Also called: Production Director, Factory General Manager
Runs an entire aerospace factory: people, schedules, safety, and quality.
You walk the floor at 6 a.m. to check on the night shift, meet with engineers about a part shortage, and report to executives on whether the next 10 aircraft will ship on time.
Bachelor's degree (4-year), about 4 years after high school. Bachelor's in engineering or business plus 10+ years of manufacturing experience.
Ways in: 4-year college, On-the-job training, Graduate school. Training cost: $15k – $60k.
Majors to look at: Industrial Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Business Administration.
Growing about average (about 2% over 10 years).
Low risk for 10 years. AI dashboards help forecast output and quality; leading thousands of workers and safety culture stay human.
Classes: Business, Physics, Speech or debate, Statistics.
Official data: O*NET occupation 11-3051.
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