Job Description
TheOperational Readiness Leadis a critical technical support and enablement role dedicated to ensuring workforce readiness, operational reliability, environmental compliance, and rapidcontingencyrecovery across all site facilities operations. Serving a high-capacity pharmaceutical manufacturing facility, this position does not have direct day-to-day operational or compliance ownership. Instead, it serves as a vital support partner to the operations team, focusing on building technical competency, standardizing knowledge transfer, and fortifyingoperational readiness and response capability.
Key Responsibilities
1. Operational Stability & Knowledge Management
- Formalize Technical Curriculum:Design, build, and implement a structured, formalcurriculumfor operators and first-line managers, replacing legacy "person-to-person" informal onboarding.
- SOP & Skills-Refresh Administration:Partner with operations to systematically review and update Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs). Coordinate and deliver the mandatorySOP curriculum alignmentto ensure all operational staff are rapidly updated on revised or newly issued SOPs.
- Workforce & Process Stabilization:Safeguard operational stability and mitigate process variability by establishing clear technical competency matrices, standardizing shift-to-shift execution, and implementing structured coaching initiatives to secure critical institutional knowledge.
2. Contingency Preparedness & Operational Readiness
- Fortify Operational Readiness:Develop, update, and maintain comprehensivecontingency planningprocedures that operations teams can execute to minimize utility downtime and prevent environmental compliance excursions.
- Facilitate Simulation Drills:Design, schedule, and execute regularcontingency responseand disaster recovery drills.Coachboth salaried and union personnel on swift and safe responses to critical utility system failures.
- Root Cause Analysis (RCA) Support:Assist operations and compliance teams in investigating utility interruptions or compliance near-misses including After Action Review (AAR) to evaluate response effectiveness, identify lessons learned, assign corrective actions, and drive continuous improvement.
3. Utility Systems & Asset Lifecycle Support
- Onboarding New Equipment:Support the operational integration of incoming new equipment by developing technicalcurriculummaterials, runninginstructionalsessions, and drafting initial standard procedures for the operations team.
- End-of-Life Asset Reliability Support:Collaboratively develop operator troubleshooting guides and reliabilitycoachingto help the team safely and effectively manage aging, end-of-life (EOL) facilities operations assets.
4. Compliance Enablement
- Compliance Integration:Align all technicalcurriculawith current state and federal air, wastewater, and water permit requirements to ensure operator behavior naturally supports regulatory compliance.
- Audit Readiness:Drive a clear understanding of compliance requirements by ensuring continuous expectation alignment across the operations team. Coach team to fully understand how their daily actions, routine housekeeping, and operational decisions directly contribute to the facility's overall regulatory compliance and audit readiness.
5. Team Mentorship & Labor Relations
- Collaborative Support:Work effectively across a diverse department consisting of salaried professionals and unionized operations personnel, serving as a trusted technical advisor, coach, and support partner.
- Talent Development:Act as a high-performing mentor with a strong desire to coach, grow, and elevate the technical capabilities of first-line managers and operators.
Position Requirements
Minimum Qualifications
- Education:
- High School Diploma/GED and 8 years of direct, hands-on experience in industrial utilities/infrastructure operations.
- ORAssociate degree in engineering or related scientific field and 6 years of direct, hands-on experience in industrial utilities/infrastructure operations.
- ORBachelor degree in engineering or related scientific field and 4 years of direct, hands-on experience in industrial utilities/infrastructure operations.
- Labor Relations:Demonstrated, successful track record of working collaboratively with both salaried employees and unionized operating staff and contract execution.
- Curriculum Development:Proven experience designing, writing, and executing formal technicalcurriculumsor operator qualification programs.
- Contingency Management:Experience designing, planning, and coordinating operationalreadinessdrills and business continuitypreparation.
- Leadership Profile:High-performing individual with a visible track record of developing others, fostering teamwork, and supporting culture change.
- Certifications:Current state-issued licenses and certifications (wastewater, potable water, and ASOPE) compensatory to the facility classification or demonstrated progression with ability to achieve facility classification level within 1 year of hire.
- Equipment Familiarity:Deep technical understanding of boiler operations, chillers, cooling towers, HVAC, compressed air, wastewater treatment unit operations, and use of digital control systems to facilitate high-quality technicalinstruction.
#MSJR
Required Skills:
Adaptability, Adaptability, Analytical Analysis, Competency Management, Contingency Plan, Corrective Action Management, Deviation Investigations, Facility Engineering, Facility Management, Failure Mode and Effects Analysis FMEA, Government Regulation, HVAC Systems, Identifying Customer Needs, Interpersonal Relationships, Lean Six Sigma Tools, Maintenance Scheduling, Manufacturing Quality Control, Operational Compliance, Operations Management, Plant Operations, Procedure Reviews, Regulations, Regulatory Compliance, Root Cause Analysis (RCA), Root Cause Identification {+ 6 more}
Preferred Skills:
Current Employees apply HERE
Current Contingent Workers apply HERE
San Francisco Residents Only:We will consider qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records for employment in compliance with the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance
Los Angeles Residents Only:We will consider for employment all qualified applicants, including those with criminal histories, in a manner consistent with the requirements of applicable state and local laws, including the City of Los Angeles99 Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance
Search Firm Representatives Please Read Carefully
Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA, also known as Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC, Rahway, NJ, USA, does not accept unsolicited assistance from search firms for employment opportunities. All CVs / resumes submitted by search firms to any employee at our company without a valid written search agreement in place for this position will be deemed the sole property of our company.No fee will be paid in the event a candidate is hired by our company as a result of an agency referral where no pre-existing agreement is in place. Where agency agreements are in place, introductions are position specific. Please, no phone calls or emails.
Employee Status:
Regular
Relocation:
Domestic
VISA Sponsorship:
No
Travel Requirements:
No Travel Required
Flexible Work Arrangements:
Not Applicable
Shift:
Not Indicated
Valid Driving License:
No
Hazardous Material(s):
NA
Job Posting End Date:
09/24/2026
*A job posting is effective until 11:59:59PM on the day BEFOREthe listed job posting end date. Please ensure you apply to a job posting no later than the day BEFORE the job posting end date.
