CEO

About the Company

American Operator exists to keep the American Dream alive through small-business leadership and ownership. We buy small businesses between $5M-$15M in revenue from retiring owners and place experienced operators as CEOs, providing a clear pathway to earn significant equity in the business they lead.

Responsibilities

• Grow the business with a focus on key performance metrics while leading day-to-day plant operations
• Develop and lead the production team, including line leads and applicators, with a culture of high accountability
• Oversee production on the finishing line, including pretreatment, booths, and cure ovens
• Build upon existing customer relationships and grow into new end markets to reduce industry concentration
• Own company compliance for hazardous waste and other regulations
• Manage equipment upkeep and capex
• Partner with American Operator on strategy, budgeting, and growth planning

Requirements

• 7+ years of relevant industry experience
• At least 3 years of P&L ownership over a department or entire plant
• Experience building high-performance hourly teams with accountability for hiring and performance improvement
• Experience leading operations with a focus on batch production runs on tight timelines
• Track record of profitably growing sales for job shops relying on reputation and service quality
• Currently located in or willingness to relocate to Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, Indiana, Illinois, or Wisconsin

Preferred Qualifications

• Direct experience within powder coating, liquid paint, metal finishing, or metal fabrication
• Owned responsibility for compliance and record-keeping for permitted facilities (air permits, VOC logs, hazardous waste)
• Experience diversifying a customer base across end markets to reduce concentration