Plant Director - Webster, NY

job purpose:

The Plant Director is responsible for the overall leadership and management fairlife's Webster, NY plant; a state-of-the-art, greenfield manufacturing facility, planned for start-up in 2025. The Plant Director will be fully accountable for meeting Safety, Environmental, Quality, Production, Efficiency, Service Levels and People objectives for the site. In addition, this role will provide inspiration, direction, coaching and feedback to the plant leadership team which is responsible for meeting the business plan and strategic objectives whilst strengthening the fairlife culture of Believe in Better and fostering a culture of measurement driven continuous improvement. The Plant Director is responsible for the coordination, administration, and all day-to-day management of the operational activities for the production facility. They will develop and implement internal operating protocol, policies, and procedures in accordance with established company policy. They will work closely with the project team throughout installation, commissioning, and start up of the plant as the overall site leader upon start up.

responsibilities:

• Responsible for the development of strategic initiatives, projects, plant processes, and management systems to continuously improve results in safety, quality assurance, productivity, cost savings, environmental stewardship, and customer service


• Ensure adherence to all health and safety policies, GMP policies, and regulatory requirements


• Partner with relevant stakeholders to ensure production plans are in accordance with plant capacities and capabilities. Refine near term plans to maximize productivity, quality, and customer service


• Support development of plant operational budgets, capital budgets, organizational structure, and policies and procedures.


• Build a strong and capable plant leadership team and workforce able to start and ramp up a new manufacturing facility


• Conduct regular meetings with plant employees to communicate state of the business, plant goals, performance against targets, policy changes, and opportunities for operational improvement


• Develop ramp-up plan, plant KPI’s, operational standards, and management routines to meet business objectives


• Provide mechanical, process, and technical problem-solving support to engineers and operators


• Communicate and engage with the workforce at every level to build trust and continuity throughout the teams, consistently demonstrating the fairlife culture of Believe in Better


• Foster environment of collaboration and ownership across the project team, resources at existing fairlife sites, and new leadership to build a World Class Factory


• Meet short term goals while balancing long term objectives


• Be an ambassador for the Webster plant, representing the values, culture, and ethos of fairlife with internal and external stakeholders


• Lead the team in executing against competing priorities in a fast-paced environment balancing tactical and strategic initiatives in coordination with the overall supply chain objectives

skills/qualifications required:

• Bachelor’s Degree in Engineering or related discipline required


• A minimum of 10 years of Plant Manager or equivalent experience that is directly related to the duties and responsibilities outlined


• Dairy or brewing experience preferred; or pharmaceutical, food and beverage experience. Aseptic processing experience a plus.


• Proven ability to mitigate regulatory/safety risk with sensitive materials in a manufacturing setting


• A proven track record of implementing TPM principles creating short- and long-term value in a manufacturing environment


• Proven ability to lead a team to achieve goals with trust and integrity


• Skilled in examining and re-engineering operations and procedures, formulating policy, and developing and implementing new strategies and procedures


• Strong interpersonal and communication skills and the ability to work effectively with a wide range of constituencies in a diverse community


• Ability to make administrative and procedural decisions and judgments on sensitive, confidential issues


• Ability to analyze and assess training and development needs and manage performance


• Ability to communicate effectively, both verbally and in writing


• Working knowledge of information technology and information systems such as ERP, MRP, MES, SCADA and business analytics  


• Ability to manage relationships with local government and regulatory officials to maintain and improve compliance of federal and state environmental laws, regulations, procedures, and standards


• Knowledge of budgeting cost estimating and fiscal management principles and procedures


• Ability to handle ambiguity and work in a fast-paced, entrepreneurial environment

position location: Webster, NY

reports to: Sr. Director, East Manufacturing

travel requirements: 25% travel