Head of Operations

Food Lab; City Of London; On-site; GBP 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading liquid products manufacturer in London seeks a Founding Head of Operations to build and lead operational frameworks across production facilities. This role demands a strong leader with food manufacturing experience and the ability to scale operations globally. The ideal candidate will ensure safety and quality in production while collaborating with diverse teams to drive operational excellence.

Qualifications

• Proven track record in food manufacturing, CPG, or a high-growth production environment.
• Experience scaling multi-site operations and leading cross-border teams.
• