Management Recruiters of the St. Croix Valley

Territory Sales Manager – Ag Equipment – Home Based 

Looking for a great opportunity to be a key part of a growing business? We are looking for an agricultural equipment Territory Sales Manager with experience developing new markets in an untapped territory. 

Must be based in either the Midwest or East Coast areas. Position is Home Based.

POSITION DESCRIPTION 

This position reports to the Sales Director and will provide you with the responsibilities of: 

• Developing a 3-5 year growth strategy with the management team to identify new customers, build new relationships and grow sales within the territory
• Cultivating and growing relationships with new and existing customers and understanding their new equipment needs as well as their maintenance/service needs
• Establishing the brand in the territory by attending trade shows, agricultural shows and other event that will drive sales and brand recognition
• Working with corporate sales to initiate the technical specs for the quote process on new equipment and ensuring the channels of communication are open
• Identifying new market segments and executing the plan to get into them
• Managing profit margins and understanding the total cost
• Working with service to set up service plans and help with any field issues
• Working directly with customers with equipment set up and commissioning
• Managing the customer service aspects of the business, ensuring the customers are receiving full support and treated with a high sense of urgency
• Identifying customer needs for products they want but are not available and communicating this to the design team for new product development – be the voice of the customer 

POSITION REQUIREMENTS 

An excellent candidate will have the following skills and qualifications:

• 3 -5 years minimum previous sales experience selling Ag equipment
• Proven ability to generate a strategic business plan, a P&L, and execute the plan
• Ability to work out of a home office and have the self-discipline to manage your schedule
• Strong technical understanding of the equipment and service needs
• Excellent communication skills and proven ability to work with customers
• Up to 75% travel 

This position is a high profile position and directly connected to the senior staff. Your success will be recognized and position you for future senior level opportunities. 

Interested? Please apply on-line or directly to mike.armbrust@mrstcroix.com; reference ID# mr1640.

Maintenance Supervisor – CNC Machining 

Looking for a great opportunity to apply your technical experience to a capital intensive machining operation in Western, Minnesota? We are looking for a seasoned Maintenance Technician or Supervisor that can lead the Maintenance staff, trouble shoot equipment and improve the preventive maintenance program to increase machine uptime. 

JOB DESCRIPTION 

This position reports to the General Manager 

This position will provide you with the responsibilities of: 

• Leading the group of four Maintenance Technicians, scheduling their tasks and improving their skills
• Evaluating and improving the processes and procedures that drive the preventive maintenance program including all items in the CMMS program
• Ensuring the preventive maintenance program is providing the proper level of service coverage for each piece of equipment and unplanned down time is not a result of an inadequate PM program
• Evaluating the unplanned equipment downtime to establish the root cause for the issue and ensuring proper corrective action is taking place to fix the immediate issue and address the systemic issue
• Ensuring the department has adequate resources to provide preventive maintenance inspection, repair and continual improvement
• Continually improving the techniques used to trouble shoot machine failures and implementing those techniques into the standard operating procedures
• Ensuring safety is considered top priority at all times
• Working with the Operations Manager to understand the long range capital plans and ensuring the PM programs are established for all new equipment
• Predicting when capital equipment needs major refurbishment or replacement and ensuring the long range capital plans include the cost 

JOB REQUIREMENTS 

An excellent candidate with have the following skills and qualifications:

• Technical degree desired or equivalent work experience
• Must have hands on experience trouble shooting and repairing CNC Machining centers (or similar equipment) for both mechanical systems and control systems
• Experience using a computerized maintenance management system
• Strong leadership abilities and proven experience upgrading the skills of your team
• Experience establishing and improving the SOP’s that drive the process
• Strong interpersonal, analytical and statistical skills are required.
• Proficient in the use of Microsoft applications (Word, Excel, etc.)
• Self starter – ability to work independently and relentlessly pursue improvements 

This position will provide you the latitude to implement the plans you develop and be a key driver in the continued success of the business. Your success in this high profile role will position you for advancement opportunities within this growing organization. 

