Formic Labs
Manufacturing Operations Manager
Chicago || Bolingbrook, IL · Full-time
Sponsorship not specified$140k-$170kDetected 5 days ago
RESTProject ManagementSupply ChainLogisticsProcess ImprovementRoboticsLeadershipCollaborationLean Manufacturing
About the role
- As Manufacturing Operations Manager, you will play a critical role within Formic's Automation Engineering organization.
- This role combines people leadership, operational excellence, and hands-on problem solving.
- Serve as a key operational leader within Formic's Bolingbrook, Illinois facility, helping align priorities across engineering, inventory, logistics, and project execution activities
Responsibilities
- Build and uphold a culture of ownership, accountability, urgency, and continuous improvement
- Lead daily standups and execution reviews to ensure priorities are clear, resources are aligned, and blockers are addressed quickly
- Drive accountability for operational performance, quality, safety, and organizational effectiveness
- Partner cross-functionally to align operational readiness with customer commitments and project timelines
- Establish and improve SOPs, workflows, quality standards, and operational processes that support a scalable organization
- Partner closely with Product, Software, Solutions Engineering, Supply Chain, Fleet Operations, and Project Management teams to ensure successful execution across the automation lifecycle
- Collaborate with Supply Chain and Fleet Operations teams to ensure proper inventory levels, system availability, and future capacity requirements
- We're building this company from the ground up, and every person we hire has an outsized impact on our culture, performance, and trajectory.
- Fearless Optimism: You make bold bets and default optimistic. You believe in the mission, aren't paralyzed by risk, and fear inaction more than failure. You see ambiguity as opportunity and bring energy to building what doesn't yet exist.
- Create the Magic: You absorb complexity so customers don't have to. Whether your customer is external or internal, you focus on delivering experiences that are clear, fast, value-added, and outcome-driven. You don't say "not my job." You make things work.
Requirements
- You have a bias to action.
- You will develop technical talent, improve organizational effectiveness, establish scalable processes, and help create the structure and accountability required to support Formic's continued growth.
Nice to have
- Experience working for a robotics company, automation systems integrator (SI), original equipment manufacturer (OEM), or industrial technology organization
- Experience scaling operations within a high-growth startup or rapidly growing organization
- Experience supporting customer-facing deployments, installations, or field operations
- Familiarity with Lean Manufacturing, Six Sigma, Kaizen, or other continuous improvement methodologies
- 6+ years of experience leading operations, automation, manufacturing, engineering, or other technical teams in a fast-paced environment
- Demonstrated success leading teams directly while influencing and driving results across cross-functional organizations
- Experience with industrial robots or cobots such as FANUC, KUKA, Yaskawa, ABB, or Universal Robots preferred
- Experience with end-of-line automation systems including palletizing, depalletizing, case packing, or related applications preferred
Skills
- Experience working with industrial automation systems, robotics, or related manufacturing technologies
Compensation
- Formic's pay and equity packages are thoughtfully benchmarked against peer companies at a similar growth stage.
- $140,000 - $170,000 USD
Benefits
- That's why we offer a comprehensive benefits and perks package for full-time, U.S.-based team members, including:
- FSA and DCFSA, life insurance, short-term disability, and long-term disability through Unum, all 100% employer-paid
- Equity in Formic: Participate in our stock option program and share in the success of a fast-growing start-up backed by leading global investors
- Paid Parental Leave Program: Up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave
- Company-sponsored 401(k): Invest in your future with our company-facilitated retirement savings plan
- Monthly Cell Phone Reimbursement: Monthly stipend toward personal phone and internet expenses
- Flexible Time Off: Take the time you need, when you need it, supported by our flexible PTO policy
- Home Office Stipend: A one-time allowance for fully remote and hybrid employees to support an at-home or on-the-road work setup
Company info
- Formic is on a mission to reshape American manufacturing by making automation accessible to every factory. As labor constraints rise, costs increase, and global competition intensifies, automation is no longer optional for manufacturers that want to stay competitive.
- We deliver automation through a Robotics-as-a-Service model that combines industrial robotics, proprietary software, and full-service support into a single, integrated solution. By removing the traditional barriers of cost, complexity, and risk, we enable manufacturers to deploy automation quickly and realize measurable gains in throughput, safety, and operational efficiency without large upfront capital investment.
- Backed by leading investors including Lux Capital, Initialized Capital, Blackhorn Ventures, and Mitsubishi HC Capital North America, Formic is scaling rapidly and building the foundation for a new era of high-performance, Made in America production.
- About the team:
- Invest in your future with our company-facilitated retirement savings plan
- Formic is on a mission to reshape American manufacturing by making automation accessible to every factory.
- As labor constraints rise, costs increase, and global competition intensifies, automation is no longer optional for manufacturers that want to stay competitive.
- We deliver automation through a Robotics-as-a-Service model that combines industrial robotics, proprietary software, and full-service support into a single, integrated solution.
- By removing the traditional barriers of cost, complexity, and risk, we enable manufacturers to deploy automation quickly and realize measurable gains in throughput, safety, and operational efficiency without large upfront capital investment.
- The Automation Engineering Team is responsible for delivering robotics-driven automation deployments across a wide range of customer applications.
- The team partners cross-functionally to translate customer requirements into deployed systems, ensuring solutions are integrated, commissioned, and validated to perform reliably in real manufacturing environments.
- Automation Engineering works closely with customers, internal technical teams, and external partners to ensure operations are on schedule and maintain high standards for quality, safety, and repeatability.
- While each team member brings unique strengths and perspectives, we look for people who align with our Operating Principles and embody them in action.
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