Factory Manager

Kepak Group; Kirkham; On-site; GBP 85,000 - 105,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Company Pension

Further Education support

Bike to Work Scheme

Long Service Awards

GroceryAid Employee Assistance Program

Corporate gym membership

BUPA Cash plan

Job summary

Kepak Foods Division in Kirkham, Preston, is seeking an experienced Factory Manager to lead a 24/7 food manufacturing site, across chilled, frozen, and cooking production. You will drive safety, quality, efficiency and performance, delivering targets while building a high‑performance culture.

Reporting to the Operations Director, you will coach multi‑shift teams, manage budgets, and champion continuous improvement with the broader Kepak business.

Qualifications

• Proven experience in a Senior Operations or Factory Leadership role within food manufacturing.
• Strong track record of delivering operational KPIs and driving performance improvement.
• Experience managing large, multi-disciplinary teams.

Responsibilities

• Operational Excellence: Promote a culture of continuous improvement across the site to drive cost efficiency, process improvement & innovation
• Health and Safety: Promote a strong 'safety-first culture' ensuring full compliance and adherence to health and safety legislation and internal Health and safety standards
• Budget Management: In conjunction with Finance, prepare and manage site budgets, prepare and submit capital expenditure requests and control operating costs in accordance with business goals and targets demonstrating transparency and accountability.
• People & Culture: Leads and empowers the site management team to enable effective team performance and success, regularly coaching and mentoring to ensure they achieve their full potential
• Cross Functional Collaboration: Lead cross functional collaboration across site teams and the wider business to achieve goals including health and safety, people, quality assurance, IT, financial, engineering and sustainability
• Strategic Leadership & Accountability: Set up effective management routines, internal communication forums and one-to-one meetings, to ensure management teams are regularly updated on site performance, business risks, opportunities, and challenges.
• Business Continuity & Risk Management: Continually develop, review and implement robust site business continuity and risk management plans with relevant stakeholders

Skills

Senior Operations

Factory Leadership

People Management

Lean / CI

Job description

Kepak is a leading food company with 15 manufacturing sites and over 4,500 employees across Ireland and the UK, with a turnover of €1.75 billion. The Group operates across three divisions: the Foods Division, Meat Division UK, and Meat Division Ireland. Guided by our values, Responsibility, Ambition, Passion for Food, and Teamwork. We are committed to operating as a successful, sustainable, future-ready business that is a great place to work. We supply fresh and value-added meat based products to retail and foodservice through private label and our own brands, including Rustlers, Big Al's and John Stone.

Kepak Foods Division Kepak Foods Division have developed a portfolio of brands that are successful in the chilled convenience, ambient and frozen meat categories in the UK, Ireland and chosen European markets for both Retail and Foodservice Customers. We have 5 Manufacturing Sites supported by shared services, with 1000 people supporting our vision to become a transformed, future proofed, profitable €0.5bn Food Business by 2030. We're looking for an experienced Factory Manager to take charge of our fast-paced food manufacturing site in Kirkham, Preston . Reporting to the Operations Director, you'll lead a 24/7 operation across chilled, frozen, and cooking production, driving safety, quality, efficiency, and performance. As Factory Manager, you will lead a multi-shift manufacturing operation, ensuring the safe, efficient, and compliant delivery of production targets across quality, cost, service, and performance. You'll drive a high-performance culture, develop leadership capability, and champion continuous improvement to support business growth and operational excellence.

Key Responsibility

• Operational Excellence: Promote a culture of continuous improvement across the site to drive cost efficiency, process improvement & innovation
• Health and Safety: Promote a strong 'safety-first culture' ensuring full compliance and adherence to health and safety legislation and internal Health and safety standards
• Budget Management : In conjunction with Finance, prepare and manage site budgets, prepare and submit capital expenditure requests and control operating costs in accordance with business goals and targets demonstrating transparency and accountability.
• People & Culture: Leads and empowers the site management team to enable effective team performance and success, regularly coaching and mentoring to ensure they achieve their full potential
• Cross Functional Collaboration: Lead cross functional collaboration across site teams and the wider business to achieve goals including health and safety, people, quality assurance, IT, financial, engineering and sustainability
• Strategic Leadership & Accountability: Set up effective management routines, internal communication forums and one-to-one meetings, to ensure management teams are regularly updated on site performance, business risks, opportunities, and challenges.
• Business Continuity & Risk Management: Continually develop, review and implement robust site business continuity and risk management plans with relevant stakeholders

Requirements

• Proven experience in a Senior Operations or Factory Leadership role within food manufacturing.
• Strong track record of delivering operational KPIs and driving performance improvement.
• Experience managing large, multi-disciplinary teams.
• Strong understanding of: Food safety standards (BRC or equivalent)
• Lean / continuous improvement methodologies
• Budget and cost control
Experience in multi-site operations
• Involvement in major projects (site consolidation, new line installation, system implementation)

What can we offer you?

• Company Pension
• Further Education support
• Bike to Work Scheme - You can buy a bike and safety equipment through a salary sacrifice scheme which reduces your taxable income - meaning you pay less tax!
• Long Service Awards - We recognise, acknowledge and award the dedication and valuable contribution of long serving employees
• GroceryAid Employee Assistance Program - help with a wide range of topics including mental health and wellbeing support, family and relationship advice, debt management, back to work support, and counselling for all Kepak colleagues and their families.
• Corporate gym membership at Ribby Hall Village
• BUPA Cash plan free of charge