Interested? Please apply on line or email your resume to mike.armbrust@mrstcroix.com; reference ID# mr1639

Production Manager

Looking for an opportunity to apply your management experience to a steadily growing client in the Twin Cities?  Our client is looking for an experienced Production Manager with a strong background in project management and Lean Manufacturing.  

JOB DESCRIPTION

This position reports to the Operations Manager and will provide you with the responsibilities of: 

• Managing the work activities of a large group of production workers
• Coordinating work activities with supervisors from other shifts
• Maintaining the Lean Manufacturing efforts of the plant, coordinating Lean activities and events
• Working closely with the Maintenance Planner and Production Scheduler to prioritize and schedule projects
• Creating performance improvement plans and measuring employees against these
• Developing a preventative maintenance schedule and facilities work order system to track maintenance labor hours and hold mechanics accountable for their performance
• Leading cost reduction projects, capital projects and efficiency improvement projects
• Providing process improvement suggestions and encouraging improvement activities throughout the plant
• Working with the Quality Department to support the quality system and engaging in non-conformance issues while providing suggestions on solving the problem
• Maintaining department budget 

JOB REQUIREMENTS

An excellent candidate will have the following skills and qualifications:

• Bachelor’s Degree and at least 7 years in the manufacturing industry
• Minimum of 5 years experience managing groups in a production environment
• Prior mechanical/electrical maintenance experience a plus
• Strong Lean Manufacturing background- familiarity with VSM, 5S/6S, Kanban, FMEA and other Lean principles and methods
• Experience with sheet metal and assembly preferred 

This position will provide you the experience of demonstrating you can be an effective team leader.  This is a high visibility position and will interface with the senior leadership team.  Your success in this position will make you a prime candidate for future leadership opportunities.

Interested?  Please apply on line or email your resume to joy.notaro@mrstcroix.com.

National Sales Manager 

Looking for an opportunity to use your knowledge of ingredients and food production to develop new accounts and manage existing accounts? Our client is looking for a highly motivated person with a strong technical background in food production processes and new product development to increase sales in an underdeveloped territory. 

JOB DESCRIPTION 

This position will provide you with the responsibilities of:

• Establishing new accounts (hunting), building relationships and growing business with existing accounts
• Establishing a “partnership” with your clients to ensure you are at the forefront on their new product development
• Working with Brokers to ensure they are properly representing the company and treating customers with a high sense of urgency
• Using your process and product knowledge to help clients develop their products
• Working with Manufacturing and Operations to make sure Sales is fully integrated with all the processes
• Coordinating product training and ensuring the client understands the latest innovations
• Negotiating pricing with customers and ensuring pricing is adjusted with changes in raw material pricing
• Understanding the market and creating strategies to expand sales
• Managing the inside sales force and ensuring the sales process is continually being improved
• Working with customers to understand their processes and suggesting/selling improvements that will ultimately make them more efficient – selling new product technology solutions
• Working with internal resources to ensure sales is being supported and customers are treated with a high sense of urgency
• Reviewing the sales forecast and progress to the plan with the Sales Director
• Managing profit margins on new and existing business 

JOB REQUIREMENTS 

An excellent candidate will have the following skills and qualifications:

• Bachelors of Science degree in a technical discipline or equivalent experience
• 8 – 10 years’ experience selling food ingredients
• Previous experience selling for a manufacturing company with engineered product
• A strong technical understanding of food manufacturing processes
• Strong communication skills and ability to train technical people
• Up to 40% travel may be required 

You will be a key member of the Sales staff and have the opportunity to grow your income based on your effectiveness. This position will provide you the experience of growing sales and being part of the strategic planning team to help determine future business direction.

