Head of Digital Manufacturing - Now Hiring!

About this Position The Head of Digital Manufacturing leads the Henkel Adhesives Operations end to end digital transformation across manufacturing operations, aligning with Industry 4.0 principles. The scope includes 120+ manufacturing sites. This role drives the global digital strategy, manufacturing systems deployment and systems integration, digital use case definition and implementation for operational functions i.e., Production, SHE, Maintenance, Sustainability, data governance, analytics, OT security and digital innovation to enhance productivity, reliability, and operational excellence. This position operates at the intersection of IT, OT, data, and operations, ensuring digital systems create tangible business value.

What you´ll do 1. Digital manufacturing strategy and roadmap

Define and own the

digital manufacturing vision, strategy, and multi-year roadmap

aligned with business and operational priorities

Identify, prioritize, and sequence

high-value digital use cases

across SHE, Sustainability, Production, Maintenance

Ensure solutions are

scalable, fit for purpose standardized, and cyber-secure

across sites and regions

Act as the primary interface between local, regional and global operations, IT/OT, and other Digital teams

Create buy-in and communicate the digital vision and roadmap to the various stakeholders

2. Manufacturing systems & process modernization

Lead the design and deployment of

core digital manufacturing platforms , including: Sensors and IIoT infrastructure, MES systems, process historians, PLC / DCS integration

Define reference architectures, standards, and governance for OT and digital manufacturing solutions

Ensure reliable data acquisition, connectivity, and system availability across plants

Identify and deploy new technologies to enhance reliability, throughput, and plant availability

3. Data & Analytics Governance

Develop and implement

data governance and analytics strategies

to support manufacturing optimization

Identify and prioritize analytics use case definition for functions present on manufacturing plants e.g.,

SHE : incident prevention, process safety monitoring, compliance reporting,

Sustainability : energy efficiency, emissions monitoring, resource optimization,

Production : OEE, yield,

Maintenance : condition monitoring, predictive maintenance, spare parts optimization

Ensure data integrity, cybersecurity, and consistency of KPIs across the organization

4. OT Security & Cyber Resilience

Define and enforce

OT security strategy and standards

for digital manufacturing systems in alignment with enterprise cybersecurity policies

Ensure secure design and operation of

PLC, DCS, MES, historians, sensors, and IIoT platforms

across all manufacturing sites

Partner with IT Security, OT Engineering, and plant teams to implement

defense-in-depth architectures , network segmentation, and secure remote access

Ensure compliance with relevant

industrial cybersecurity standards and regulations

(e.g., IEC 62443, NIST, local regulatory requirements)

Oversee OT security risk assessments, vulnerability management, and remediation plans for manufacturing systems

5. Cross-Functional Collaboration

Serve as the primary bridge between

Operations, IT, Engineering, Safety, Quality and Supply Chain

teams

Work closely with plant leadership and corporate functions to ensure technology alignment with business priorities

6. Leadership & Change Management

Lead and grow a

multi-disciplinary digital manufacturing team

of data domain experts, data scientist, OT security experts

Drive organizational

change management

for digital adoption across global/ regional sites

Drive digital

upskilling

across the global, regional organization and across local sites

What makes you a good fit

10–15+ years of experience in manufacturing, operations. Strong know how of manufacturing is a must

5+ years in industrial automation or digital transformation roles for manufacturing environments

Proven track record in delivering digital transformation in large-scale, multi-site industrial environments

Experience in MES, or other industrial platform implementations

Leadership of cross-functional technical teams in global/matrix organizations

Strong strategic, communication, stakeholder engagement, and project management skills

Strong ability to translate business goals into digital programs

Visionary leadership and capability to inspire digital adoption at all levels

Some perks of joining Henkel

Flexible work scheme with flexible hours, hybrid work model, and work from anywhere policy for up to 30 days per year

Diverse national and international growth opportunities

Global wellbeing standards with health and preventive care programs

Gender-neutral parental leave for a minimum of 8 weeks

Employee Share Plan with voluntary investment and Henkel matching shares

Pension Fund

Disability Insurance

Health Insurance

Canteen

At Henkel, we come from a broad range of backgrounds, perspectives, and life experiences. We believe the uniqueness of all our employees is the power in us. Become part of the team and bring your uniqueness to us! We welcome all applications across different genders, origins, cultures, religions, sexual orientations, disabilities, and generations.

Head of Digital Manufacturing Now Hiring • Düsseldorf, NRW, Germany

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