Assistant Plant Manager (Paint, Coatings, Chemicals Manufacturing)

Title: Assistant Plant Manager

Job #: 2026-17580

Location: Mt. Clemens, MI

Industry: Manufacturing (Paint, Coatings, Chemicals)

Schedule: 1st Shift (Days)

Salary Range: $160k to $180k Yearly (Depending Upon Experience)

Education: Bachelor’s Degree (Minimum) in Engineering, Chemistry or related field

Ideal candidate will have:

• 8+ Years of experience in progressive manufacturing operations leadership roles
• 5+ Years of experience leading managers of people
• Prior experience in a Manufacturing environment as a leader in a manufacturing setting
• Knowledge and experience leading in Process Safety Management (PSM) environment or highly regulated plant

Axalta Coating Systems (Company Website Link)

Overview:

Axalta has remained at the forefront of the coatings industry by continually investing in innovative solutions. We engineer technologies that protect customers’ products – whether they are battling heat, light, corrosion, abrasion, moisture, or chemicals – and add dimension and beauty with colorful finishes. We have a vast and ever-evolving portfolio of brands primed to play an important part in everything from modernizing infrastructure around the world to enabling the next generation of electric and autonomous vehicles.

Role Summary:

The Mt. Clemens Deputy Plant Manager will manage all aspects of the site’s operations and serve as the site responsible leader for the Mt. Clemens campus where many functional teams are co-located. The Mt. Clemens facility is a key site within the Mobility Business Segment. The Mt. Clemens site has approximately 550 employees across all functions and over 300 operations employees within the span of control for this role. This makes collaboration and partnership with the Supply Chain, Sales/Marketing, R&D and Customer Service teams, and across the business, a critical element of this role. The successful candidate will translate Regional and Global operations strategy into local execution while developing and ensuring consistent and efficient flow of product from supplier to customer, as well as enabling best-in-class service to internal and external customers.

The Plant Manager is responsible for analyzing local plant requirements and working cross-functionally to develop and execute the manufacturing strategy for their site. The successful candidate will embody a safety mindset and advance the safety culture at his/her respective site while leveraging knowledge of industry best practices and financial analysis to recommend solutions to enhance operations performance while improving cost position.

The Plant Manager will drive process excellence in every step of the manufacturing process driving continuous improvement to all site metrics (Safety, Quality, Delivery, Inventory, Cost and People). The position will also consider the latest developments in competitive technology, EH&S, and team development.

The qualified candidate will be a high-energy self-starter with a strong work ethic who must excel at both day-to-day tactical execution as well as long-term strategic planning. This individual must be motivated by a competitive industry and be an expert at fulfilling customer requirements and maximizing cost productivity. Excellent communication and leadership skills, as well as deep, relevant experience across multiple functions/facets of a best-in class manufacturing organization(s), will be critical to success in this role.

Operations Leadership Execution:

• Full accountability for all operational aspects of an integrated coatings facility including production, warehousing, and maintenance
• Consciously create an engaging culture that emphasizes Axalta values and behaviors with a focus on quality and safety
• Drive execution on all key site metrics (Safety, Quality, Delivery, Inventory, Cost and People) with a focus on year-over-year improvement and sitewide engagement in reaching goals
• Demonstrate an unwavering commitment to safety and build a strong site culture around safety and PSM
• Manage a team of operational and functional leaders while reporting into the Plant Manager
• Build a diverse and inclusive environment that fosters collaboration and empowerment, and is focused on the pursuit of excellence in operations, EHS, quality, lean, and productivity
• Cultivate a continuous improvement mindset that drives improvements in quality, cost, delivery, and inventory every day
• Manage operations budget through continuous productivity improvement and Quality control
• Identify opportunities for operational excellence and sitewide engagement in related projects
• Close collaboration with business partners and alignment of operations, business, and Axalta strategic goals

People and Talent Management:

• Provide strong leadership to Manufacturing functions and build team capabilities around these areas
• Develop staffing plans and levels aligned with budget and business needs
• Foster a spirit of teamwork and unity among department members that allows for disagreement over ideas, conflict and expeditious conflict resolution, and the appreciation of diversity as well as cohesiveness, supportiveness, and working effectively together to enable each employee and the department to succeed.
• Maintain transparent communication practices by appropriately communicating organization information.
• Empower employees to take responsibility for their jobs and goals. Delegate responsibility and expect accountability and regular feedback.

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in engineering, chemistry or related field; or equivalent experience
• 8+ Years of experience in progressive manufacturing operations leadership roles
• 5+ Years of experience leading managers of people
• Prior experience in a Manufacturing environment as a leader in a manufacturing setting
• Knowledge and experience leading in Process Safety Management (PSM) environment or highly regulated plant

Desired Qualifications:

• Strong interpersonal and leadership skills
• Experience leading a large complex team and/or organization and driving an inclusive and engaging culture therein
• Demonstrated ability to attract, retain and grow talent
• Strong financial and analytical skills; must be able to develop and implement a strategy to maximize productivity and profitability
• Strong chemical batch processing knowledge in a lean environment with high customization amongst products, including experience applying or implementing lean manufacturing, kaizen methodology and productions systems
• Demonstrated experience in gathering and reporting business data and key performance indicators to senior level leadership teams
• Strong bias for action and keen sense of urgency
• Demonstrated ability to take calculated and intelligent risks using creative/innovative thinking
• Flexible and adaptable to demanding and fast-paced work environment
• Able to adeptly operate in a matrixed reporting structure
• Responsible Care management system experience

Axalta operates its business in two segments: Performance Coatings and Mobility Coatings, which serve four end markets, including Refinish, Industrial, Light Vehicle and Commercial Vehicle, across North America, EMEA, Latin America and Asia-Pacific. Our diverse global footprint allows us to deliver solutions in over 140+ countries and coat 30 million vehicles per year. We’ve recently set an exciting 2040 carbon neutrality goal, in addition to 10 other sustainability initiatives, and we take pride in working with our customers to optimize their businesses and achieve their goals.