Assistant Manager

AlphaGraphics Helena is seeking a motivated, organized, and results-driven leader to join our management team as Assistant General Manager. The primary purpose of this position is to lead the people, processes, and daily operational activities that drive the success of our location. Working closely with the General Manager, the Assistant General Manager will take ownership of day-to-day operational execution, employee leadership, workflow coordination, quality control, and continuous improvement.

Our Helena location offers a diverse range of products and services, including commercial printing, large-format graphics and signage, mailing services, embroidery, custom apparel, promotional products, and fulfillment. Success requires effective coordination between production departments, customer service, sales, outside vendors, and other company locations.

This is a leadership and management position, not primarily an equipment operator or hands-on production position. While a working understanding of our equipment, services, and production capabilities is important, the Assistant General Manager's primary responsibility is to ensure the team has the direction, resources, training, and accountability needed to perform successfully.

The ideal candidate is someone who takes initiative, solves problems, develops employees, creates efficient processes, and is comfortable making decisions. This individual should be capable of managing the daily operation with increasing independence, allowing the General Manager to focus on customer relationships, business development, strategic planning, and overall financial performance.

Development and training will be provided to help an individual understand the role of a General Manager and to help them prepare for the role if an opportunity arises at any of the organization’s locations. Being an Assistant Manager does not guarantee the person to be a General Manager, as this opportunity comes through demonstrating a high level of performance, business understanding and an opening for a General Manager in the organization.

Organization Core Values

Humanity – People, Respect, Teamwork, Community, Kindness

Excellence – Quality Work, Integrity, Responsibility, Accountability, Exceptional

Curiosity – Learning, Listen, Knowledge, Creativity, Problem-Solving, Challenge Assumptions

Scrappy – Self-starter, Committed, Enthusiastic, Initiative, Hard-Working

Qualifications

Primary Responsibilities:

1. People Leadership & Employee Development

• Provide direct day-to-day leadership, supervision, coaching, and support to assigned employees across production and operational departments.
• Establish clear expectations for employee performance, productivity, quality, communication, and accountability.
• Coordinate daily employee assignments and staffing coverage based on workload, priorities, and individual capabilities.
• Identify opportunities to develop employees through training, cross-training, delegation, and increased responsibility.
• Address routine employee performance concerns, workplace conflicts, and accountability issues promptly and professionally.
• Partner with the General Manager on employee evaluations, performance improvement plans, hiring, onboarding, and staffing needs.
• Foster a positive, collaborative work environment built around teamwork, accountability, and continuous improvement.
• Lead by example, demonstrating professionalism, initiative, strong communication, and a solutions-oriented approach.
• Help employees understand how their individual responsibilities contribute to customer satisfaction, operational efficiency, and company profitability.

2. Daily Operations & Workflow Management

• Take primary responsibility for coordinating daily operational workflow across the location.
• Lead daily production planning, establish priorities, and ensure employees understand schedules, expectations, and deadlines.
• Oversee work-in-progress (WIP) tracking and job progression within the company's management systems, including Corebridge.
• Proactively identify scheduling conflicts, capacity constraints, missing information, and other issues that could impact production or delivery.
• Coordinate resources and priorities across departments to maintain efficient workflow and meet customer commitments.
• Serve as the primary point of contact for routine operational questions, production scheduling concerns, and workflow decisions.
• Ensure customer orders move efficiently from order entry and prepress through production, finishing, fulfillment, and delivery.
• Coordinate with sales and customer service to address job changes, missing specifications, rush orders, and customer expectations.
• Make operational decisions within established authority and escalate significant concerns to the General Manager when appropriate.
• Maintain communication between departments to ensure accurate job information, consistent priorities, and smooth transitions between work areas.

3. Department Coordination & Operational Oversight

Provide leadership and operational coordination across the location's major product and service areas, including:

Digital Printing & Finishing

• Oversee scheduling, workflow, staffing, quality, and timely completion of commercial printing and finishing work.
• Coordinate production resources and address workflow bottlenecks.

Large Format Graphics & Signage

• Coordinate production priorities for signs, banners, displays, vehicle graphics, and other large-format products.
• Oversee scheduling and coordination of installation projects, including internal staff and outside installation resources.

Mailing & Fulfillment

• Support the planning and execution of mailing and fulfillment projects, including staffing, workflow, quality checkpoints, and critical deadlines.
• Work with department specialists to ensure mailing specifications, materials, and timelines are properly communicated and coordinated.

Embroidery & Custom Apparel

• Provide operational leadership for embroidery, apparel decoration, heat-transfer applications, and related production activities.
• Coordinate staffing, scheduling, garment availability, production capacity, and order priorities.
• Work with embroidery and apparel employees to improve quality, production consistency, training, and efficiency.
• Help establish standardized procedures for garment handling, decoration placement, quality inspections, and order completion.

Promotional Products

• Coordinate with the promotional products team, sales, customer service, and suppliers to ensure orders progress efficiently from approval through purchasing, production, and delivery.
• Support consistent communication, order accuracy, vendor follow-up, and deadline management.
• Identify and help resolve operational issues involving purchasing, supplier timelines, order fulfillment, and customer commitments.
• Support improvement of promotional product workflows and coordination with other departments.