Interested? Please apply on line or email your resume to mike.armbrust@mrstcroix.com; reference ID# mr1635

Purchasing Agent – Buyer 

Looking for a great opportunity to apply your purchasing skills for a growing company in the St. Cloud area? Our client is looking for highly motivated individual with upward mobility that has the ability to understanding machining processes, experience buying castings, and experience buying forgings. 

JOB DESCRIPTION

This position reports to the Purchasing Manager and will provide you with the responsibilities of: 

• Buying castings, forgings, and raw material for machining
• Ensuring the BOM, structure and cost reflect all cost related to each step of the processes
• Working with Quality to develop and qualify sources for machined components
• Auditing suppliers to ensure their quality systems are acceptable and will consistently produce product to spec
• Ensuring Engineering provides the right level of print for the operations performed on the outside
• Continually monitoring supplier performance and capabilities and ensuring the supply base will match long range strategies
• Working with suppliers and internal counterparts to identify and implement cost reduction opportunities
• Working with Engineering to ensure proper packaging is in place and suppliers understand how to ship
• Buying per the schedule to ensure the proper flow and quantity of components
• Preparing and providing projections for commodity cost
• Maintaining a working knowledge of environmental regulations and opportunities.
• Coordinating efforts with Inventory control, Production Supervisors, and Process Engineering to develop alternate uses for obsolete and/or excess materials
• Seeking new materials, processes, and suppliers, which will maximize both efficiency and effectiveness within purchasing and manufacturing activities. 

JOB REQUIREMENTS

An excellent candidate will have the following skills and qualifications:

• Bachelors Degree desired, CPIM desired
• 3 years previous purchasing experience or equivalent
• MUST HAVE experience buying castings and forgings
• Strong understanding of machining processes
• Strong understanding of supplier quality and PPAP
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Strong interpersonal, analytical and statistical skills are required.
• Proficient in the use of Microsoft applications (Word, Excel, etc.)
• Self starter – ability to work independently and relentlessly pursue improvements 

This position will provide you the latitude to implement the plans you develop and be a key driver in the continued success of the business. Your success in this high profile role will position you for advancement opportunities within this growing organization. 

Interested? Please apply on line or email your resume to mike.armbrust@mrstcroix.com; reference ID# mr1637

President – Manufacturing – Non Profit

Looking for a great opportunity to lead a steadily growing manufacturing enterprise in the Twin Cities? My client is looking for an energetic President who can grow and develop the company and take it to the next level. 

JOB DESCRIPTION 

This position will report to the Board of Directors and provide you with the responsibilities of: 

• Developing the long term growth strategy with the senior management team, gaining approval from the Board of Directors and executing the plan
• Leading each functional area of the business, ensuring the strategic plan has solid supporting plans by each functional leader
• Monitoring quality in order to ensure that product designs effectively meet market and customer needs
• Developing and monitoring the performance metrics that effectively measure the quality and success of all activities
• Preparing of annual budgets, management reports and Board communications
• Developing the personal and professional skills of the staff and employees to strengthen the team
• Participating in business development and fundraising for the organization
• Managing and evaluating 5-6 direct reports that cover programs, operations, sales, marketing, and finances 

JOB REQUIREMENTS 

An excellent candidate will have the following skills and qualifications:

• Must have a Bachelor’s Degree, Master’s Degree preferred but not required
• Must have at least 15 years of management experience in a manufacturing organization
• Prior experience managing multiple departments
• Must have strong interpersonal, communication and organizational skills
• Engineering background a plus
• P&L responsibility, long range planning and demonstrated success hitting your plan
• Understanding of social enterprises, their missions and challenges 

This position will provide you the opportunity to grow and strengthen the organization. 

Please apply on line or email your resume to mike.armbrust@mrstcroix.com.

Interested but not qualified? Send your resume anyway as we are always looking for great manufacturing candidates!

Operations Manager – Manufacturing – Fabrication 

Looking for an opportunity to lead a manufacturing operation for a growing company in Southeast Minnesota? Our client is looking for a hands-on leader with a strong background in fabrication that has the desire to become the Operations Director in the future. This is a key position on the senior staff of the division and will help determine long range growth strategies. 

