WCM MANAGER

Ariston Group is a global leader in sustainable thermal comfort that offers a unique, extensive range of solutions for climate comfort, water heating and air handling, as well as components and burners. Listed on Euronext Milan since November 2021, in 2024 the group reported over 2.6-billion-euro revenues, with over 10,000 employees, direct presence in 40 countries in 5 continents, 28 production sites and 28 research and development centers. The group demonstrates its commitment to sustainability through the development of renewable and high efficiency solutions, such as heat pumps, water heating heat pumps, hybrids, domestic ventilation, air handling and solar thermal systems. The group also stands out for its continuous investment in technological innovation, digitalization, and advanced connectivity solutions. The group operates under global strategic brands Ariston, Elco and Wolf, and brands such as Calorex, NTI, HTP, Atag, Brink, Chromagen, Racold, as well as Thermowatt and Ecoflam in the components and burners business.
 

In your role as Global WCM Manager, you will be responsible for driving operational competitiveness across manufacturing sites by implementing a culture of continuous improvement. This role requires a dual approach: a strong hands-on presence on the shop floor combined with the ability to coach and transform the plant culture towards Lean Manufacturing. Moving beyond theoretical frameworks, the role focuses on delivering tangible business results and achieving plant performance targets (Zero Waste, Zero Defects, Zero Breakdowns, Zero Accidents).

This role reports directly to the Global Senior Director WCX (World Class Excellence) and partners closely with Plant Managers and local operational teams to boost factory efficiency.

Your main responsibilities include:

• Performance Delivery: Partner with plant leadership to identify operational bottlenecks and execute action plans to meet and exceed site KPIs.
• Loss Transformation: Map and translate plant inefficiencies (losses) into financial cost-saving projects, ensuring a direct impact on the P&L.
• Shop Floor Execution: Bridge the gap between global strategy and factory reality by working hands-on with local teams directly on the production lines.
• Progress Tracking: Coordinate operational reviews and plant assessments to measure efficiency gains and track performance maturity.
• Lean Manufacturing Coaching: Act as a mentor and coach for plant leaders and shop floor operators, driving the cultural shift toward continuous improvement, proactive problem-solving, and waste elimination.
• Cross-Plant Benchmarking: Lead and facilitate the systematic sharing of best practices and successful operational solutions across all group manufacturing sites.
• Standardization of Procedures: Own the responsibility for raising procedural standards, ensuring a unified, harmonized, and standardized approach to operational excellence across different plants.
• Global Alignment: Act as the guardian of operational standards to eliminate fragmentation, ensuring that all factories speak the same technical language and follow identical operational excellence guidelines.

Required skills:

• Lean Manufacturing background focused on driving performance across major plant areas.
• To be considered for this role, candidates must demonstrate deep, hands-on knowledge in at least 2 of the following 5 areas:

• • Production & OEE Optimization: Mastery of methods to maximize asset utilization, reduce cycle times, and eliminate micro-stoppages (e.g., SMED for quick changeovers, Line Balancing).
  • Maintenance & Reliability Excellence: Focus on eliminating unplanned downtime and reducing maintenance costs through proactive breakdown analysis (e.g., Root Cause Analysis, MTBF improvement, Preventive Maintenance scheduling).
  • Logistics & Material Flow Efficiency: Optimization of internal logistics to reduce inventory, eliminate material handling waste, and improve line-feeding performance (e.g., Kanban systems, Just-In-Time, Pull loops).
  • Quality & Defect Prevention: Implementation of built-in quality tools on the line to hit zero-defect targets and minimize scrap rates (e.g., Poka-Yoke/error-proofing, Statistical Process Control).
  • Safety & Workplace Organization: Driving an accident-free environment by optimizing workstation ergonomics and visual standards (e.g., 5S, Visual Management, Hazard hunting).
• Operational Experience: Minimum of 5–7 years of direct line management experience within structured manufacturing environments (Production Supervisor / Shift Manager OR Maintenance Manager / Reliability Engineer OR Logistics Team Leader / Materials Management Specialist
• Education: Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Engineering (Industrial, Mechanical, Automation) or equivalent technical background.
• Languages: Fluent in English (written and spoken) for corporate reporting.

Personal skills:

• Influence without Authority: Ability to drive change, challenge the status quo, and align plant teams without a direct hierarchical reporting line.
• Stakeholder Management: Skill in communicating effectively with both Top Management (Global Senior Director) and line operators.
• Change Management & Execution: Ability to overcome cultural resistance in plants, turning continuous improvement into a daily habit rather than a bureaucratic exercise.
• Resilience & Conflict Resolution: Positive attitude in handling negotiations and friction points related to operational process changes.

Location & opportunities:

Primary Location: Italy (Fabriano area) is the preferred location for this position.

Alternative Regional Locations: Strong candidates located within key operational regions will also be considered, specifically:

• Saltillo, Mexico
• Wuxi, China
• Hanoi, Vietnam

Travel Requirements: High flexibility and willingness to travel internationally at least 50% of the time are required to ensure hands-on support, global standardization, and on-site coaching across the group's manufacturing sites.

We are committed to the principle of equal employment opportunity for all people, by offering a work environment accessible, welcoming and inclusive in compliance with legal obligations.