Senior Director of Operations

About the role

The Senior Director of Operations will lead Contract Manufacturing, Procurement Operations, and Innovation for a rapidly growing portfolio of consumer health and wellness brands. This highly visible leadership role will partner closely with executive leadership and cross-functional teams to build a scalable, resilient, and high-performing operations organization capable of supporting significant growth.

Responsibilities

• Provide strategic direction and develop a resilient, efficient, sustainable, and future-ready supply chain.
• Lead and develop a high-performing team across contract manufacturing, procurement operations, and innovation.
• Oversee external manufacturing partnerships and manage relationships across Operations, Quality, and Product Development teams.
• Ensure capacity planning, quality compliance, supply continuity, and cost optimization across all manufacturing partners.
• Drive sourcing strategies and supplier performance across raw materials, packaging, and manufacturing services.
• Lead procurement operations to ensure timely, cost-effective, and risk-mitigated supply.
• Collaborate with Corporate, Legal, and Finance to ensure contract terms align with company policies and risk tolerance.
• Persistently partner with R&D, Marketing, Commercial, Finance, Quality, and Supply Chain teams to bring new VMS products to market.
• Ensure operational readiness for innovation launches, including sourcing, manufacturing, commercialization, and supply planning.
• Develop and execute operational strategies that support growth, scalability, and margin improvement.
• Champion continuous improvement initiatives across manufacturing and procurement.
• Monitor industry trends and bring forward-thinking solutions to enhance VMS operations.
• Build and mentor a high-performing team while fostering accountability, collaboration, and continuous learning.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree required; MBA or advanced degree preferred.
• 15+ years of progressive Operations, Supply Chain, Manufacturing, or Procurement leadership experience within VMS, Food, Beverage, or Consumer Packaged Goods.
• Extensive experience in gummy manufacturing or similar confectionery formats strongly preferred.
• Demonstrated success leading large-scale contract manufacturing organizations and strategic supplier partnerships.
• Experience overseeing procurement operations, sourcing strategy, procurement contracts, and vendor negotiations.
• Proven track record commercializing new products from development through launch.
• Strong financial acumen with experience driving cost optimization, supply continuity, and operational scalability.
• Experience leading and developing high-performing cross-functional teams.
• Exceptional executive communication, negotiation, and stakeholder management skills.
• Able to work cross-functionally with corporate partners, shared services, and brand leadership to achieve results.

Qualifications

Candidates must be authorized to work in the United States without sponsorship.