Confidential Search

An established and very profitable manufacturing company with over 200 employees in three locations across North America is seeking an experienced business leader with an engineering or manufacturing background to lead its business, to leverage the company's unique IP and manufacturing capabilities, to extend its current product lines, and to develop profitable new additions to its current offerings.

The company today has several large customers in both the injection molding and capital goods manufacturing markets. The injection molding customers manufacture products utilized in industrial and consumer applications. The company enjoys long and successful relationships in this area and utilizes its patented processes to allow manufacturing of uniquely profitable, high quality components for these applications. The company also has a capital goods manufacturing business focused on manufacturing equipment for construction and capital equipment used in several industries. Some of the equipment is used in defense applications. The company's injection molding business is based primarily in Wisconsin and New York State, and its capital goods business is on the West Coast.

The company has a 35-year track record of profitable operations and has expanded and diversified through both acquisitions and organic growth. By drawing on engineering and manufacturing strengths, in an entrepreneurial and opportunistic culture, the company has constantly innovated new products and manufacturing methods, leveraging the expertise and infrastructure of the company while fulfilling key customer needs and producing very profitable results. Clients view the company as a key strategic supplier and partner. The company treats key clients as “partners,” developing a key position in the supply chain of the clients.

The Company

The company has developed valuable manufacturing and engineering expertise over the last 35-plus years of profitable operations and has been a key partner to its manufacturing and construction customers. Its products are utilized across a broad range of industries and across the globe. It has a well-established reputation for innovation and for customer service. It prides itself in responsiveness and flexibility as its customers' needs develop, grow, and change. It builds considerable inventory to allow for fluctuations in demand while maintaining predictable on-time delivery performance.

To maintain product quality and to support its ongoing renewal process, the company devotes significant resources to fabrication of molds of many sizes and complexities. It has complete facilities to perform materials analysis and manufacturing process refinement. It has tools for mold flow analysis and robotic assembly. It utilizes SPC on its high-volume operations and is ISO9000 compliant in its Wisconsin- and New York State–based operations.

The company's challenge is to refine and extend its current high quality product offerings, deepen its key customer relationships in its served industries including automotive, lawn and garden equipment, defense, beverage containers, and waste recycling while concurrently exploring new profitable product offerings to leverage the intellectual and physical assets of the company.

This is a challenging position. The company is highly profitable, not a “turnaround” situation. Your job is to continue to improve this profitability by developing new opportunities and expanding existing lines of business. The company uses well-developed metrics for management. The owner/CEO is a smart, creative, entrepreneurial, tough, and very competent manager. He knows when to say no to requests for capital investment and when to say yes to requests that will enhance the business. He knows when to cut staff to meet economic contraction conditions and when to add people to meet expansion opportunities. The company is looking for a person with the same talents and capabilities. Are you ready for this kind of a challenge?

The Opportunity

We are seeking a senior individual with a solid understanding of general business, a strong background in manufacturing and engineering, a demonstrated ability to lead a manufacturing business and leverage a company's assets to grow and adapt to dynamic market conditions. The individual must have personally led the design and/or manufacture of both high volume components and capital goods. The individual must understand how to profitably manage a mature manufacturing and service-centric business while personally developing and strengthening relationships to grow the company.

Our ideal candidate is bright with a tremendous innate curiosity and a thirst for understanding. The candidate must thrive in both extreme detail and high-level abstraction. The candidate must have a complete understanding of all aspects of manufacturing including order entry, materials forecasting, process engineering, product engineering, and quality manufacturing practices. The candidate must have experience managing suppliers, introducing new products, and providing leadership to drive profitable performance and reliable products and delivery performance. The person for this position will be equally comfortable on the manufacturing floor and in the boardroom and is a natural communicator.

You will be responsible for leading all aspects of manufacturing, product engineering, and client satisfaction. You will be based in Wisconsin and will focus on supporting current customers and maintaining and improving profitability. You will constantly seek to deliver compelling new products and draw freely on a talented staff and the CEO to evaluate product enhancements and extensions. You will participate in meetings of the board of directors.

You will:

• Develop a deep understanding of the company's manufacturing operations and sustainable distinctions.
• Quickly gain the respect and loyalty of the staff and work with the CEO to agree on the key performance metrics to be measured and improved.
• Develop a rapport with key customers and understand the role we play in their success.
• Develop and maintain executive-level relationships with all suppliers and customers.
• Provide a constant focus on careful spending and waste reduction. Lead continuous process improvement initiatives.
• Prepare and present proposals to both partners and partner prospects.
• Drive product innovation and assure maximum leverage of current infrastructure, core competencies, and experience.
• Provide financial oversight on operations; initially focus on the injection molding business and then the capital goods manufacturing and metal-forming business.
• Brief the CEO and the board on manufacturing, financial performance, product development, customer support, and quality improvements.
• Travel to all company locations to lead unified operations initiatives and provide a corporate context for each operation's activities.

Your Background

You are a senior business professional. You recognize and enjoy the need to push yourself to identify the “next big thing.” You thrive on your accomplishments and cannot accept merely being adequate. You have proven success leading a manufacturing company. You are proud of the improvements you have made, the ingenuity you've demonstrated, the organizations you've led, and the people you've recruited to work with you. You enjoy your work.

You have a positive attitude and a high energy level. You are bright, curious, and always anxious to learn and self-improve. You are flexible and can change approach and/or direction as may be required. You have exceptional interpersonal skills and have strong verbal presentation abilities. You have a professional business demeanor and are skilled in bringing concepts, services, and quality products to the marketplace. You exhibit a take-charge attitude, persistence, tenacity, and drive focused on finding a way to accomplish your objectives. You influence others with your drive and sense of urgency, and possess the highest level of integrity.

Your peers would describe you as “an enthusiastic and extremely disciplined team player who will work to achieve the goals of the firm via a team orientation, detailed involvement, and strong personal contribution.” You are seeking an opportunity to grow an exceptionally profitable company and extend its capabilities into new markets and opportunities.

Ideally you have:

• Experience and skills pertaining to the management of both capital goods and component manufacturing business models.
• Experience in growing mature products to new levels of financial performance.
• Exceptional track record working with existing customers and with development of new business prospects.
• Personal product innovation and process improvement skills.
• Demonstrated experience leading cross-functional teams to drive improved margins.
• Broad-based manufacturing and engineering knowledge with experience in materials characterization and statistical process control.
• Candidates having experience with plastics or metal-forming operations strongly preferred.
• 15 to 20 years of profitable business management experience.

Compensation

The working environment and culture of this company is unique and offers an outstanding opportunity for the right senior executive. The company offers a highly competitive compensation package.

Your Next Step

All inquiries and discussions are strictly confidential. Contact David Perry at 613-236-6995 or e-mail [email protected] or Mark Haluska at [email protected]. For more information on Perry-Martel International Inc. please visit our website at www.perrymartel.com