Department Lead

Department Lead, Bicester, 4 day week, £40,000 - £47,000 + benefits

• 4 day week - Monday to Thursday. Every Friday off!

• £40,000 - £47,000 + pension + holidays + training & development.

• This is a newly created role taking ownership of a small, technically diverse surface finishing department covering powder coating, wet paint and chemical coatings.

• Interesting work across medical, automotive, EV, audio and specialist engineering sectors.

This is not a traditional people-management role. You'll work alongside two experienced technicians, focusing on planning and workflow, process improvement, quality, documentation and bringing greater structure and visibility to the department.

This Department Lead job will suit:

• A Senior Technician, Team Leader, Manufacturing Engineer, Process Engineer, Production Engineer or similar.

• Someone from a manufacturing, engineering, production, process improvement or surface finishing environment.

• Experience within powder coating, wet paint, plating, anodising or surface treatments would be advantageous but is not essential.

• A practical problem solver who enjoys getting into the detail and improving how things work.

• Someone comfortable taking greater ownership without wanting a traditional people-management role.

This Department Lead job will involve:

• Taking ownership of day-to-day planning, scheduling and workflow across a small department.

• Working alongside two experienced technicians to ensure quality and delivery requirements are achieved.

• Improving processes, SOPs, work instructions and operational documentation.

• Monitoring productivity, quality, rework and overall department performance.

• Identifying opportunities to improve efficiency, consistency and process control.

• Working closely with engineering, planning and customers to deliver robust, repeatable finishing processes.

This Department Lead role is commutable from Oxford, Bicester, Banbury, Brackley, Buckingham, Kidlington, Aylesbury and surrounding areas.