POSITION DESCRIPTION 

This position reports to the Operations Director and will provide you with the responsibilities of:

• Managing the capacity of this expanding operation and creating a 2 – 3 year growth strategy that includes capital and resource requirements
• Improving the scheduling/work flow throughout the process and leading the process improvement efforts using lean tools
• Developing goals and objectives, communicating with the team and engaging the team in continually improving every aspect of the portion of the business they are responsible for –engaging all employees in process improvement
• Communicating with senior management, providing updates on the status of your progress towards objectives
• Ensuring all work is being performed in a safe and effective manor
• Submitting and managing the budget to ensure plant performance is on target – making adjustments as necessary
• Ensuring production is supporting quality in the generation of PPAP’s
• Working with sales to ensure accurate quoting is attained including tooling and fixturing cost
• Ensuring the scheduled and unscheduled maintenance is being performed and there is a high sense of urgency to keep capital equipment in an optimal working condition
• Implementing lean principles and teaching lean techniques
• Leading, motivating and developing the skills of the group
• Working across multiple functions and doing whatever it takes to complete the job
• Following up on issues and ensuring the “systems” are being fixed along with the individual issue – root cause analysis with follow up
• Staying current with new technology and methods and ensuring the operation is on the leading edge of technology 

POSITION REQUIREMENTS 

An excellent candidate with have the following skills and qualifications:

• Must have a minimum of 8 years’ experience leading a manufacturing operation with budget responsibility
• Must have a Bachelor’s degree
• Previous fabrication experience required
• Previous experience implementing and using lean tools to drive improvement
• A working knowledge of Quality Systems
• Demonstrated ability to motivate people, assess and develop employee skills, and provide strong leadership in a production environment
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• A “hands on” leadership approach 

This position will provide you the experience of demonstrating you can lead your own operation. You will be working in an environment where strong values and respect for others are required. This is a high visibility position and will interface with the senior leadership team. Your success in this position will make you a leading candidate for higher level positions in a growing company. 

Interested? Please apply on line or email your resume to mike.armbrust@mrstcroix.com

Lean Coordinator – Manufacturing 

Looking for an opportunity to apply your lean experience with an industry leading paper product manufacturer located in Wisconsin?  Our client is looking for a Lean Coordinator to drive the lean initiative and create a culture of continual waste reduction. 

POSITION DESCRIPTION 

This position reports to the Manufacturing Manager and will provide you with the responsibilities of:

• Facilitating multiple lean improvement teams across the plant
• Tracking and reporting team progress – establishing and teaching teams how to use the metrics and informing the senior management team of the progress in each area
• Spreading “best practices” across the plant
• Developing the 2-3 year strategy for lean implementation for each department
• Evaluating the training needs for each functional area and developing a training plan
• Teaching PDCA, TPM, SMED, Cell Layout, 5S, Value Stream Mapping, Continuous Flow, JIT, Kanban, Project Management, Cost Analysis and Process Capability Analysis
• Developing “Lean Experts” in each area to facilitate teams
• Developing processes and systems to ensure sustainability
• Justifying Kaizen events and guiding teams through the process
• Assisting in the development of “future state” value streams and helping teams prioritize the tasks that need to be accomplished to get there
• Reducing waste and streamlining processes
• Becoming the “go to” person for all teams and providing support where needed 

POSITION REQUIREMENTS 

An excellent candidate will have the following skills and qualifications: 

• Bachelors degree required- preferably in a technical discipline
• Must have experience working in a manufacturing environment
• Experience with Value Stream Mapping, PDCA and a track record of cost reduction
• Strong written and oral communication skills, ability to develop and teach training
• Ability to work with a wide variety of individuals throughout the plant and office
• Familiar with quality systems
• Strong project management skills
• Experience in the paper or printing industry is a plus 

This high profile position will provide you an opportunity to prove you can be the catalyst that will take this organization to the next level.  Your success will position you for future promotions within this rapidly growing organization. 

