Operations Manager

Operations Manager / Client Delivery Lead

Founded in 1919 as Phototype and recently rebranded as the Olberding Brand Family, we are a family company focused on delivering the highest quality and client service in the graphics design, management and printing industry. We Design, Optimize and Protect Brands. Our clients are primarily consumer products companies and printers, and we help them by delivering a broad range of services from brand strategy and packaging design to adaptive design across various print and digital platforms, all the way to color management and the production of printing plates.

With our world headquarters located in Cincinnati, we have over 450 employees throughout the United States and offices in Europe and Asia.

The Operations Manager / Client Delivery Lead (CDL)oversees operational activities within the Business Unit, ensuring effective planning, resource allocation, execution, validation, and delivery. The role prioritizes high-quality standards, adherence to service level agreements, and achievement of team objectives. The CDL serves as the operational leader of the Business Unit (BU), accountable for execution performance, resource optimization, quality outcomes, and delivery excellence.

The CDL ensures the Business Unit can consistently and efficiently deliver against client commitments established by the Client Business Lead (CBL) while maintaining operational discipline and scalability. The CDL owns the “how” and “when” of execution, ensuring the right resources, workflows, timelines, and quality controls are in place to deliver against agreed business and client priorities.

In partnership with the Client Business Lead (CBL), the CDL translates client priorities into actionable plans, balancing capacity, capability, quality, and operational performance. While the CBL manages client relationships, project initiation, order entry, and outcomes, the CDL concentrates on task execution, workflow efficiency, and resource optimization.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

Own execution and ensure quality performance for all work within the BU

Establish clear fit for use requirements with CBL to ensure work entering the BU is complete, properly scoped, scheduled, and executable before resources are committed

Lead daily operational activities across Design Adaptation, Production Art, Quality Control, and release workflows

Ensure smooth progress of work through all BU production stages and other teams.

Monitor work-in-process and proactively address bottlenecks

Promote consistency, predictability, and excellence in execution

Optimize resource utilization while maintaining quality and service standards

Identify and resolve resource constraints before they affect delivery

Determine operational readiness, resource commitments, schedule feasibility, and execution timing based on agreed business priorities, available capacity, and quality requirements

Set workflow sequencing and execution priorities based on client/business commitments established by the CBL and the operational capacity available to deliver them

Set workflow priorities based on business commitments and available capacity

Ensure accurate scheduling and workload distribution

Own execution risks, including capacity risks, schedule risks, workflow risks, quality risks, and delivery-readiness risks.

Work with CBL to fully understand MSA/SLA agreements for all supported clients

Escalate risks to the CBL when they may impact client expectations, business commitments, commercial outcomes, or strategic priorities

Manage execution risks and escalate delivery issues as needed

Maintain a “no surprises” operating environment by surfacing material capacity, quality, workflow, schedule, or delivery risks and providing options and recommendations for resolution.

Track production status and overall BU operational health

Partner with Shared Services and Functional leaders to ensure capacity, capability, and service levels support Business Unit objectives, including:

Creative Services

Graphic Services

Production Art

Color Services

Print Services

Quality Assurance

Digital Services

• Ensure resources are engaged effectively at the right stages
• Establish clear operational ownership, escalation paths, and accountability across shared-service handoffs supporting the Business Unit.
• Provide timely, actionable feedback to the CBL when client-facing inputs do not meet readiness requirements or create downstream delays, rework, or executional inefficiency
• Monitor BU productivity and operational efficiency
• Own the operational drivers that influence profitability, including labor utilization, productivity, rework reduction, workflow efficiency, and cost-to-serve performance
• Manage labor utilization and operational cost performance
• Identify opportunities to reduce waste, rework, and cost-to-serve
• Partner with leadership to align capacity planning with revenue forecasts

People Leadership & Continuous Improvement

• Lead and develop Ops BU team members
• Establish clear expectations, performance goals, and accountability
• Coach and mentor employees to strengthen technical and leadership capabilities
• Support succession planning and workforce development
• Foster a culture of collaboration, ownership, and continuous improvement
• Address documented performance issues within expected timelines and make timely talent decisions when individuals are not meeting expectations
• Ensure we are one OBF team, rather than as representatives of individual services or functions
• Regular communication with direct reports on company, team, business, or client goals
• Regularly meet with direct reports 1-on-1 to foster an open and trusting relationship

Quality & Compliance Management

• Ensure all work meets internal and client quality requirements
• Reinforce stage-gate artwork compliance and validation procedures
• Partner with Functional Leaders and QA team to reduce defects and rework
• Drive root cause analysis and corrective action planning
• Support continuous improvement of quality standards and processes
• Own quality execution within the workflow, while partnering with the CBL when quality issues create client-facing, commercial, or relationship impacts

Minimum Required Skills

• Minimum of 7 years of relevant operations or production leadership experience.
• Proven experience leading teams and managing workflows.
• Strong understanding of operational planning, scheduling, and resource management.
• Experience managing service level agreements and performance metrics.
• Demonstrated ability to improve productivity, quality, and operational performance.
• Proficiency with business systems, reporting tools, and workflow technologies.
• Strong verbal, written, and interpersonal communication skills.
• Effectively partner with client/business leader while maintaining clear accountability boundaries.
• Ability to influence without direct authority across shared services and cross-functional teams.

Education & Work Experience

Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience in Business Administration, Operations Management, Graphic Communications, Supply Chain, Manufacturing, Project Management, or a related field.

7+ years of progressive leadership experience in production operations, packaging graphics, creative operations, client delivery, production art, premedia, or related operational environments.

Experience leading cross-functional teams and managing complex workflows.

Demonstrated success in resource planning, capacity management, and operational execution.

Experience managing quality, productivity, and process improvement initiatives.

Experience working within SLA-driven service environments.

Packaging premedia, CPG, or brand commercialization experience.

Experience with ERP, workflow automation, and digital transformation initiatives.

Experience leading matrixed teams and shared service operating models.

Strong understanding of artwork adaptation, production art, print production, quality assurance, and commercialization workflows.

Why Choose Olberding Brand Family?

When you join Olberding Brand Family, you’re not just taking a job; you’re becoming part of a legacy of excellence and innovation. We offer a supportive and dynamic work environment where your expertise in pre-media will be highly valued. We believe in supporting our employees' well-being and offer a competitive benefits package that includes:

Comprehensive health, dental, and vision insurance to keep you and your family healthy

A 401k retirement plan with company contributions to help you plan for your future

Flexible/hybrid work schedules that promote work-life balance

Generous paid time off (PTO), personal time, and volunteer time off, in addition to 8 observed holidays

Parental leave to support growing families

Career development opportunities

The Olberding Brand Family is an equal opportunity employer and welcomes individuals of diverse talents and backgrounds.

For fastest consideration, please apply online to the Careers section of our website www.olberdingbrands.com. Only applications received through this process will be considered. No phone calls please.