The Assistant General Manager is not expected to be the technical expert in every department. Instead, this individual must develop a strong working understanding of departmental capabilities, rely on technical specialists appropriately, and ensure employees and processes work together effectively.

4. Process Improvement & Operational Efficiency

• Evaluate existing operational procedures and identify opportunities to improve efficiency, productivity, and communication.
• Develop, document, implement, and reinforce standard operating procedures (SOPs) across production and operational departments.
• Establish clear expectations for job handoffs, order accuracy, production readiness, quality control, and workflow responsibilities.
• Identify recurring operational challenges and lead efforts to address their root causes rather than relying on temporary solutions.
• Reduce unnecessary rework, material waste, production delays, and inefficiencies.
• Work with employees to identify better ways of completing work while maintaining quality and customer service standards.
• Promote consistent use of company systems, production tickets, job-tracking tools, and established procedures.
• Monitor the effectiveness of implemented improvements and make adjustments as necessary.

5. Quality Control & Customer Satisfaction

• Establish and reinforce quality standards across all production and operational departments.
• Ensure appropriate quality-control checks are completed throughout the production process.
• Investigate internal and external production errors, identify root causes, and implement corrective actions.
• Work toward maintaining the company's goal of a redo rate of 1% or less of sales.
• Participate in root-cause analysis for rework incidents exceeding $250 and recurring quality issues.
• Coordinate with customer service and sales when production problems could affect customer expectations or delivery commitments.
• Help resolve routine operational customer concerns and escalate significant issues as appropriate.
• Reinforce a culture in which quality, accuracy, accountability, and customer commitments are shared responsibilities.

6. Operational Performance & Financial Accountability

• Develop an understanding of the location's financial performance and the operational factors that influence profitability.
• Monitor production labor utilization, overtime, rework, material waste, operational expenses, and production efficiency.
• Identify opportunities to control costs and improve productivity without compromising product quality or customer service.
• Assist with decisions involving staffing levels, scheduling, equipment utilization, outsourcing, and purchasing.
• Maintain accurate operational records and provide regular performance updates to the General Manager.
• Collaborate with the General Manager to establish and track measurable operational goals and key performance indicators.
• Support the location's overall sales, gross profit, and operating income objectives through effective execution and cost management.

7. Equipment, Inventory & Facility Coordination

• Coordinate preventive maintenance, equipment service, and operational troubleshooting with appropriate employees and service providers.
• Ensure production equipment, tools, and work areas are maintained in safe and functional condition.
• Work with department employees to establish appropriate inventory levels and purchasing procedures for materials and supplies.
• Identify equipment, staffing, or facility issues that could affect operational performance.
• Recommend improvements and investments that support capacity, efficiency, safety, and long-term business needs.

Secondary Responsibilities

• Serve as the primary operational leader when the General Manager is unavailable.
• Assist with routine customer service, order management, or operational escalations when needed.
• Participate in management planning, staffing discussions, budgeting, and business improvement initiatives.
• Coordinate with other AlphaGraphics and Speedy CPS locations when sharing production capacity, resources, or services.
• Support larger organizational initiatives, employee training programs, and operational standards.
• Develop a broad understanding of the location's sales, customer service, financial, and management functions.
• Support the General Manager and company leadership on special projects and business objectives.

Abilities:

• Leadership Skills – People Management is critical
• Strong communication
• Customer service skills
• Excellent phone skills
• Good organizational skills
• Good problem-solving skills
• Ability to multitask and help where needed
• Be proactive, accepting accountability, and how ownership for the location’s success
• Being honest in all aspects of the role
• Lead by example
• Able to take difficult and direct feedback and able to provide the same to those that report to the role
• Be able to receive and give feedback openly and constructively.

Helpful Skills(list out skills that are necessary for the job – things they will do each day)

• Getting Information — Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
• Can do Attitude – Willingness to be taught and learn new things
• Communicating with managers, supervisors, seers, or subordinates — Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
• Being a team player with sales team and company locations

Work Schedules and Arrangements

• Onsite position
• Hourly or salaried, depending on the specific need and responsibilities
• Hours
  • 800am-5pm Monday through Friday
  • Be available to work before or after scheduled shift as needed to ensure customers and order deadlines can be met.

About Alphagraphics

AlphaGraphics is a brand fulfillment company helping customers with creative services, custom ordering portals, ecommerce, branding, kitting and shipping. We brand everything from printed products, signs, promo, swag - if a logo goes on it, we produce it. AlphaGraphics provides virtually any visual representation a company will need.  We fulfill at break-neck speeds without losing that personal touch.  WE MAKE COMPANIES VISIBLE!

The AlphaGraphics Helena location is part of a larger organization called Speedy CPS.  Speedy CPS has 17 locations in Utah, Idaho, Wyoming, and Montana.  

Benefits:

• Health Insurance
• Dental
• Vision Insurance
• Retirement account matching
• Flexible Spending
• Supplemental plan offerings
• Employee discount
• Paid time off
• Holiday Schedule including your Birthday
• Planet Fitness Program