Director, Operations (Process)

Working at Abbott

• Career development with an international company where you can grow the career you dream of.
• A company recognized as a great place to work in dozens of countries around the world and named one of the most admired companies in the world by Fortune.
• A company that is recognized as one of the best big companies to work for as well as a best place to work for diversity, working mothers, female executives, and scientists.

The Opportunity

What You’ll Do

• Lead and ensure reliable, consistent manufacturing operations producing over 250 SKUs of nutrition products supplied to customers in more than 48 countries.
• Provide overall leadership and accountability for manufacturing operations, maintenance of equipment and assets, and performance.
• Define and execute manufacturing strategies to achieve production, quality, cost, and service targets, while driving cross-functional collaboration and continuous improvement.
• Ensure full compliance with Quality, Food Safety, EHS, cGMP, ISO, and all applicable regulatory and corporate standards
• Apply a global mindset in strategic decision-making, leveraging site, regional, and divisional engineering resources to achieve operational excellence.
• Build, lead, and develop a high-performing manufacturing and maintenance organization supporting 24/7 operations.
• Oversee execution of critical programs and capital projects, ensuring delivery timelines, operational readiness, and measurable business value.
• Provide strategic and operational leadership to the Manufacturing Department, translating business vision into clear objectives, priorities, and actionable plans.
• Partner cross-functionally with R&D, Regulatory, Quality, Engineering, Commercial, and Supply Chain to align product strategies and enable smooth transfer of new products into operations.
• Define and track key performance indicators (KPIs) for production, reliability, quality, cost, and service, and lead actions to achieve target performance.
• Manage departmental budgets, control operating costs, and deliver productivity and cost-savings initiatives through process and technology improvements.
• Lead Business Continuity Plans (BCPs) related to operations and take command during production disruptions, emergencies, or compliance-critical events.
• Foster a culture of cross-functional collaboration, continuous improvement, Right-First Time, and Quality-at-Source across the manufacturing organization.
• Champion EHS excellence by ensuring compliance with environmental laws, permits, and regulations.
• Partner closely with HR on workforce planning, recruitment, succession, leadership development, engagement, and retention.

Requirements

• More than 15 years of progressive experience in senior operations roles within a manufacturing environment – 10 years managed process.
• Strong knowledge and hands-on experience with GMP and EHS requirements, including active participation in both internal and external audits.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with strong interpersonal abilities to effectively engage employees at all organizational levels, complemented by solid analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Proven ability to organize, motivate, and develop teams, as well as to identify quality issues and resolve them using CAPA and other structured problem-solving methodologies.
• Demonstrated strong business acumen with a customer-focused mindset.
• Highly effective in problem-solving, workload planning, resource allocation, and priority management.
• Passionate about fostering a culture of innovation within and beyond the department to improve the reliability, efficiency, and overall performance of manufacturing operations.
• Bachelor’s Degree in Science or Engineering or other related discipline