Site Leader

The Site Leader / Managing Director (MD) is the senior leader accountable for the overall performance, stewardship, and leadership of BW Converting’s Čačak, Serbia site. This role carries full Managing Director responsibility, including safety, operations, financial performance, people leadership, and regulatory compliance.

In addition to direct site leadership, this role plays a critical enterprise role by ensuring strong matrix alignment with BW Converting’s global functions (Operations, Engineering, Quality, Supply Chain, Finance, People, and Continuous Improvement). The Site Leader serves as the single‑point integrator, balancing local accountability with global standards, strategy, and ways of working.

The successful leader will embody Barry‑Wehmiller values, lead with humility and accountability, and foster a high‑performance, people‑centric culture while driving operational excellence and sustainable growth.

• Act as the legal and operational representative of the site in Serbia, ensuring compliance with all local statutory, labor, safety, and regulatory requirements.
• Own the site’s strategic plan and ensure alignment with BW Converting and Barry‑Wehmiller enterprise priorities.

• Partner with site leaders  including manufacturing, engineering, quality, supply chain, service, finance, and people functions to ensure world‑class safety, quality, delivery, and cost performance.
• Establish clear operating rhythms, performance metrics, and accountability systems across the site.
• Champion continuous improvement using Lean and BW Way principles, driving productivity, standardization, and operational maturity.
• Ensure strong collaboration across European and global manufacturing sites.

• Lead the site within a matrix organizational structure, ensuring strong functional alignment without eroding local accountability.
• Partner closely with global functional leaders to:
  • Deploy common standards, tools, and processes.
  • Balance global priorities with local execution realities.
  • Resolve conflicts between site needs and enterprise objectives effectively.
• Serve as a role model for leading through influence, transparency, and trust within a complex global organization.

• Build and develop a strong local leadership team capable of delivering results and sustaining enterprise alignment.
• Foster a people‑centric, inclusive culture aligned with Barry‑Wehmiller values, emphasizing engagement, development, accountability, and care.
• Partner with the People team to ensure effective talent planning, succession, leadership development, and organizational health.
• Ensure consistent employee experience while respecting local cultural and market context.

• Act as a key partner to BW Converting executive leadership, providing transparent updates on site performance, risks, and opportunities.
• Collaborate with peers across Europe and globally to support cross‑site initiatives, capacity planning, and business transformation efforts.
• Represent the site with customers, suppliers, community partners, and external stakeholders as appropriate.

• Senior leadership experience in manufacturing, industrial, or engineered‑to‑order environments.
• Proven experience with full business or site leadership responsibility, including financial accountability.
• Demonstrated success operating within a matrixed, global organization.
• Strong leader of leaders with the ability to align, influence, and hold teams accountable across functions.
• Experience working in or leading organizations in Europe or cross‑culturally preferred.
• Fluency in English required; Serbian language capability strongly preferred.

• Experience in capital equipment, machinery, or complex manufacturing environments.
• Demonstrated lean / continuous improvement leadership experience.
• Prior Managing Director or General Manager role in an international setting.

• Values‑based, people‑centric leader aligned with the Barry‑Wehmiller culture.
• Decisive, resilient, and comfortable navigating ambiguity.
• Strong systems thinker capable of balancing enterprise consistency with local agility.
• Credible operator with executive presence and humility.

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