- The core task: set and monitor product standards, examining samples of raw products or directing testing during processing, to ensure finished products are of prescribed quality. It heads the task list in the next section.
- Typical entry education: bachelor's degree. 29% of survey respondents say a new hire needs a high school diploma or equivalent.
- Related work experience at entry: 5 years or more. On-the-job training: none.
- One certification applies: CPIM. CPIM is from Association for Supply Chain Management (ASCM).
- Median pay: $126,060. The 10th to 90th percentiles run $78,000 to $205,520.
- Projected change through 2035: 2.6%. Annual openings: about 17,000.
Industrial production managers run the making part of the supply chain. They set and monitor product quality standards, review production schedules and orders to decide on inventory, staffing and work procedures within budget, and work with engineers and technical staff when production goes wrong.
It is a people-heavy job: hiring, training and evaluating the production workforce falls to this role. Plant manager, production manager and manufacturing manager are the common titles.
The tasks O*NET rates most important for industrial production managers:
- Set and monitor product standards, examining samples of raw products or directing testing during processing, to ensure finished products are of prescribed quality.
- Direct or coordinate production, processing, distribution, or marketing activities of industrial organizations.
- Review processing schedules or production orders to make decisions concerning inventory requirements, staffing requirements, work procedures, or duty assignments, considering budgetary limitations and time constraints.
- Review operations and confer with technical or administrative staff to resolve production or processing problems.
- Hire, train, evaluate, or discharge staff or resolve personnel grievances.
- Develop or implement production tracking or quality control systems, analyzing production, quality control, maintenance, or other operational reports to detect production problems.
Job titles in the same O*NET occupation: Area Plant Manager, Assembly Manager, General Production Manager, Manufacturing Coordinator, Manufacturing Manager, Plant Manager, Product Line Manager, Production Control Manager, Production Manager and Sub Plant Manager. Source: O*NET
OnLine, 11-3051.00, read 2026-09-23.
Industrial production managers, also called plant managers, run manufacturing plants or a specific area of production. The Handbook describes the job as deciding how best to use a plant’s workers and equipment to meet production goals, while keeping output on schedule and within budget.
The week mixes the floor and the office. Managers analyze production data and reports, monitor workers and programs against performance and safety requirements, decide whether needs like equipment upgrades or overtime fit the budget, and lead staff in solving problems. Some run quality control programs, tracing a defect to its cause, which may be a part from an outside supplier.
Plant managers who oversee a whole site work closely with other departments. The Handbook names sales, warehousing, research and design, and procurement, which the plant depends on for its supplies.
Main Responsibilities
- Decide how to use workers and equipment to meet production goals
- Keep production on schedule and within budget
- Hire, train and evaluate workers
- Analyze production data and reports, and make the production process more efficient
- Monitor performance and safety requirements
- Lead problem-solving on defects and production issues, including with suppliers
Who They Work With
Production workers and supervisors on the floor, and managers from sales, warehousing, research and design and procurement, plus customers and suppliers.
Where And When They Work
Part office, part production floor, where helmets, hearing protection or safety goggles may be required. Most work full time, some more than forty hours, and they may be on call for emergencies or work night and weekend shifts.
The biggest employers of industrial production managers, by the Handbook's count:
transportation equipment manufacturing (10%), fabricated metal product manufacturing (9%), chemical manufacturing (9%), food manufacturing (8%) and machinery manufacturing (7%).
Source: BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, Industrial Production Managers, What They Do and Work Environment. Employer shares are of the occupation's jobs in 2025, from Employment Projections data, and include the self-employed. Read 2026-09-23.
The median for industrial production managers is $126,060 a year. The middle half
earns $98,160 to $161,880, and the full range runs from $78,000 at the 10th percentile to $205,520 at the 90th, across
246,250 jobs. The industrial production manager salary page breaks that down by state, metro area,
industry and employer type.
Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025, national. Read 2026-09-23.
This is the career on the list where experience counts most. O*NET’s respondents were split, with more naming a high school diploma than a bachelor’s degree, a pattern that fits managers promoted from the production floor. A bachelor’s in supply chain management, industrial engineering or business is the faster route into management, and an MBA is common for plant-level leadership at larger manufacturers.
What BLS Says Entry Takes
Typical entry requirements for Industrial Production Managers, BLS Employment Projections | Typical entry education | Bachelor's degree |
|---|
| Related work experience | 5 years or more |
|---|
| On-the-job training | None |
|---|
A bachelor’s degree and several years of related work experience, usually in supervisory or leadership roles. The Handbook adds that some workers qualify with a high school diploma and extensive production experience.
Majors
Business and engineering are the common majors, according to the Handbook. Some employers prefer an MBA or a graduate degree in industrial management.
Degree Levels That Lead In
What O*NET's respondents in the occupation said a new hire needs:
Education a new hire needs, O*NET 11-3051.00, top three answers | Education Level | Share Of Respondents |
|---|
| High school diploma or equivalent | 29% |
|---|
| Bachelor’s degree | 26% |
|---|
| Post-secondary certificate | 16% |
|---|
Sources: BLS Employment Projections, Table 1.2 (entry
requirements); O*NET OnLine, 11-3051.00, education section, top three
answers. The O*NET figures are survey responses from workers in the occupation, not a legal requirement.
