Senior Production Manager, AssemblyLocation: Nashville, TN
Company: NWI Nashville, LLC
Status: Full-time, on-site
Position Purpose & Opportunity
The Senior Production Manager, Assembly will serve in a key leadership role overseeing the manufacture and delivery of aircraft structural components. This leader will drive execution across production, quality, delivery, and cost, ensuring that manufacturing performance aligns with customer commitments and broader business objectives.
This is a hands-on leadership opportunity for an engineer who thrives on the production floor, builds credibility with frontline teams, and partners cross-functionally to drive operational execution, continuous improvement, cost reduction, quality enhancement, and production efficiency within a growing and evolving manufacturing environment.
Organization
The Senior Production Manager, Assembly will report to the Senior Director of Operations and lead the Assembly function, overseeing a multi-shift team of approximately 100 employees through five direct Supervisor reports. This role operates within a vertically integrated manufacturing environment, partnering closely with Quality, Manufacturing Engineering, Industrial Engineering, Maintenance, Supply Chain, HR, and Finance to achieve performance objectives.
Location
The Senior Production Manager of Assembly will be based in Nashville, Tennessee.
Key Responsibilities
Operational Leadership & Execution - Provide overall direction, coordination, and performance management for Assembly operations.
- Lead supervisors and frontline teams to consistently achieve production schedules, shipment targets, and customer requirements while ensuring compliance with safety, quality, regulatory, and AS9100 standards.
- Demonstrated strong leadership, interpersonal, and communication skills with the ability to effectively engage and influence stakeholders at all levels both within and outside the organization.
Performance Management & Continuous Improvement - Monitor and drive key performance indicators across safety, quality, delivery, and cost.
- Identify and implement process improvements to enhance efficiency, reduce waste, and improve product quality.
- Investigate production variances and inefficiencies, implementing corrective actions to improve outcomes.
Cross-Functional Collaboration - Partner with Engineering, Quality, Supply Chain, Production Control, and other support functions to resolve issues and improve throughput.
- Leverage internal resources to drive alignment and execution across manufacturing objectives.
- Support customer-facing activities and ensure service expectations are consistently met.
Leadership & Team Development - Build, develop, and motivate a high-performing production team, fostering accountability and engagement.
- Establish a positive culture that provides accountability within a team-oriented work environment focused on results and continuous improvement.
- Address employee relations matters, resolve issues, and reinforce company policies and procedures.
- Lead team to develop a continuous improvement culture
Operational Planning & Reporting - Support the development and management of departmental budgets.
- Prepare and present performance reports to senior leadership.
- Implement policies and procedures to ensure consistent and scalable operations.
First Year Expected Outcomes
Build Credibility & Ownership - Build trust and credibility with frontline teams and leadership through a visible, hands-on presence on the production floor while developing a deep understanding of assembly operations and assuming full ownership of team performance.
Deliver Performance Against KPIs - Drive operational excellence by ensuring consistent achievement of schedule, cost, quality, and safety targets while improving predictability and execution across production schedules and customer commitments.
Strengthen Team Capability & Accountability - Assess and develop team capabilities by understanding individual strengths and growth opportunities while fostering a culture of accountability, ownership, and high performance aligned with business objectives.
Drive Operational Improvement - Lead targeted continuous improvement initiatives to streamline processes, improve operational efficiency, and resolve root causes of production challenges, including supply chain constraints and process variability.
The Experience You'll Need to Succeed
Manufacturing Leadership Experience - Bachelor Science, Engineering degree or equivalent with 10+ years of progressive manufacturing leadership experience; aerospace or complex assembly environments strongly preferred. Advanced degree is a plus.
Operational & Technical Expertise - Deep understanding of manufacturing/assembly performance metrics, Lean Manufacturing and/or Six Sigma principles, with demonstrated ability to improve safety, quality, delivery, and cost outcomes.
Cross-Functional Leadership - Proven ability to collaborate effectively with Quality Engineering, Industrial Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, Maintenance, Inventory Control, Human Resources and Finance to meet objectives.
Union Environment Experience - Experience leading within a unionized manufacturing environment is preferred.
Who You Are
Hands-On, Floor-Oriented Leader: You lead from the front- visible, engaged, and comfortable operating directly alongside production teams to drive results.
Operationally Driven & Results-Oriented: You bring a disciplined approach to execution, with a focus on delivering measurable improvements in performance and efficiency.
Pragmatic Problem Solver: You navigate complexity with a practical mindset, identifying root causes and implementing sustainable solutions.
Entrepreneurial & Adaptable: You thrive in dynamic environments, willing to wear multiple hats and take ownership in a growing and evolving organization.
Strong Communicator & Team Builder: You build trust across all levels of the organization, fostering alignment, accountability, and a shared commitment to success.
