Area Manager – Maintenance – Toledo Propulsion Systems

Job Description

Area Manager Maintenance | General Motors

The Tone:
This is an onsite management role at General Motors’ Toledo Propulsion Systems plant in Toledo, Ohio. The plant is a high-volume manufacturing operation building transmissions for some of GM’s highest demand vehicles. This position is critical for leading teams responsible for maintaining production equipment, control systems, plant infrastructure, and facility services. The role ensures employee safety, maximizes equipment uptime, minimizes downtime, and sustains a highly efficient and competitive manufacturing system.

The TL;DR
• Role: Full Time
• Location: In-person – Toledo, Ohio, USA

• Team: Leads teams responsible for equipment, controls, and facilities maintenance, partnering with cross-functional and union leadership.
• Mission: To protect employee safety, improve equipment uptime, reduce downtime, and sustain a high-performing manufacturing system.

What You’ll Actually Do
• Safety Leadership: Cultivate a strong safety culture and ensure all work aligns with GM standards, safe operating practices, and regulatory expectations, including leading safety assessments and engagement activities.
• Equipment Maintenance: Direct preventive, predictive, corrective, and emergency maintenance for transmission equipment, focusing on improving performance, reducing downtime, and supporting long-term reliability.
• Automation Oversight: Provide comprehensive leadership for controls and automation support, prioritizing and resolving technical issues through structured troubleshooting and coordinating with engineering teams.
• Facility Management: Oversee facility maintenance activities across buildings, grounds, utilities, and plant infrastructure, coordinating internal and external resources for a safe and production-ready workplace.
• Team Development & Business Performance: Lead, coach, and develop both salaried and represented team members, manage department budgets, and drive continuous improvement in safety, quality, and cost using GMS principles.

The Must-Haves
• Background: Bachelor’s degree in engineering, manufacturing, maintenance management, business, or equivalent education and relevant manufacturing experience.
• Experience: 5+ years of demonstrated leadership in manufacturing, maintenance, controls, and facilities, including leading skilled-trades or cross-functional manufacturing teams.
• Skills: Strong knowledge of preventive maintenance, equipment performance, reliability, controls troubleshooting, structured problem solving, and safe work practices. Ability to analyze data, prioritize demands, and make timely decisions. Strong communication, organization, coaching, and conflict-resolution skills.
• Bonus: Working knowledge of GMS, TIP, layered audits, standardized work, visual management, root-cause problem solving, and continuous improvement. Transmission manufacturing experience, multi-plant experience, or experience working with represented workforces and union partners. Experience with industrial controls, automation, machine safeguarding, or facility services and projects.