Food Manufacturing Assistant Plant Manager

Overview: This position will support the Plant Manager by overseeing day-to-day operations, leading cross-functional teams, and ensuring operational excellence across production, maintenance, scheduling, purchasing, and warehouse. The role is instrumental in driving continuous improvement, maintaining regulatory compliance, and cultivating a culture of safety, quality, and high performance.

• Essential Job Duties
• Spends at least 75% of time on the plant floor.
• Lead and support daily plant operations to meet or exceed production, quality, and safety goals.
• Supervise functional areas including production, scheduling, maintenance, purchasing, and warehouse logistics.
• Serve as acting Plant Manager in their absence to ensure continuity in operations.
• Oversee and optimize daily performance using KPIs for safety, quality, cost, and delivery.
• Drive and implement continuous improvement initiatives.
• Ensure plant-wide compliance with all regulatory agencies (OSHA, FDA, USDA, GMP, HACCP, SQF).
• Manage product recalls and coordinate the recall process in case of food safety issues.
• Oversee the sanitation practices in the plant to meet food safety and health standards.
• Conduct audits of all material suppliers to ensure compliance with food safety and quality standards.
• Collaborate with cross-functional departments to support customer requirements and production goals.
• Troubleshoot production issues related to process flow, line efficiency, waste, and quality.
• Oversee inventory control and ensure proper stocking levels to meet production demands.
• Lead and develop plant leadership team; coach and mentor direct reports.
• Support plant budget, capital projects, and cost-control strategies.
• Promote a culture of safety, accountability, and high performance throughout the facility.
• Provides training and motivation to team members, using recognition, positive feedback, and other rewards with appropriate discretion in a continuous improvement environment.
• Model personal leadership capabilities for growth and will demonstrate a focus on talent development and upskilling of the team to ensure succession and leadership engagement.
• Follows all health and safety standards and enforces use of PPE.

  Competencies & Skill Requirements

  • Proven leadership and team development skills in a fast-paced manufacturing setting.
  • Strong analytical skills; ability to interpret KPIs and take data-driven action.
  • Excellent verbal and written communication across all organizational levels.
  • Ability to lead change, implement process improvements, and build team alignment.
  • Advanced problem-solving skills; quick thinking in high-pressure situations.
  • Strong working knowledge of safety, regulatory, and quality systems (OSHA, GMP, HACCP, SQF).
  • Strong conflict resolution skills, especially for addressing employee grievances or operational conflicts within the production team.
  • Proficient in Microsoft Office Suite (Excel, Word, PowerPoint)
  • Ability to manage multiple priorities and deadlines with a sense of urgency.
  • Hands-on leadership style with a strong floor presence and approachability.
  • High attention to detail, professionalism, and integrity.
  • Strong analytical skills; I.E., ability to analyze detailed data to make informed decisions.
  • Proficient in Enterprise Resource Production (ERP) systems for manufacturing production.
  • Experience managing budgets, cost analysis, and implementing cost-saving initiatives without compromising safety or quality.

    Qualifications & Experience  

    • Bachelor’s Degree in Manufacturing, Business or Engineering
    • A Minimum of five (5) years’ experience in a production management environment, with over $20M in sales, and 200 or more employees.
    • A minimum of three (3) years in a food manufacturing leadership role.
    • Experience working in a food manufacturing environment applying common processes, procedures and equipment.
    • 3 years or more experience applying and enforcing routine Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP's) in a food environment.
    • Familiarity with regulatory requirements for food manufacturing plants.

    Preferred Qualifications:

    • Good understanding of all continuous improvement production techniques.
    • Experience with SQF, HACCP, GMP, SDS, Process Improvement, and GFSI
    • Aptitude for equipment operations and troubleshooting.
    Ability to communicate in Spanish or Vietnamese preferred

    Work Environment

    ·         Must be able to stand, walk, kneel and bend for extended periods of time.

    ·         Must be able to work in warm, cold and freezing temperatures for long periods of time.   

    ·         Occasionally required to balance or climb.

    ·         Frequently lift and/or move up to 50 pounds