Role and Functions of a Production Manager

The job responsibilities of a production manager entail planning, coordination and control of manufacturing processes. A production manager ensures that goods and services are produced efficiently, as well as that the correct amount is produced at the right cost and in quality.

The success of the production process is essential to all progress in all sectors, whether its the print production manager job description, advertising production manager job description, the event production manager job description, or even the manufacturing production manager job description. Somewhere, they all overlap. However, let’s explore the generally known production manager job description.
Skill-Set & Competencies
Problem-Solving

Regardless of the industry, the production manager job description firstly entails problem-solving abilities. When a production bottleneck occurs, the production manager needs to involve all production resources involved and then chalk out an action plan.

A lot of times such problems will not wither away through a confrontational approach, and all the while the clock keeps ticking. Hence, to keep a cool mind is key to the job. In such testing situations, the resource needs to identify the problem, and also identify the easiest way around it to create a win-win situation.
Decision-Making

Another core chunk of the production manager job description is his decision making ability. Quite a few times, the situation demands an immediate switchover in the production process, for example when the marketing department decides to launch an emergency-measure competitor product, the production manager needs to sit down and provide a concrete solution.

Hence, it is important to be knowledgeable about market and internal conditions. Furthermore, the decision obviously has to be based on logical criteria. It is the production manager’s job to design a framework for decision making.
Planning and Organizing

The elements of planning and organizing are obviously central to the production manager’s job. There needs to be constant liaison with other employees and management, to ensure that every one is on the same page across the enterprise. Natural leadership abilities have to be put to the job.
Core Duties and Responsibilities
Cost Efficiency and Productivity Enhancement
Meeting Production Goals

Typically, production managers devise methods to effectively make use of the company’s production resources, manpower and machines, to meet production goals.

Innovation and Creativity

Part of the production manager’s job is to constantly think of ways to make the production process more efficient. In today’s world, methods like the mass assembly line have acted as genesis for techniques such as “lean” production, which give managers more flexibility.

Human-Resource Functions
Work Force Retention and Enhancement

If the problem relates to the worker not being able to cope with quality, the manager may implement training programs or reorganize the entire process, often with input from the employee teams.
Logistics and Distribution

The logistics or distribution department handles the delivery of the goods, often coordinating with the production department. The procurement department only buys from suppliers as much as the production manager relays in terms of demands.

Hence, it is clear that the production manager is one of the key cogs in the industrial machine, one without which there is no progress to be made.

Author's Bio: 

Omar. S is the author of this article. Read more on www.writeawriting.com about job description of a production manager.