Production Associate Jobs in Grinnell, IA (NOW HIRING)

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

   Daily supervision/leading of manufacturing associates
   Perform as a working member of the team as necessary to meet production targets, set the pace
   Demonstrate work methods and ensure that team members are trained to complete all tasks
   Assign work to associates and monitor both efficiency and quality of their work
   Ensure all work procedures are followed
   Promote a safe, clean and focused work environment
   Manage vacation and time off requests for the team
   Ensure that the payroll records are accurate for team members via i.e. Labor Tracker
   Deliver and participate in disciplinary activities with Human Resources
   Participate in the interview/selection of team members
   Attend and participate in shift hand off meetings
   Fairly and consistently promote, enforce and reinforce all company policies
   Conduct associate performance reviews in a timely manner
   Lead team in the application of LEAN  manufacturing tools, including 5S, Visual Management, 7 Forms of Waste, Continuous Improvement (Kaizen), Poke Yoke, and Root Cause Corrective action
   Ensure that team boards are completed accurately and on time, and metrics are utilized to develop corrective actions and drive continuous improvement

Education/ Skills/ Experience:
   Two-year degree in supervision, management, business, or a related area and 3 years of supervisory/management experience, or equivalent combination of education and experience.
   Experience in LEAN manufacturing
   Demonstrated leadership, engagement and mentoring skills
   Enthusiastic and possess the ability to motivate others
   Interpersonal, communication and time management skills
   Ability to maintain excellent attendance record
   Analytical and problem solving skills 
   Be seen as the best source of credible information for their associates, and respected by other associates.

Training Requirements:
Must attend all mandatory HR training modules such as drug testing, harassment, FMLA, positive work environment, etc.

Physical Demands:
   Ability to be on the factory floor for long periods of time, potentially working across all shifts at times.
   Stamina to work 50+ hours / week to support plant performance.

Personal Qualities: (these are the qualities it takes to get the most from others)
   Emotional balance: The leader works in situations which involve authority, leadership, conflicts, meeting targets and deadlines, etc. The successful leader has to be able to maintain emotional balance and self-control so that they may face various situations confidently and successfully.
   Be proactive/engaging: The leaders will have some objectives to achieve. They cannot plan everything in advance.  Several times they have to respond to the needs of the situation which has arisen suddenly.  The leader must also be able to have qualities such as being committed, having a missionary zeal, taking responsibility instead of passing the blame to others all while getting the team to engage and follow.
   Creativity: The leader must have the ability to come up with new responses to situations.  They must have new ideas and also be able to recognize a good idea when it comes from another source.
   Mental agility: The leader must have the ability to grasp problems quickly, to think of several things at the same time, and assess the whole situation quickly.  This quality is necessary for success.
   Learning habits: Effective leaders are independent as learners. They take responsibility for the rightness of what is learned, and are not dependent on others.
   Self-knowledge: Whatever the leader does is affected by their own view of their job and role, objectives, strengths and weaknesses etc. So they must be aware of these attributes. Hence the leader must develop skills of looking at himself critically.

Managerial Skills Required:
   Technical skill: Technical skill is proficiency in a specific activity that involves methods, processes, procedures or techniques (molding, components, finishing).  
   Human skills: the ability to work with, understand, motivate, and communicate with associates and groups.  It also includes the ability to engage and communicate with people, to set the tone, resolve conflict, and to discipline.  Since the leader's job involves constant interaction with people, human skills are essential.
   Conceptual skills: the ability to understand abstract or general ideas and apply them to specific situations.  Conceptual skill usually means understanding how TPI can be affected by a specific activity.  Although it may not always be apparent, every action taken in an organization has ramifications elsewhere.
   Diagnostic skills: is the ability to analyze the nature of a problem with people, ideas, things or events.  A good diagnosis precedes a recommended solution to a problem. Leaders routinely can be called on to size up a problem in order to take appropriate corrective action.  This skill overlaps with the other four managerial skills. This occurs because leaders usually need to use technical, human, conceptual or political skills to make their diagnosis. 
   Influencing skills: the ability to acquire the power needed to achieve one's and TPI's objectives. Specific influencing skills include being able to win others over to your cause.