Interested?  Please apply on line or email your resume to joy.notaro@mrstcroix.com.

Plant Manager – Manufacturing

Looking for an opportunity to lead an operation for a growing manufacturing company in the Detroit area? Our client is looking for a hands-on leader with a background in the corrugated industry with experience leading multiple functions of a business. Our client is a stable and growing manufacturing company who has a great opportunity for a hands-on Plant Manager.

POSITION DESCRIPTION 

This position reports to the President and will provide you with the responsibilities of:

• Managing and forecasting the capacity of this expanding operation and creating a 2 – 3 year growth strategy that includes capital and resource requirements
• Improving the scheduling/work flow throughout the process and leading the process improvement efforts using lean tools
• Developing goals and objectives, communicating the goals with the team and engaging the team in continually improving every aspect of the portion of the business they are responsible for.
• Managing changes in the schedule and looking for “solutions” to make the operation more flexible.
• Communicating with senior management, providing updates on the status of your progress towards objectives monthly
• Ensuring all work is being performed in a safe and effective manor
• Ensuring the scheduled and unscheduled maintenance is being performed and there is a high sense of urgency to keep capital equipment in an optimal working condition
• Implementing lean principles and teaching lean techniques
• Leading, motivating and developing the skills of the group
• Working across multiple functions and doing whatever it takes to complete the job
• Following up on issues and ensuring the “systems” are being fixed along with the individual issue – root cause analysis with follow up

POSITION REQUIREMENTS 

An excellent candidate with have the following skills and qualifications:

• Must have a minimum of 5 years in a manufacturing management role
• Must be hands on and have shop floor experience within the corrugated industry
• Must have lean experience
• Bachelor’s degree in related field preferred
• A working knowledge of ISO 9001
• Demonstrated ability to motivate people, assess and develop employee skills, and provide strong leadership
• Excellent organizational and planning skills 

We are looking for a long term team member who is comfortable working in a family environment where strong values and respect are required. This is a high visibility position and will interface with the senior leadership team on a regular basis. 

Interested? Please apply online or email your resume to mike.armbrust@mrstcroix.com with the reference number mr1615.

Don’t feel that you’re qualified but you’re interested in other Packaging opportunities? Please send your resume regardless! I would like to speak with you!

Continuous Improvement Manager 

Looking for an opportunity to apply your lean expertise with an industry leading Packaging Company located in Wisconsin? Our client is looking for a Continuous Improvement Manager to drive their lean program. 

POSITION DESCRIPTION 

This position reports to the VP of Operations and will provide you with the responsibilities of: 

• Creating and managing the QA manual including general practices, guidelines and SOP’s.
• Implementing and supervising effective training for associates in quality and SOP’s.
• Networking with customers to address quality issues.
• Coordinating tours and presentations for customers.
• Creating a foundation for continuous improvement at all levels company-wide.
• Interviewing, hiring, training and appraising performance of other staff.
• Implementing and administering special projects as required.
• Becoming the “go to” person for all teams providing support where needed. 

POSITION REQUIREMENTS 

An excellent candidate will have the following skills and qualifications: 

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering or related field OR a minimum of three years experience and/or training in a related field
• Black Belt Certification required
• Must have experience implementing and managing a Lean program in a manufacturing environment
• Strong written and oral communication skills, ability to develop training and teach
• Ability to work with a wide variety of individuals throughout the plant and office
• Familiar with quality systems
• Strong project management skills and a “hands on” approach 

This high profile position will provide you an opportunity to prove you can be the catalyst that will take this organization to the next level in lean and help the organization continue to grow. 

Interested? Please apply online or email your resume to mike.armbrust@mrstcroix.com; reference ID# mr1628

Interested but don’t feel that you’re qualified? Please send your resume! We’re always looking for good people in Manufacturing and Packaging!