Senior Manager Operations - Battery Cell Development Center

Description
Onsite: This position requires an employee to be on-site on a full-time basis
The Role
The Senior Manager Operations is responsible for leading all operations for the Battery Cell Development Center. This role ensures cell builds are met while maintaining safety, quality, cost, and delivery standards. The ideal candidate brings experience in standing up new organizations and driving manufacturing discipline while maintaining agility needed in ambiguous development environment with regular and frequent pivots.
What You'll Do
Strategic & Operational Leadership

• Guide team through regular and frequent pivots while maintaining focus on outcome goals.
• Lead all day-to-day operations of the center, including production, logistics, and facilities.
• Develop/manage production schedules, capacity planning, & resources to meet build milestones.
• Translate strategic goals into operational plans aligned with objectives.
• Ensure build readiness for validation runs, process trials and scale builds.

Workforce Leadership

• Lead and develop a team of salaried supervisors and technicians.
• Establish clear performance expectations, handoff protocols, and escalation procedures.
• Drive a culture of safety, accountability, and continuous improvement.

Operational Excellence

• Support flexibility balancing trials, process validation, & scale builds without compromise.
• Implement and sustain lean manufacturing practices while driving continuous improvement.
• Monitor and optimize throughput, cycle times, and changeover efficiency.
• Collaborate with maintenance to ensure equipment uptime & preventive maintenance.

Material & Resource Coordination

• Coordinate supply chain and logistics to ensure material availability and inventory.
• Manage WIP (work-in-progress) flow and minimize bottlenecks or idle time.
• Ensure timely availability of raw materials, components, and consumables.
• Collaborate on supplier readiness, inventory control, and material traceability.

Facilities Management

• Coordinate with facilities teams on, utilities, HVAC, cleanroom etc. operations
• Ensure infrastructure supports evolving process and safety requirements.
• Plan for facility upgrades and expansions in alignment with production needs.

Quality & Engineering

• Collaborate on process validation, control plans, and root cause investigations.
• Support NPI builds and feedback loops for continuous improvement.

Safety & Compliance

• Adhere to corporate metrics/standards.
• Enforce EH&S policies and lead incident response and root cause investigations.
• Conduct regular safety audits and ensure compliance with regulatory and internal standards.
• Partner to implement and enforce safety protocols, hazardous material handling, and emergency response plans.

Your Skills & Abilities (Required Qualifications)

• Bachelor of Science in Engineering, or related technical field.
• 15+ years of experience in varying product and manufacturing roles.
• Demonstrated ability to deal with ambiguity and frequent pivots to achieve success.
• Understanding of lithium-ion cell manufacturing processes (electrode, assembly, formation).
• Understanding of production systems and automation in development environments.
• Strong analytical skills with experience in root cause analysis and data-driven decision-making.
• Experience scaling operations.
• Strong leadership, communication, and change management skills.

What Will Give You A Competitive Edge (Preferred Qualifications)

• Management experience.
• Advanced degree in battery/energy related field.
• Experience leading teams within a manufacturing environment.
• Experience working in a development/startup environment.

This job may be eligible for relocation benefits.
About GM
Our vision is a world with Zero Crashes, Zero Emissions and Zero Congestion and we embrace the responsibility to lead the change that will make our world better, safer and more equitable for all.
Why Join Us
We believe we all must make a choice every day - individually and collectively - to drive meaningful change through our words, our deeds and our culture. Every day, we want every employee to feel they belong to one General Motors team.
Total Rewards | Benefits Overview
From day one, we're looking out for your well-being-at work and at home-so you can focus on realizing your ambitions. Learn how GM supports a rewarding career that rewards you personally by visiting Total Rewards resources.
Non-Discrimination and Equal Employment Opportunities (U.S.)
General Motors is committed to being a workplace that is not only free of unlawful discrimination, but one that genuinely fosters inclusion and belonging. We strongly believe that providing an inclusive workplace creates an environment in which our employees can thrive and develop better products for our customers.
All employment decisions are made on a non-discriminatory basis without regard to sex, race, color, national origin, citizenship status, religion, age, disability, pregnancy or maternity status, sexual orientation, gender identity, status as a veteran or protected veteran, or any other similarly protected status in accordance with federal, state and local laws.
We encourage interested candidates to review the key responsibilities and qualifications for each role and apply for any positions that match their skills and capabilities. Applicants in the recruitment process may be required, where applicable, to successfully complete a role-related assessment(s) and/or a pre-employment screening prior to beginning employment. To learn more, visit How we Hire.
Accommodations
General Motors offers opportunities to all job seekers including individuals with disabilities. If you need a reasonable accommodation to assist with your job search or application for employment, email us [email protected] or call us at 800-865-7580. In your email, please include a description of the specific accommodation you are requesting as well as the job title and requisition number of the position for which you are applying.