Head of Operations > Nouméa > Joboolo FR :

Elevation Recruitment Group are delighted to be working in exclusive partnership with a leading international engineering business as they continue a significant transformation journey following recent acquisition and restructuring.

We’re recruiting for a high-impact Head of Operations to lead a newly established business unit focused on highly regulated sectors and heavy engineering manufacturing.


Based at a 1 million sq.


ft industrial facility in Normandy, this is a career-defining opportunity for an operational leader with the ambition to step into a COO or CEO role within a growing international group.

The Role:

This is a key leadership position with full P&L accountability, responsible for delivering operational excellence across a multidisciplinary team of around 100 people.


You’ll drive improvement in performance, culture, and commercial outcomes, while acting as the primary interface for major customers.

This isn’t a role for the status quo.


It’s for someone who thrives in complex environments, knows how to drive change, and wants to build something of real strategic importance.

Key Responsibilities:

• Lead a full operational turnaround and growth strategy


• Build and manage key customer relationships across nuclear, defence, and energy sectors


• Deliver against safety, quality, cost and delivery KPIs


• Introduce Lean manufacturing principles including 5S, Kaizen, and VSM


• Shape a high-performance culture rooted in accountability and continuous improvement


• Develop operational resilience, risk mitigation plans and succession across critical roles


• Recruit and upskill operational talent in areas such as foundry, welding, and fabrication


• Take ownership of transformation projects with clear outcomes and commercial impact

You’ll Need:

• Proven success in operations leadership within complex manufacturing


• Fluent in both English and French


• Experience in highly regulated sectors and heavy industrial settings


• Experience in metals forming or similar processes is highly desirable


• A track record of successful change or turnaround programmes


• Hands-on leadership across production, engineering, logistics and compliance


• Gravitas and resilience to lead in a demanding and evolving environment

If you match the criteria please apply for more details.