a strong manufacturing experience and comfort managing both people and production performance, rather than experience limited to distribution, retail, hospitality, or service-oriented leadership. Success in this setting comes from enjoying building structure, driving accountability, and leading teams through growth and operational change, with a hands-on presence on the production floor and readiness to handle multiple responsibilities.
Job Type & Location
This is a Permanent position based out of Fresno, CA.
Pay and Benefits
The pay range for this position is $100000.00 - $110000.00/yr. Individual compensation offered for this position within this range will depend on many factors, including qualifications, skills, relevant experience, job knowledge, geographic location, internal equity, and other pertinent job-related factors. Full benefits when hired on by PBL.
Workplace Type
This is a fully onsite position in Fresno, CA.
Application Deadline
This position is anticipated to close on Aug 31, 2026.