Operations Manager in Fort Lauderdale, Florida at SPOT ZERO REVERSE OSMOSIS INC

Spot Zero is a fast-growing marine reverse-osmosis manufacturer in deliberate operational-hardening mode after seven consecutive years of ~30% YoY growth. The Operations Manager leads Production, Inventory, and Shipping — running daily team standups, owning facility safety, and building out the build-to-inventory operating model. The mandate: ship standard products and consumables within 24 hours of order, convert the Gen 3 built-in product from bench production to a true production line, and drive continuous improvement on quality, efficiency, inventory accuracy, and shipment reliability — so that operations is not the constraint to sales.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Lead and develop the Spot Zero production team. Direct reports include the Procurement Manager, approximately 10 production technicians, and the Shipping Coordinator. Run a daily team standup to align priorities, surface blockers, and reinforce the build-to-inventory operating model.
• Quality control across production output and outbound shipments. Establish baselines for scrap, rework, warranty, and customer-reject rates. Drive measurable quarter-over-quarter improvement. Own quality gates, root-cause discipline, and the standards the team builds and ships against.
• Production efficiency and the ability to expand output for high-demand events. Convert the Gen 3 built-in product from bench production to a true production line. Apply Lean and Six Sigma methodology to remove bottlenecks and ratchet output predictably.
• Production safety across the facility. Expectation: zero recordable incidents per year. Own the safety program end-to-end — training, audits, near-miss reporting, OSHA compliance, and the operating practices that keep the team safe on the floor.
• Inventory at optimal levels — never the constraint to production, never overstocked. Maintain accurate BOMs and reorder-point discipline. Establish a daily, weekly, and monthly cycle-counting rhythm based on component criticality — high-velocity, high-cost, and single-source components counted most frequently. Size inventory depth on standard products and high-velocity parts to support build-to-inventory operations.
• Fast, reliable, and communicative shipping. Standard products and consumables ship within 24 hours of order. Damaged shipment rate below 1%. Proactive customer communication on status, tracking, and any delays.
• Safeguard the Spot Zero supply chain from single-source supplier risk. Identify, qualify, and onboard backup suppliers for critical SKUs and components. Own escalation on chronic supplier reliability issues; chronically late fabricated components is a known constraint to remove.

• Proven operations management with direct ownership of production, inventory, and shipping in a manufacturing environment. Six Sigma certification (Green Belt minimum, Black Belt preferred) AND Lean certification or equivalent demonstrated practitioner experience. ERP fluency required — must have led an organization through ERP-driven inventory and production planning, not just used the system.
• Manufacturing process design and continuous-improvement methodology. Inventory planning and BOM hygiene at a rigor that supports build-to-inventory operations and 24-hour stock fulfillment. Demand forecasting and capacity planning sufficient to expand output for high-demand events. Hands-on experience converting bench-built products to line production.
• Production-floor leader, not a desk operator — the team sees this person on the floor every day, leading daily standups and modeling the work. Safety-first instinct: treats zero recordable incidents as a non-negotiable, not an aspiration. Continuous-improvement mindset: treats every quarter as an opportunity to ratchet quality, efficiency, inventory accuracy, and shipment reliability.

PREFERRED

• Hands-on experience leading a build-to-inventory transition or a 24-hour-fulfillment systems build at a manufacturer. Experience leading a 10–15 person production team through measurable continuous improvement on quality, safety, and output.
• Manufacturing or distribution background in adjacent specialty industries (medical device, aerospace, industrial pumps, specialty consumer durables, marine equipment). Marine-industry tenure is welcome but not required — the priority is the discipline import.

Work Environment & Schedule

• Full-time, in-office role Monday–Friday
• Hours: 8:00 AM–5:00 PM

Pre-Employment Conditions

• Background screening
• Drug screening

Benefits

• Competitive Pay
• Monthly Profit Sharing – an opportunity to share in the success and growth of the company
• Medical, Dental, Vision, and Life Insurance (company pays 100% of employee-only health, dental, vision, and life insurance)
• 401K plus company match
• Paid Holiday, and PTO

EEO Statement: Spot Zero is an equal opportunity employer and administers all personnel practices without regard to race, color, religious creed, sex, gender, age, ancestry, national origin, mental or physical disability or medical condition, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital status, military or veteran status, genetic information, or any other category protected under federal, state, or local law. We value diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. We comply with all applicable laws and are a drug-free workplace. Spot Zero is a drug-free workplace. All offers of employment are contingent upon the completion and passing of the compliance process.