CPIM is ASCM’s planning and inventory credential and the one written around production scheduling.
Association for Supply Chain Management (ASCM)
CPIM: Certified in Planning and Inventory Management
Planning and inventory inside the operation: supply chain strategy, sales and operations planning, demand, internal and external supply, inventory, detailed schedules, distribution, and quality and continuous improvement.
- Who It Is For
- ASCM names the people it is for by task: ERP users and IT staff, planners at any level of the planning hierarchy, sales and operations planning teams, and anyone doing master production scheduling, material requirements planning, capacity planning or manufacturing inventory control.
- Eligibility
- None. ASCM sets no education or experience requirement; anyone can buy an authorization to test.
- Exam
- One exam of 150 questions (130 scored, 20 unscored pretest) in 3.5 hours, scored from 200 to 350, with 300 or more passing. It is taken at a Pearson VUE center or online. The content runs across nine modules.
- Cost
- ASCM lists the exam at $1,265 for members with its certification upgrade and $1,755 for everyone else.
- Renewal
- Stays valid while you earn 75 professional development points every five years. Holders aged 62 or older can convert a current certification to a lifetime designation, which ends the five-year maintenance cycle.
Source: ASCM, CPIM page, exam details, FAQs and exam handbook, read 2026-09-23.
The CPIM guide: the exam module by module, the full cost and how to keep it.
ASCM membership is optional, though members pay less. You buy an authorization to test, which expires six months after purchase (12 months when bought in a bundle), and ASCM recommends about 100 hours of study per exam. A candidate who fails must wait 14 full days before retaking the same exam.
Sources: BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, How to Become One; titles from
O*NET OnLine and the Handbook.
- Purchasing Manager. Plant managers coordinate with procurement managers about the supplies production needs.
- Supply Chain Manager. Warehousing and distribution managers sit on the other side of the plant’s shipping dock.
- Production Planner. Planners write the schedules and materials plans plant managers run the floor to.
The qualities the Handbook names as important for industrial production managers:
- Business skills. Running budgets, hiring and managing staff, coordinating across departments.
- Leadership. Motivating and directing workers to keep production running.
- Problem-solving. Telling a one-off defect from a flaw in the process.
- Organization. Tracking the many details of a production facility.
- Interpersonal skills. Working with other managers, staff and sometimes customers.
O*NET lists the software the occupation uses and flags the technologies employers name most often in their job postings. For
industrial production managers, the ones it marks as in demand are Microsoft Outlook, SAP software, Microsoft Office software, Microsoft PowerPoint and Microsoft Excel.
Source: O*NET OnLine, 11-3051.00, Software Skills. "In demand" and "hot" are
O*NET's own flags, based on how often employers name the technology in job postings. Read 2026-09-23.
BLS projects employment of industrial production managers to grow 2.6% over 2025 to 2035,
from 252,100 to 258,600 jobs. That is slower than the 3.5% projected for all occupations.
BLS expects about 17,000 openings a year. Of those, 5,300 (31%)
replace people leaving the labor force, 11,100 (65%) replace people
moving to other occupations, and 700 (4%) are new jobs. The
industrial production manager salary page sets out what BLS says is driving demand.
Sources: BLS Employment Projections, 2025-35;
EP Table 1.10. New jobs is total openings minus
separations. Read 2026-09-23.
What Degree Do You Need To Be An Industrial Production Manager?
BLS lists a bachelor's degree as the typical entry education for industrial production managers. In O*NET's survey of the occupation, 29% of respondents said a new hire needs a high school diploma or equivalent, and 26% said a bachelor’s degree.
How Long Does It Take To Become An Industrial Production Manager?
BLS lists 5 years or more of related work experience as typical for entry, on top of a bachelor's degree. It is a job people are promoted into.
How Much Does An Industrial Production Manager Make?
The median for industrial production managers is $126,060 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025), with the 10th to 90th percentile running $78,000 to $205,520.
Is Industrial Production Manager A Good Career?
On the federal numbers: a median of $126,060, and BLS projects the occupation to grow 2.6% from 2025 to 2035, against 3.5% for all occupations, with about 17,000 openings a year.
Can You Become A Plant Manager Without A Degree?
Some do. The Handbook says some workers qualify with a high school diploma and extensive production experience, and many managers start as production workers and move up through supervisory roles. Employers typically require or prefer a bachelor’s.
What Certifications Do Production Managers Get?
The Handbook says certifications in quality or management systems are optional and often require work experience, so most earn them after entering the occupation. ASCM’s CPIM is the planning and inventory credential built around production scheduling.
Is An MBA Useful For Industrial Production Managers?
Some employers prefer an MBA or a graduate degree in industrial management, according to the Handbook.
Pay for industrial production managers by state, metro area and industry.
Programs read from each school’s own page, with tuition where the school states it.
Programs read from each school’s own page, with tuition where the school states it.
13 careers, each tied to the BLS occupation its pay comes from.
