Director of Operations, Europe

Groupe STAHL is a leading international manufacturer, distributor, and direct supplier in the field of custom textile printing.

The

Director of Operations, Europe is responsible for leading manufacturing operations across Groupe STAHL's European manufacturing network, consisting of facilities located in the United Kingdom, Spain, Germany, and Italy.

The role provides direct leadership to local site operations leaders and is accountable for regional safety, quality, delivery, productivity, and conversion cost performance.

This is a hands‑on manufacturing leadership role focused on operational execution and continuous improvement.

The Director ensures that global manufacturing standards, quality systems, and operating procedures are consistently implemented across all European locations while supporting the development of site‑level leadership teams.

The Director of Operations serves as the primary operational liaison between the European manufacturing sites and Global Operations leadership, ensuring alignment on capacity planning, operational priorities, continuous improvement initiatives, and strategic business objectives.

The European footprint spans multiple labor markets, languages, regulatory frameworks, and operational cultures, requiring a collaborative leader capable of driving consistency, accountability, and high performance across the region.

Key Responsibilities

• Safety and Compliance
• Lead safety and EHS performance across all European manufacturing locations.
• Promote a zero‑incident culture and ensure compliance with applicable UK, EU, German, Spanish, and Italian regulations.
• Ensure incident investigations, root cause analysis, and corrective actions are completed effectively and consistently.
• Partner with site leadership to maintain environmental, health, safety, and employment compliance.
• Operational Performance
• Deliver regional service, quality, productivity, and conversion cost objectives.
• Monitor operational KPIs and ensure robust daily management systems are in place across all facilities.
• Identify operational risks and implement corrective actions to improve performance.
• Drive consistency in manufacturing processes, reporting, and performance management across sites.
• People Leadership and Development
• Lead, coach, and develop site operations leaders.
• Support succession planning and organizational capability development across the European manufacturing network.
• Partner with Human Resources on workforce planning and talent development initiatives.
• Promote accountability, teamwork, and continuous improvement throughout the organization.
• Continuous Improvement and Standards Execution
• Lead implementation of lean manufacturing, operational excellence, and quality improvement initiatives.
• Ensure adherence to global manufacturing standards and approved operating procedures.
• Standardize best practices across sites and support continuous improvement activities.
• Facilitate problem‑solving efforts related to quality, cost, productivity, and customer service.
• Capacity Planning and S&OP Support
• Collaborate with Supply Chain, Planning, and Global Operations to support regional capacity planning.
• Represent European operations in the monthly S&OP process.
• Assist with balancing production requirements across facilities to support customer demand and service objectives.
• Support labor planning and resource allocation decisions across the region.
• Cross‑Border Operations
• Coordinate manufacturing and material flows across the European network.
• Partner with Supply Chain, Procurement, Finance, and Trade Compliance to support efficient movement of goods and materials.
• Ensure operational considerations related to customs, VAT, import/export compliance, and post‑Brexit requirements are properly addressed.
• Capital Projects and Facility Improvements
• Support development of capital investment proposals and business cases.
• Participate in facility expansion, equipment upgrades, automation projects, and productivity initiatives.
• Ensure approved projects are executed safely, on schedule, and within budget.
• Required Qualifications
• 10+ years of progressive manufacturing operations experience.
• Minimum 3‑5 years leading multi‑site manufacturing operations.
• Demonstrated experience managing manufacturing facilities across multiple European countries.
• Proven experience with operational KPIs, cost management, quality systems, and continuous improvement.
• Experience implementing lean manufacturing, standard work, and operational excellence programs.
• Strong leadership skills with a track record of developing manufacturing leaders and building high‑performing teams.
• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Operations Management, Industrial Technology, Supply Chain, or a related field.
• Strong English language proficiency.
• German, Italian, or Spanish language capability preferred.
• Preferred Qualifications

Experience in decorated apparel, heat transfer, printing, converting, textiles, or related manufacturing industries.

• Experience working within matrix organizations and multinational manufacturing environments.
• Knowledge of European labor relations, works councils, and collective bargaining environments.
• Lean Six Sigma certification or equivalent continuous improvement training.
• Experience leading manufacturing consolidations, facility expansions, integrations, or footprint optimization projects.
• Experience supporting regional S&OP and capacity planning processes.
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