Senior Manager, North America Technical Support Team

LG Energy Solution Michigan Inc. (LGESMI) develops and manufactures large lithium-ion polymer batteries and packs for electric vehicle (EV) and energy storage applications. Come join the leader in advanced EV batteries! ;br>
Summary:
The Senior Manager, North America Technical Support Team is an ESMI-based leader responsible for directing specialized operational and technical support for LG Energy Solution and affiliated battery-manufacturing entities throughout North America. This position leads a cross-functional technical support team that helps North American sites plan and stabilize battery operations through production and capacity planning, factory and equipment scheduling, supply-chain coordination, inventory strategy, CAPEX planning, resource planning, process innovation, and new-line startup and ramp-up support. The Senior Manager serves as a central technical and operational interface among North American manufacturing sites, customers, parent-company organizations, joint-venture governance bodies, and internal functions. The position travels to affiliated sites to diagnose operational gaps, coordinate improvement initiatives, establish standardized planning practices, and transfer specialized battery-manufacturing knowledge to locally hired managers and employees.

Responsibilities:

• Lead the North America Technical Support Team and direct specialized operational and technical support for ESMI and other LG Energy Solution or affiliated North American manufacturing entities.
• Establish team priorities, assign site-support resources, monitor deliverables, develop employees, and ensure timely resolution of critical manufacturing and business-planning issues.
• Advise North American sites on production-planning master data, including capacity, operating rate, yield, takt time, cycle time, and other key operating assumptions.
• Develop and review integrated production plans covering electrode, cell, module, sample production, start of production, mass-production ramp-up, and customer-delivery requirements.
• Analyze production capacity, bottlenecks, line balance, operating scenarios, and resource constraints; recommend actions to improve output and production stability.
• Coordinate factory construction, equipment installation, commissioning, qualification, and production-ramp schedules with project, engineering, manufacturing, and supplier teams.
• Support CAPEX planning and governance, including investment allocation, verification, value analysis/value engineering, cost reduction, and implementation tracking.
• Develop inventory and material-flow strategies for raw materials, work in process, nonconforming or hold inventory, finished goods, days inventory outstanding, and warehouse capacity.
• Coordinate end-to-end supply, production, inventory, shipment, and customer-delivery planning across North American operations and global supply networks.
• Lead or support Sales and Operations Planning activities to align customer demand, production capability, inventory, material supply, and business priorities.
• Coordinate resource planning across materials, logistics, staffing, equipment, methods, facilities, utilities, and production space to support launches and stable operations.
• Review production performance using yield, Overall Equipment Effectiveness, operating rate, output, shipment, inventory, cost, and other operating metrics; identify gaps and initiate corrective actions.
• Lead cross-functional root-cause analysis and recovery planning for production shortfalls, capacity imbalances, inventory issues, schedule delays, and ramp-up constraints.
• Promote operational excellence through standardized work, process innovation, Lean Six Sigma, workplace organization, and other continuous-improvement methods.
• Provide management oversight and coordination for process-innovation, manufacturing IT, and related operational systems initiatives within the team's scope.
• Support governance and executive decision-making by preparing analyses, recommendations, and materials for management, Boards of Directors, and joint-venture steering committees.
• Serve as a communication hub among customers, parent companies, joint-venture partners, suppliers, and internal departments to align schedules, priorities, risks, and recovery actions.
• Develop and maintain standardized planning procedures, operating assumptions, reporting tools, issue logs, decision records, and implementation plans across supported entities.
• Train and mentor locally hired managers, planners, engineers, and operational personnel on battery-production planning, capacity management, inventory control, ramp-up management, and cross-functional coordination.
• Provide on-site leadership during new-plant launches, production ramp-ups, major operating disruptions, capacity-recovery efforts, and other critical business events.
• Travel frequently to manufacturing facilities throughout North America based on business, project, and operational requirements.

Required Skills:

• Specialized knowledge of lithium-ion battery manufacturing operations, production planning, capacity management, inventory control, and plant ramp-up.
• Strong understanding of electrode, cell, and module production flows and the operational dependencies among equipment, materials, labor, facilities, logistics, quality, and customer schedules.
• Advanced production-capacity analysis and simulation skills, including operating-rate, yield, takt-time, cycle-time, line-balance, and bottleneck assessment.
• Experience developing integrated production, shipment, inventory, and resource plans for high-volume manufacturing operations.
• Knowledge of end-to-end supply-chain planning, material transactions, global sourcing coordination, warehouse requirements, and customer-delivery planning.
• Experience supporting factory construction, equipment scheduling, commissioning, start of production, and mass-production ramp-up.
• Experience with CAPEX planning, investment allocation, cost verification, value analysis/value engineering, and cost-reduction activities.
• Ability to interpret operational data, identify performance gaps, conduct root-cause analysis, and implement cross-functional corrective actions.
• Strong team leadership, employee development, resource allocation, project governance, and change-management capabilities.
• Ability to lead cross-functional programs involving manufacturing, engineering, supply chain, logistics, quality, finance, HR, IT, facilities, suppliers, customers, and executive stakeholders.
• Strong executive communication, stakeholder alignment, issue escalation, decision-support, and technical documentation skills.
• Ability to transfer specialized battery-manufacturing and planning knowledge to local managers, planners, engineers, and operational employees.
• Ability to work effectively across multiple manufacturing sites, corporate entities, joint ventures, cultures, and time zones.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in industrial engineering, systems engineering, supply chain management, operations management, business, engineering, or a related field required.
• At least fifteen years of progressively responsible experience in battery manufacturing, production planning, supply-chain planning, operations management, factory planning, or related functions.
• At least five years of experience leading managers, professional employees, or cross-functional teams in a manufacturing environment.
• Demonstrated experience supporting lithium-ion battery production or a comparably complex, high-volume manufacturing operation.
• Demonstrated experience with production-capacity planning, yield and operating-rate management, production and shipment scheduling, and inventory control.
• Experience coordinating factory or production-line expansion, equipment schedules, start of production, and mass-production ramp-up.
• Experience managing or supporting CAPEX, investment planning, operating-cost improvement, and cross-functional resource planning.
• Experience supporting manufacturing operations at multiple facilities or international locations, including collaboration among parent companies, joint ventures, customers, and suppliers.
• Professional certification in planning, inventory management, supply chain, project management, Lean Six Sigma, or a related discipline preferred.
• Ability to communicate effectively in English in executive, technical, project-management, and operational settings.
• Ability and willingness to travel frequently throughout North America.
• Ability to work flexible or extended hours during new-plant launches, production ramp-ups, major operating disruptions, customer escalations, and other critical business periods.

Benefits Overview:

• 100% employer-paid Medical, Dental, and Vision premiums for you and your family
• 100% employer-paid disability and life insurance
• Generous Paid Time Off / Holidays
• Opportunity to grow in a diverse work environment with a global company
• 401k Retirement savings and planning with a generous company match

LGESMI is an Equal Opportunity employer that values the diversity of its workforce.