Job Description

Flex Fab Area Manager- Pontiac Stamping

Onsite: This role is categorized as onsite. This means the successful candidate is expected to report to our Pontiac Stamping plant location

Sponsorship: GM DOES NOT PROVIDE IMMIGRATION-RELATED SPONSORSHIP FOR THIS ROLE.  DO NOT APPLY FOR THIS ROLE IF YOU WILL NEED GM IMMIGRATION SPONSORSHIP (e.g., H-1B, TN, STEM OPT, etc.) NOW OR IN THE FUTURE.

The Role:

The Flex Fab Area Manager is responsible for leading day-to-day operations in the Flexible Fabrication (Flex Fab) area at Pontiac Metal Center. This role leads a High Mix- Low volume operation focused on cutting, bending, welding, and secondary operations, on a Smart Manufacturing environment. The Area Manager leads a team of salaried and hourly employees, driving GMS, continuous improvement, flawless launch and daily production for Flex Fab components.

What You'll Do (Responsibilities):

Safety & People

• Own safety performance for the Flex Fab area; drive a zero-incident culture through layered audits, JSAs, JES/SOS adherence, and corrective actions.
• Ensure compliance with GM safety, ergonomic, and environmental standards across all Flex Fab equipment and processes.
• Support staffing, training, and job qualification plans to meet current and future production and launch needs.

Operations Management

• Lead daily Flex Fab production (cutting, bending, welding, secondary operations) to achieve Safety, People, Quality, Responsiveness, Cost, and Environmental (SPQRCE) metrics.
• Own Build-to-Plan and Ship-to-Plan performance, with focus on FTQ, Uptime and customer satisfaction.
• Coordinate resources (people, machines, material) across shifts to maximize uptime and throughput while protecting quality.
• Lead daily/shift huddles meetings to review KPIs, constraints, and countermeasures.

Quality & Launch Readiness

• Ensure robust process controls and documentation (CSPC, MPS, SOS/JES, TIS, PFMEA, PCP, control plans, error-proofing) are in place and followed for all parts.
• Partner with Flex Fab Quality Engineer to resolve issues, support PPAP and SQMS deliverables, and maintain compliance to customer and GM requirements.
• Act as production owner for Flex Fab activities, ensuring readiness for MRD and SORP.
• Support ECR, TWO, and MWO execution in partnership with ME Execution, Product Engineering, and Launch teams to implement changes safely and on time.

GMS & Continuous Improvement

• Champion GMS in the Flex Fab area (Safety, People, Quality, Responsiveness, Cost, Environment), including implementation of standardized work and problem-solving.
• Drive layered process audits, problem-solving (5-Why, Fishbone, etc.), and Kaizen activities to improve safety, quality, uptime, and labor efficiency.
• Support Lean principles in Flex Fab (flow, pull, quick changeover, waste elimination) and align with the broader Flex Fab strategy.

Cross-Functional Leadership & Communication

• Serve as primary engineering, launch and production interface to Flex Fab Launch Lead, ME Flex Fab team, Product Engineering, GSC, IE, Maintenance, and Plant leadership for Flex Fab issues.
• Participate in program and launch reviews (e.g., health checks, production readiness reviews, MRD / SORP readiness) representing Pontiac Flex Fab.
• Provide clear status updates, risk assessments, and recovery plans for issues impacting Safety, Quality, Delivery, or Cost.

Your Skills & Abilities (Required Qualifications)​​

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Operations Management or Business
• Demonstrated leadership experience managing hourly workforce and/or front-line leaders.
• Strong problem-solving skills and familiarity with root cause analysis and continuous improvement tools.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment and make timely decisions with incomplete information.
• Effective communication and interpersonal skills to work across functions and levels.
• Proficiency with standard MS Office tools and basic manufacturing systems
• Experience supporting new program launches.

What Will Give You a Competitive Edge (Preferred Qualifications):​

• Prior Area Manager / Group Leader / Shift Leader experience in a plant or similar automotive environment.
• Experience in manufacturing operations in a high-mix and low volume fabrication environment
• Experience with laser cutting, press brake bending, robotic welding, or flexible fabrication technologies.
• Demonstrated experience on dealing with ambiguity in fast paced environments
• Familiarity with Flex Fab processes, Smart Factory technologies (AGV, CNC, OLP) and usage of Industry 4.0 tools in manufacturing environments (MES, ASRS, Digital Twins)
• Working knowledge of GMS, Lean manufacturing, PFMEA, and control plan development.
• Experience in other areas expanding across the Product Lifecyle (Product Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, Innovation, Launch)
• Demonstrated experience using CAD tools (NX, CATIA, SolidWorks, Teamcenter Visualization)