Global Manufacturing Excellence Lead

pladis Foods Limited; United Kingdom; Hybrid; GBP 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

pladis seeks a Senior Operational Excellence Manager to drive world‑class manufacturing performance across its global snacking operations. You will lead deployment of OE frameworks, improve safety, quality, cost and service, and embed a strong CI culture across multiple factories.

The role requires deep sector experience, influence across senior levels, and the ability to operate in a matrix, international environment with regular travel to sites.

Qualifications

• Experience in snacking or confectionery manufacturing is essential.
• Proven track record delivering sustainable improvements in a factory environment.
• Experience leading multi-site/global manufacturing initiatives.
• Strong knowledge of Lean Manufacturing, Six Sigma, TPM and CI tools.
• Fluency in English; additional languages are a plus.

Responsibilities

• Design, deploy and sustain the Operational Excellence framework across sites.
• Drive improvements in OE%, cost, losses, quality, and safety metrics.
• Coach factory leadership to embed continuous improvement behaviours.
• Identify, prioritise and execute initiatives with quantified business benefits.
• Collaborate with Engineering, Supply Chain, Quality, R&D and Digital teams.

Skills

Lean Manufacturing

Six Sigma

TPM

Continuous Improvement

Problem‑solving

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Engineering/Manufacturing/Operations

Lean Six Sigma certification (Green/Black Belt)

Tools

Lean tools

Root cause analysis

Job description

pladis seeks a Senior Operational Excellence Manager to drive world‑class manufacturing performance across its global snacking operations. You will lead deployment of OE frameworks, improve safety, quality, cost and service, and embed a strong CI culture across multiple factories.

The role requires deep sector experience, influence across senior levels, and the ability to operate in a matrix, international environment with regular travel to sites.