How Do I Become a Regional Operations Director?

Regional operations directors are leaders who create goals for companies with a focus on improving business performance in a particular region. A person who would like to become a regional operations director needs to complete four years of post-secondary schooling. He or she also must obtain real-world experience and consider earning a graduate school degree to enhance his or her chances for employment.

An individual who wants to become a regional operations director needs to complete a four-year bachelor’s degree in an area such as business administration with a focus on operations management. Enrollment in this type of degree program requires completion of a college enrollment form as well as submission of your high school transcript and results from recently taken standardized tests. You must present your high school diploma or the equivalent certification to your desired school’s admissions team as well.

Core business classes will prepare you to lead company operations in an assigned region. For instance, you should study total quality management, which addresses how a leader can improve a company’s services and goods by developing effective company processes, which is an important duty of a regional operations director. In addition, you need to take classes on how to keep track of company inventory and production schedules. Courses also cover marketing and human resource management because regional operations directors are responsible for monitoring trends in the marketplace as well as hiring and training team members. You additionally can take courses in specialty areas such as engineering or healthcare if you wish to direct regional operations at a company in a specific industry.

During your operations degree program, you should contact your college’s career services department to find out if companies in your area are accepting interns. An internship is valuable if you want to become a regional operations director because it will give you practical experience with helping a company to operate in a cost-effective manner and achieve profits. You must master knowledge of industry regulations and practice recommending improvements to a company’s policies and procedures according to these established laws. After the internship, several years of operations experience — especially management experience — is necessary to become a regional operations director.

Employers usually prefer operations supervisors who possess graduate degrees in the field. To increase your job opportunities, you can complete a two-year master’s degree in business administration. The degree will cover business concepts such as finance and accounting in depth so as to prepare you to manage a company’s losses and profits. You additionally may take specialized industry courses such as medical classes based on your career interest. This type of degree program requires that you complete a major research project as well before you can become a regional operations director.