Operations manager job description template: the operation, the numbers you own and screening questions

"Operations manager" is a title that means whatever the business needs most. In a distribution center it means running shifts and hitting throughput; in a home services company, scheduling technicians and fixing callbacks; in a software startup, everything from vendor contracts to payroll setup. A posting that does not say which gets resumes from all three. Below is a copy-ready operations manager job description template, the classification, pay and EEO lines with sources, how each must-have becomes a screening question and scorecard row, and the mistakes that blur the job. The general method is in how to write a job description that screens.

Name the operation and the numbers first

BLS groups general and operations managers with top executives and describes them as overseeing activities too diverse to be classified into one area of management or administration (BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, last modified August 27, 2026). That breadth is exactly why the posting has to narrow it:

With the hiring manager, settle the three to five numbers this person will be judged on, the budget they control, and the people decisions they make alone. Those become the summary and the strongest screening questions.

The operations manager job description template

Operations Manager, [site / region / business unit]
[Company], [city, state] — [On-site; shift: days / nights / rotating]
Pay: $[min]–$[max] per year, plus [bonus: basis and target].
[Benefits summary, if required.]

SUMMARY
You will run [the operation: e.g. a 180,000 sq ft distribution center
on two shifts / field service for 40 technicians in [region] / business
operations for a 90-person company]. You will lead [N] supervisors and
about [N] team members, manage a budget of about $[N], and be measured
on [metrics: e.g. units per labor hour, safety incidents, on-time
completion]. You will report to [title].

WHAT YOU WILL DO
- Plan staffing and schedules to meet [volume / demand / service
  levels], and adjust when it changes.
- Track [metrics] daily and weekly, and act when they slip.
- Lead, coach and hold accountable [N] supervisors; hire and, when
  necessary, discipline and terminate.
- Find and fix process problems, and keep the fix in place.
- Own the [site / region / function] budget and explain variances.
- Keep the operation safe and compliant with [OSHA / industry
  rules / customer standards].

YOU MUST HAVE
- Managed an operation of [similar scale] through supervisors or team
  leads for at least [N] months.
- Owned [metric type] and improved it, with before-and-after numbers
  you can explain.
- Hired, scheduled and managed performance for a team, including
  difficult conversations.
- Managed a budget or cost line and explained variances to a manager.
- [Shift roles: worked the shift pattern in this posting.]

NICE TO HAVE
- [Lean / Six Sigma] training, experience with [WMS / ERP / field
  service software].
- [Industry: food safety, regulated manufacturing, unionized
  workforce.]
If you meet the must-haves and none of these, please apply.

FIXED CONDITIONS
- Schedule: [hours], [on-call for N weekends a month], [peak season
  hours].
- On site [N days a week]; travel to [N sites] [N% of the time].
- Physical setting: [warehouse floor, temperature-controlled areas,
  outdoor yards], with walking for much of the shift.

[EEO STATEMENT]
If you need an adjustment to apply or interview, email [address].

Classification, pay and EEO lines

Exempt or non-exempt. Many operations managers are classified under the federal executive exemption. The Department of Labor's fact sheet sets out the duties test: managing the enterprise or a recognized department or subdivision as the primary duty, customarily and regularly directing the work of two or more full-time employees or their equivalent, and having authority to hire or fire, or recommendations on those decisions that are given particular weight (DOL Fact Sheet #17B). The salary must meet the standard level, listed as $684 per week as of October 2026 (DOL). An "operations manager" who mainly works the line alongside the team, or who coordinates without directing anyone, may not meet the test. The template's hiring and discipline lines should reflect real authority, not borrowed wording.

Pay range. Post the approved range from the requisition, including how the bonus is earned, and check pay transparency laws by state. For an outside reference, BLS publishes wages for General and Operations Managers (SOC 11-1021) through its OEWS program. That occupation spans small shops to large companies, so treat it as a loose check; this page does not quote figures.

EEO statement. The EEOC says ads may not discourage applicants because of protected characteristics, including age (40 or older) and disability. Avoid "young, high-energy leader" and write physical requirements as tasks. Close with your EEO statement and an accommodation contact.

From must-haves to screening questions and scorecard rows

Operations candidates often talk in team results ("we improved throughput 20%"). The screen's job is to find the candidate's own decisions inside that number.

The full screen, with follow-ups for each operation type, is in operations manager screening questions. The interview guide for operations roles and the interview guide for people managers cover the later rounds, and the 30-60-90 day plan for operations managers turns the same numbers into first-quarter goals.

Common mistakes in operations manager job descriptions

No operation named

"Oversee day-to-day operations" fits every business. Name the site, the volume, the shifts and the customers so candidates from the right kind of operation recognize themselves.

Metrics left out

Operations people think in numbers. A posting without the metrics they will own looks like a role nobody has defined, and it gives the screen nothing to test.

Authority that does not exist

If hiring, scheduling and budget decisions sit with someone else, the role is a coordinator or supervisor. Title it honestly; it also affects classification.

Industry experience as a hard gate

Running shifts, staffing to demand and improving a process transfer well between industries. Require industry experience only where regulation or safety makes it necessary, such as food safety or regulated manufacturing.

Peak-season hours hidden

If November and December mean six-day weeks, say so. Candidates who learn it after starting are the first to leave.

Before you publish

• Operation type, scale, shifts and the metrics owned are in the summary.
• Team size, supervisors and the people decisions the manager makes are stated.
• Exempt status was checked against the real duties and authority.
• Peak and on-call hours, travel and physical setting are listed.
• An approved pay range with bonus basis, the EEO statement and an accommodation contact close the posting.

If you paste the posting into Interview Signal, it builds the screen from the must-haves, and the scorecard quotes the numbers and decisions the candidate described so the hiring manager can tell their work from their team's.