Operations & Production Director

Operations & Production Director

Location: Stoke-on-Trent, ST4 7BS
Job Type: Full-time
Working Hours: 8:00 am – 5:00 pm, with a 30‑minute break
Salary: £55,000 – £65,000 per annum

Our client is a leading design and build partner delivering high‑quality exhibitions, interiors, and brand experiences through fully integrated, in‑house production.

What’s In It For You

• Full ownership across production, planning, warehouse, logistics, and facilities
• Opportunity to build a truly best‑in‑class operational function
• Auto‑enrolment Workplace Pension – The People’s Pension: Automatic enrolment into a workplace pension to help you save for retirement. Envisage contributes 3% of qualifying earnings (£6,240–£50,270 per year before tax)
• Health Cash Plan – Healthshield: Cashback on everyday healthcare costs including dental, optical, physiotherapy, and more. Dependents covered for free; claims usually paid within 5 days
• Life Cover: Employee life insurance paying 1x your annual salary, with access to additional services such as GP24 (24/7 health experts), employee assistance programme, funeral planning, bereavement and probate support
• Birthday Holiday: Take your birthday as a paid day off (or the next working day if it falls on a weekend/public holiday)
• Paid annual leave and public holidays

Requirements

• Essential Proven experience in a senior operations or production leadership role within:
• Exhibition/event build
• Interior fit‑out / commercial interiors
• Manufacturing / bespoke joinery
• Demonstrable experience managing project‑based production environments with multiple concurrent projects
• Strong track record of delivering projects on time and on budget
• Experience managing production teams, workshop environments, and multi‑disciplinary teams (joinery, graphics/scenic, logistics/installation)
• Strong experience in production planning, scheduling, and resource management across multiple departments
• Ability to balance resource allocation, manage capacity, and resolve bottlenecks
• Strong commercial mindset with experience managing project budgets, cost control (materials, labour, subcontracting), and margin performance
• Experience tracking estimated vs actual costs, labour efficiency, and cost‑to‑complete
• Strong understanding of production workflows, technical drawings, manufacturing processes, and materials
• Experience overseeing workshop operations, warehouse/logistics, and site delivery
• Experience managing operational facilities, including machinery, plant, equipment, and site layout
• Strong understanding of health & safety, compliance, and statutory obligations
• Strong leadership skills with the ability to build high‑performing, accountable teams
• Highly organised, methodical, proactive, and solutions‑focused
• Excellent communicator across all levels
• Hands‑on, commercially aware, and aligned to a “get it done properly” culture

Desirable

• Experience within a full in‑house production environment
• Familiarity with SolidWorks or similar CAD systems
• Experience working within ISO‑certified environments (9001 / 14001)
• IOSH / NEBOSH qualification

The Role

• Lead the end‑to‑end delivery of all project‑based production from design handover to installation
• Own the full operational lifecycle, including manufacturing, warehouse coordination, logistics, and final delivery
• Own production planning, scheduling, and resource allocation across all live and upcoming projects
• Ensure projects are delivered on time, on budget, and to the highest quality standards
• Lead all workshop operations, including CNC, joinery, scenic, paint, graphics, and finishing
• Oversee warehouse operations, including goods in/out, picking, packing, storage, and asset tracking
• Ensure accurate stock control, inventory management, and efficient dispatch
• Oversee logistics, load planning, and installation readiness
• Ensure all projects leave the warehouse complete, checked, and ready for installation
• Drive quality control, snagging, and final sign‑off processes
• Take full ownership of production‑related project costs (materials, labour, subcontracting, logistics)
• Monitor labour utilisation, material usage, cost‑to‑complete, and margin performance
• Work closely with Commercial and Project teams to validate budgets and manage performance
• Own and improve operational workflows, production processes, and SOPs
• Lead structured production planning and coordination
• Implement lean processes to improve efficiency and reduce waste
• Manage site and facilities, including workshop, warehouse, yard, and office environments
• Oversee maintenance of machinery, plant, and equipment
• Lead site improvements, layout optimisation, and operational flow
• Lead health & safety standards, RAMS, and compliance (including ISO 9001 / 14001)
• Build and lead high‑performing teams across production, warehouse, and logistics
• Drive accountability, performance, and consistent delivery standards