General Manager – Ottawa
Reports To
Regional General Manager
Location
Ottawa, Ontario
Industry
Corrugated Packaging Manufacturing
Team Size
Approximately 75 employees
Position Summary
Reporting to the Regional General Manager, the General Manager is responsible for the overall performance and management of the manufacturing facility, including operations, financial performance, customer service, quality, health and safety, maintenance, and people leadership.
The General Manager acts as the primary leader of the facility and is accountable for translating the company’s strategic objectives into measurable operational and financial results.
Working closely with the leadership team, the General Manager will drive operational excellence, continuous improvement, customer satisfaction, employee engagement, and profitable growth.
This is a highly visible, hands-on leadership position requiring a strong presence on the manufacturing floor, sound business judgment, and the ability to lead through both day-to-day operational challenges and longer-term strategic initiatives.
About the Company
Smith Induspac Ottawa is part of Groupe Induspac, a leading provider of custom industrial packaging solutions in Eastern Canada. For more than 50 years, Groupe Induspac has proudly served a diverse range of customers requiring high-quality, tailor-made packaging solutions designed to meet their specific needs.
With more than 300 employees and four manufacturing facilities located in Candiac, Longueuil, Ottawa, and Toronto, Groupe Induspac combines expertise, innovation, and manufacturing capabilities to deliver reliable packaging solutions across various industries.
The Ottawa facility is a specialized manufacturing operation employing approximately 75 employees and serving a diverse customer base with high-quality corrugated packaging solutions.
Our organization is committed to delivering exceptional customer service while continuously improving productivity, quality, safety, and operational performance.
Role and Responsibilities
As General Manager, you will provide overall leadership to the facility and ensure that operational, financial, customer, and people objectives are achieved.
Business Leadership & Strategy
- Lead the overall management and performance of the facility in alignment with the company’s strategic objectives;
- Translate business objectives into clear operational priorities, targets, and action plans;
- Establish a culture of accountability, ownership, continuous improvement, and operational excellence;
- Develop and execute annual operating plans and business objectives;
- Identify opportunities for profitable growth, operational improvement, cost reduction, and increased competitiveness;
- Ensure effective communication of company objectives and priorities throughout the organization.
Financial Management & Business Performance
- Take overall responsibility for the financial performance of the facility;
- Develop and manage the annual operating budget in collaboration with the finance team and senior leadership;
- Monitor revenue, gross margin, operating costs, labour costs, scrap, overtime, inventory, and other key financial indicators;
- Analyze financial and operational performance and implement corrective actions when required;
- Identify opportunities to improve profitability and operational efficiency;
- Ensure appropriate cost controls while maintaining quality and customer service;
- Evaluate capital expenditures and ensure investments provide appropriate business value and return on investment;
- Provide regular business performance updates and recommendations to senior management.
Manufacturing Operations & Continuous Improvement
- Ensure production schedules, customer requirements, quality standards, and delivery commitments are consistently achieved;
- Monitor key operational performance indicators, including productivity, machine efficiency, downtime, scrap, labour utilization, on-time delivery, and overall equipment performance;
- Identify operational bottlenecks and implement effective solutions;
- Drive continuous improvement initiatives aimed at increasing productivity, reducing waste, improving flow, and controlling costs;
- Promote Lean Manufacturing, problem-solving, standardization, and data-driven decision-making;
- Ensure appropriate maintenance strategies are in place to maximize equipment reliability and production capacity.
Customer Service & Commercial Support
- Ensure a high level of customer satisfaction through reliable quality, service, and on-time delivery;
- Develop strong relationships with key customers and participate in resolving significant customer issues;
- Work closely with customer service and costing teams to ensure alignment between customer requirements, costing structure and manufacturing capabilities;
- Support business development initiatives and identify opportunities for growth within existing and new markets;
- Monitor customer complaints and ensure appropriate corrective actions are implemented;
- Manage and develop a team of Sales representatives throughout eastern Ontario in the development, design and prototyping new products;
- Work with Sales team to maintain existing and develop new customer opportunities and following company pricing strategies;
- Manage a team of packaging designers in the development of new packaging solutions.
Quality Management
- Ensure that products consistently meet customer specifications and company quality standards;
- Monitor quality performance, customer complaints, rework, and scrap;
- Ensure effective root-cause analysis and corrective actions;
- Collaborate with the operations and maintenance teams to continuously improve processes and reduce the cost of poor quality.
Health, Safety & Environmental Responsibility
- Make health and safety a fundamental priority throughout the facility;
- Ensure compliance with applicable occupational health and safety legislation, regulations, and company policies;
- Promote a proactive safety culture based on prevention, accountability, and employee involvement;
- Ensure that managers and supervisors understand and fulfill their health and safety responsibilities;
- Monitor safety performance and implement corrective and preventive actions;
- Support continuous improvement of workplace safety practices and procedures.
Leadership & People Management
- Lead, coach, and develop the facility’s management and supervisory team;
- Build a high-performance culture based on teamwork, respect, accountability, and continuous improvement;
- Ensure effective communication and employee engagement throughout the facility;
- Promote a positive, respectful, and inclusive workplace culture.
Qualifications and Experience Required
- Bachelor’s degree in business administration, Operations Management, Engineering, or a related field;
- Minimum of 10 years of progressive experience in a manufacturing environment, including significant leadership experience;
- Experience managing a manufacturing operation with responsibility for operational and financial performance;
- Experience in corrugated packaging, converting, printing, paper products, or a related manufacturing environment is strongly preferred;
- Demonstrated experience managing budgets, costs, productivity, and operational KPIs;
- Experience leading continuous improvement and operational excellence initiatives;
- Experience managing and developing supervisors and managers;
- Strong understanding of manufacturing processes, production planning, maintenance, quality, and supply chain;
- Experience in a unionized manufacturing environment is considered an asset;
- Strong knowledge of health and safety requirements in a manufacturing environment.
Skills and Competencies Required
- Strong business acumen and financial understanding;
- Demonstrated ability to lead a manufacturing operation and deliver measurable results;
- Strong leadership and people-management skills;
- Hands-on, visible, and highly engaged leadership style;
- Ability to make sound decisions quickly in a fast-paced manufacturing environment;
- Strong sense of accountability and ownership;
- Ability to establish priorities and maintain focus on business-critical objectives;
- Strong communication and relationship-building skills;
- Strong negotiation and conflict-resolution skills;
- Results-oriented with a continuous improvement mindset;
- High level of professionalism, integrity, and discretion;
- Proficiency in French is considered an asset;
- Proficiency in Microsoft Office, particularly Excel and Outlook.
What We Offer
- A key leadership position within a growing Canadian manufacturing organization;
- Direct influence over the operational and financial performance of the facility;
- A highly visible and hands-on leadership role;
- The opportunity to lead approximately 75 employees and a multidisciplinary management team;
- Competitive compensation and performance-based incentive program;
- Comprehensive group benefits;
- A collaborative and entrepreneurial work environment;
- Opportunities for professional growth and advancement within Groupe Induspac;
- The opportunity to contribute directly to the continued growth and transformation of the organization.
The Opportunity
This is an opportunity for an experienced manufacturing leader who wants to own the results of an operation, not simply manage a department.
The successful candidate will have the autonomy to influence how the facility operates, develop its leadership team, improve manufacturing performance, strengthen customer relationships, and contribute directly to the profitability and growth of the business.
If you are a hands-on leader who combines business discipline, operational excellence, and strong people leadership, we would like to hear from you.
