Engineering & Operations Manager
Maidstone area | £50,000–£55,000 DOE
Permanent | Full-time | Site-based
This is a brilliant opportunity for a technically strong, commercially minded Operations Manager to take ownership of the day-to-day operational side of a growing engineering business.
It’s a broad role with genuine influence. You’ll oversee a small production operation, lead and develop the team, improve processes, manage purchasing and use data to understand where improvements can be made – while working closely with your commercial counterpart to support the continued growth of the business.
This definitely isn’t a role for someone who wants to manage operations from behind a spreadsheet. We’re looking for someone equally comfortable analysing performance data, challenging a process and getting onto the shop floor to understand what is actually happening.
As the business grows, there is plenty of scope for the position to develop with it.
What you'll be doing
- Taking ownership of day-to-day operational and production activity
- Leading, supporting and developing a small workshop-based team
- Reviewing existing processes and identifying opportunities to improve efficiency, quality and productivity
- Using operational data and KPIs to spot trends, issues and areas for improvement
- Getting hands-on with problem solving and understanding challenges at shop-floor level
- Overseeing purchasing, suppliers, materials and general operational requirements
- Helping to improve systems, reporting and the use of technology across the operation
- Ensuring production priorities are aligned with customer and commercial requirements
- Working closely with the commercial side of the business to support capacity planning and sustainable growth
- Taking ownership of wider operational projects as the business continues to develop
What we're looking for
- A relevant engineering degree is essential
- Previous experience within an engineering, manufacturing or technical production environment
- A good understanding of practical manufacturing and/or fabrication processes
- Strong people management skills with the ability to get the best from a small team
- Commercial awareness and an understanding of how operational decisions impact the wider business
- Strong analytical skills – you should be comfortable interrogating data rather than simply producing reports
- Confidence with systems and technology and an interest in using them to improve how a business operates
- Experience of purchasing, supply chain or supplier management would be highly advantageous
- A technically credible, practical approach to problem solving
- The ability to remain calm, measured and solutions-focused when priorities change
Personality is important here. You'll need to be confident without being overbearing, analytical without losing sight of the people, and strategic enough to see where improvements are needed while remaining close enough to the operation to make them happen.
Why consider it?
- £50,000–£55,000, dependent on experience, with some flexibility for an exceptional candidate
- A genuinely varied position with much broader exposure than a traditional production management role
- Real autonomy and the opportunity to influence how the operation develops
- Direct involvement in process improvement, people, purchasing, systems and growth
- A growing business where your responsibilities and career can expand alongside it
- Close working relationship with the commercial side of the organisation
- An opportunity to make visible improvements rather than simply maintain an established operation
This is primarily an on-site position because being visible within the operation and close to the team is a fundamental part of the role.
If you're an engineering-led operations professional who enjoys combining people, processes, data and practical problem solving, we'd be very interested in speaking with you.
Pay: £50,000.00-£55,000.00 per year
Benefits:
- Company events
- Company pension
- Free parking
- On-site parking
Work Location: In person
