5 Qualities That Every Production

Manager Should Have

Posted: Monday, April 25th, 2016 by Sarah O'Donnell Categories: Engineering/Manufacturing.
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As a specialist in the recruitment of production and manufacturing roles, our very own Patricia
Deane outlines 5 key requirements that every aspiring Production Manager will need.

Are you interested in a career as a Production

Manager? Click here to view our latest vacancies!
Strong Leadership Skills

In many cases, a Production Manager will be responsible for leading teams of up to 60 staff in a
fast paced and busy production environment. Providing clear direction to supervisors, team
leaders and operatives is no easy task and a good Production Manager will need to be able to
make important decisions in high pressure situations. You will need to motivate staff to ensure
production targets are met while maintaining the company’s quality standards. It is almost a
guarantee that a hiring manager will ask about a candidate’s leadership skills in an interview. Be
sure to have examples of situations where you successfully led and motivated a team as well as a
time when you had a difficult situation or relationship with a subordinate.

Excellent Communication Skills

The American author and speechwriter James Humes first coined the phrase, “the art of
communication is the language of leadership” and this quote still rings true today. There is no
denying that you cannot be a strong leader without good communication skills and any aspiring
Production Manager will need to display this at interview stage. A Production Manager will need
to effectively communicate business goals and targets to his/her team and ensure that these goals
and targets are effectively communicated throughout the entire team. If targets are not being met
then it is the Production Manager’s responsibility to identify why this is happening through
communication with everyone involved. I would recommend having a couple of examples of
when you displayed strong communication skills when meeting with a hiring manager about this
position.

A Strong Knowledge of Manufacturing Standards

Whether you’re interested in a role in food, pharma or the medical device industry, it is
extremely important that you have a strong knowledge of either GMP/ISO/FDA standards
(pharma/medical devices) or BRC Food standards. A Production Manager will need to cultivate
and implement performance measures to ensure production standards are met and knowledge of
the organisation’s industry standards are therefore essential. If this is an area that you are lacking
in, the good news is that there are a variety of training providers in Ireland that offer courses and
certifications in these standards and practices.

Health & Safety Procedures

Could you imagine a busy manufacturing plant ignoring best practice health and safety
procedures and being a safe place to work in? Of course not! Therefore it is no surprise that
Production Managers will need to have a strong and up to date knowledge of the latest policies
and procedures required to manage a safe and compliant manufacturing facility. Unfortunately
accidents can happen on-site and you will responsible for minimising the possibility of them
occurring. Similar to certifications in manufacturing practices and standards, a qualification in
health and safety would give you a significant advantage here.

Exceptional Organisation Skills

Managing large teams of staff on multiple projects while maintaining quality standards is no easy
task and as a result, having strong organisation skills is another key requirement for a good
Production Manager. Some candidates that I have worked with have described the role as
‘keeping a hundred plates spinning all at the same time’ so hiring managers are always keen to
ask potential employees about examples of when they have displayed strong organisation skills.
Be sure to have examples of when you have managed multiple projects at the same time and
effectively prioritised your work to ensure that key objectives are met.

Patricia Deane – Recruitment Consultant

Patricia is based in our Carlow office and specialises in the recruitment of manufacturing and
production roles in the South East. If you are interested in a career in manufacturing or
require assistance with the recruitment of a role why not give her a call on 059 9139070 or
connect with her on LinkedIn. 
 

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