Operations Manager

Danaher · Indianapolis, IN

Level: Manager
Team: Production
Degree: Required
Experience asked: 14+ years
Industry: Pharma & life sciences
Posted: Today

The role in 30 seconds

A management production role at Danaher (pharma & life sciences) in Indianapolis, IN. Lead, coach, and develop managers, supervisors, production leaders, and professional associates through clear expectations, performance management, talent assessment, succession planning, and development assignments.

They ask for: 14+ years · degree required
Tools it names: Lean, Kaizen, Value stream mapping, OEE, Automation, EHS / safety

Read from the posting. The full description is below.

From the plant jobs report · week of October 26, 2026

Production Engineer roles in Indiana: typical posted base $140k–$193k.

Median of the low and high ends of 5 live postings that list pay, out of 23 production engineer openings in Indiana, read from manufacturers' own careers sites.

Indiana plant jobs report →Pay by team and state →What moves pay →

How this role compares

Against 22 other live production postings in Indiana.

Experience asked: More than usual (14+ vs 8+)

Skills these teams ask for most

✓ Lean 52%
✓ Team leadership 52%
✓ EHS / safety 30%
Root cause 30%
Six Sigma 26%
New product launch 22%

✓ = this posting asks for it too. % = share of similar postings that mention it.

Stands out: this posting asks for Value stream mapping, OEE, which few similar roles mention. If you have it, lead with it.

It asks for 14+ years. If you're close, apply anyway: requirements are a wish list. Talk to someone doing this work there first.

At a glance

Pulled from the posting text. If it's not listed here, the posting didn't say.

How to get in at this plant

Five moves over a week or two. The first one takes ten minutes.

1
Pick 2–3 people on the Production team at Danaher
Engineers who joined in the last year or two reply the most. Use the team search on this page to find them.
2
Send a short, curious note
One real question about their work. No favors yet. Each person gets a different note, written for this role.
3
Turn a reply into a short call
Questions worth asking about this team:
- What does a normal week look like on your team?
- How did you land the job? What stood out in your interviews?
4
Apply with someone vouching for you
If the call went well, ask whether they’d pass your résumé to the hiring manager. Send your résumé link, apply that day, and let them know.
5
Bring proof to the interview
One page of before-and-after numbers from projects you led: scrap, OEE, cycle time, cost. Plant managers hire on results.

This plant: Danaher in Indianapolis

9 other open roles at this site.

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Senior Process Engineer - Electrical · Reliability · Senior
Staff NPI Manufacturing Engineer · Manufacturing · Senior
Injection Molding Process Technician - 3rd Shift · Process · Technician
Staff Supplier Quality Engineer · Quality · Senior
CNC Maintenance Technician · Reliability · Technician

All 10 roles at Danaher →

Full description from DanaherAs posted on their careers site.Show

In this role, you will have the opportunity to

◆Lead daily manufacturing operations across assigned production areas, shifts, or value streams to achieve SQDIP, volume, service, and financial commitments.
◆Serve as the central coordination point for production schedules, staffing, materials, equipment availability, maintenance downtime, engineering support, quality priorities, and EHS requirements.
◆Execute and continuously improve daily management processes, including tiered accountability, visual management, performance reviews, leader standard work, escalation, and countermeasure follow-through.
◆Use the Danaher Business System (DBS), Lean principles, Kaizen, data, and structured problem solving to resolve complex operational issues, establish sustainable standards, and improve productivity, quality, delivery, inventory, and cost.
◆Translate demand and customer

requirements

into executable production, capacity, staffing, inventory, and resource plans while balancing daily priorities with departmental and multi-year operational plans.

✓Lead, coach, and develop managers, supervisors, production leaders, and professional associates through clear expectations, performance management, talent assessment, succession planning, and development assignments.
✓Partner with Supply Chain, Quality, Engineering, Maintenance, EHS, Finance, Human Resources, suppliers, vendors, and customers to meet business objectives and ensure compliance with safety, quality, regulatory, environmental, and company requirements.

The essential

Requirements

✓This role will have infrequent travel and may require international travel.

It would be a plus if you also possess previous experience in

✓Applying DBS or a comparable business system in a manufacturing environment.
✓Leading operations in life sciences, diagnostics, biotechnology, medical device, or another highly regulated industry.
✓Managing production planning, capacity, OEE, schedule attainment, first-pass yield, scrap, labor efficiency, and conversion cost.

Beckman Coulter Life Sciences, a Danaher operating company, offers a broad array of comprehensive, competitive benefit programs that add value to our lives. Whether it’s a health care program or paid time off, our programs contribute to life beyond the job. Check out our benefits at Danaher Benefits Info .

This job is also eligible for bonus/incentive pay.

We offer comprehensive package of benefits including paid time off, medical/dental/vision insurance and 401(k) to eligible employees.

Show full description ↓

Bring more to life.

Are you ready to accelerate your potential and make a real difference within life sciences, diagnostics and biotechnology?

At Beckman Coulter Life Sciences, one of Danaher’s 15+ operating companies, our work saves lives—and we’re all united by a shared commitment to innovate for tangible impact.

You’ll thrive in a culture of belonging where you and your unique viewpoint matter. And by harnessing Danaher’s system of continuous improvement, you help turn ideas into impact – innovating at the speed of life.

At Beckman Coulter Life Sciences, we know time is the most critical facet in the laboratory today: time to get life-saving therapies to patients faster; reclaiming time by automating tedious manual workflows; and saving time spent addressing erroneous or complex results.

We are partners in time and accelerate answers to critical questions through the power of automation. We develop innovations for scientists by scientists, with many of our 3,300+ global colleagues coming from the laboratory.

It’s all part of our time-tested approach to bringing meaningful innovations at the speed of life since 1935. And we’re just beginning. Working together, let’s put our time and talents together to advance human health for tomorrow.

Learn about the Danaher Business Syste m which makes everything possible.

The Operations Manager (M3) - Manufacturing Operations is accountable for the safe, compliant, and effective performance of assigned manufacturing operations. Serving as the central coordination point across Production, Engineering, Maintenance, Quality, Supply Chain, and Environment, Health and Safety, this leader synchronizes people, equipment, materials, methods, and priorities to achieve Safety, Quality, Delivery, Inventory, and Productivity (SQDIP) targets and fulfill customer commitments. The role balances daily execution with capacity and resource decisions, cost management, continuous improvement, and development of a strong leadership pipeline.

This position reports to the Plant Director and is part of the Manufacturing Operations organization located in Indianapolis, Indiana and will be an on-site role.

of the job include

•Bachelor's degree with 14+ years of related experience, or Master's/Doctoral degree with 12+ years of related experience.
•At least 4 years of people-management experience, including responsibility for leading through managers and/or supervisors.
•Progressive manufacturing leadership experience with accountability for results across multiple related teams, shifts, production areas, or value streams.
•Demonstrated experience managing manufacturing performance across safety, quality, delivery, inventory, productivity, capacity, and cost.
•Demonstrated experience developing departmental and multi-year operational plans and allocating labor, equipment, capacity, and financial resources.
•Demonstrated experience applying Lean, continuous improvement, Kaizen, or structured problem-solving methods to improve manufacturing performance and sustain results.
•Experience operating in a regulated manufacturing environment and ensuring compliance with applicable safety, quality, regulatory, and environmental requirements.

Travel, Motor Vehicle Record & Physical/Environment