Assistant Plant Director (Food Manufacturing)

Job Summary

The Assistant Plant Director will oversee the plant's production areas, including warehouse, continuous improvement, production scheduling, processing, and filling/packing. They will be responsible for meeting annual operating goals in safety, cost, quality, material yields, capital projects, and organizational development.

Key Duties & Responsibilities

• Direct all plant operations to meet production schedules, manage costs, and drive continuous improvement.
• Lead capital and technology projects to improve reliability and consumer satisfaction.
• Provide strong leadership to the management team, including hiring, performance reviews, and coaching.
• Cultivate a positive and collaborative team environment with a focus on high employee engagement.
• Manage operations to ensure quantitative and qualitative measures are met, including production scheduling, standard costs, cost reductions, cost variance, productivity, continuous improvement, sanitation, consumer satisfaction, reliability, and capital/technology improvements.
• Continuously monitor performance and communicate progress to keep teams focused on production targets.
• Implement solutions to drive continuous improvement in plant operations and line performance.
• Lead the organization in achieving quality and safety goals, ensuring strict adherence to all company guidelines and regulatory standards.
• Provide regular financial Key Performance Indicators (KPI’s) and productivity reviews (Lactalis methods).
• Ensure action plans based on KPI’s results and ensure plant communications, providing all employees with key focus areas.
• Oversee the Company’s strict compliance with PMO and FDA regulations, OSHA rules and Company guidelines within the operations of manufacturing.

Supervisory Responsibilities

• Overall direction, coordination, and evaluation of the Warehouse, Continuous Improvement, Scheduling and Materials, Processing, and Filling/Packing Departments.
• Interviewing, hiring, and training employees; planning, assigning, and directing work; appraising performance; rewarding and disciplining employees; addressing complaints and resolving problems.

Work Conditions

• Travel may be required occasionally.
• Extended hours may be necessary depending on the project needs.
• To fulfill these responsibilities, tools such as a computer, phone, or allowance(s) will be provided.
• Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform these essential duties and responsibilities.

Requirements

• A bachelor's degree is required. MBA preferred. Majors in Engineering, Food Science, Business Administration or related field are preferred.
• 10+ years dairy or food processing experience, including production management, planning management on continuous improvement is required. 10+ years of leadership experience is preferred.
• Knowledge of OSHA, Food Safety, FDA, USDA, and ISO, along with certifications such as FSSC and ISO 9001 within the food industry is required.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills.
• Strong business acumen, including financial planning and management.
• Analytical, problem decision-making skills; being able to think outside the box; exercise sound judgment and critical thinking.
• People-oriented, fostering strong relationships and developing talent, while also being data-driven to inform decisions and drive continuous improvement.
• Strong proficiency with computer systems, including Microsoft Office applications.

Competencies

• Production/Manufacturing Management: Ability to manage the team's resources, achieve production targets, and meet needs.
• Leadership & Impact: Acting and leading as a role model, positively influencing others with energy and enhancing their ability to contribute to a goal.
• Production Analysis: Ability to analyze production results: costs, volumes, time, and breakdowns. Ability to identify and solve problems to rationalize production.
• Communication: Ability to transmit and receive information clearly and communicate effectively with others by considering their points of view to respond appropriately. It includes using tact and diplomacy in all communications as well as the ability to convey ideas and information (adjusting style, tone, and level of details), both orally and in writing, in a way that all stakeholders/audience are engaged.
• Decision Making: Ability to select the best logical choice from the available options, weighing the positives and negatives of each option, considering all the alternatives and external influences.
• Materials Requirement Analysis / Material Usage Control: Ability to meet all production requirements concerning ordering of material, raw ingredients, and packaging, considering minimum stock levels, lead times, and budget. Ability to report on material levels and usage by capturing and monitoring information. Ability to analyze and report on materials and ingredients used on daily cycle counts to control the manufacturing process and minimize waste.
• Industrial Technologies and Process: Complete knowledge and understanding of industrial technologies and processes, to cover main characteristics, advantages, constraints, opportunities, and risks. Ability to determine industrial technologies and processes, ensure they are followed, and develop them.
• Best Practices / Good industrial Practices: Ability to implement Good Manufacturing Practices by clearly defining written Work Instructions, Best Practices, and Standard Operating Procedures, that are in compliance with Health regulations and ensure effective Manufacturing techniques, Product Safety, and Product Quality.

Benefits

We offer a comprehensive Total Rewards Program with a variety of affordable benefits and coverage options. We support insurance costs significantly, contribute generously to retirement plans, and offer Paid Time Off from day one. We are committed to your professional growth, providing training and development opportunities, including Education Reimbursement.

About the Role

Lactalis in the USA is a family-owned company with over 85,000 pragmatic and ambitious professionals across the globe. We produce award-winning dairy products that bring people together. In the US, we proudly offer an unrivaled house of beloved brands, including Galbani® Italian cheeses and ricotta, Président® specialty cheeses and butters, Kraft® natural and grated cheeses, Breakstone’s® cottage cheese, Cracker Barrel®, Black Diamond® cheddar, and Parmalat® milk. Our yogurt portfolio includes siggi’s®, Stonyfield Organic®, Brown Cow™, Oui®, Yoplait®, Go-Gurt®, :ratio®, Green Mountain Creamery®, and Mountain High®, along with a growing family of ethnic favorites like Karoun®, Gopi®, and Arz®. At Lactalis, we live by our core values—Ambition, Engagement, and Simplicity. We foster a workplace where innovation thrives, diverse perspectives are celebrated, and everyone’s unique background and ideas are valued.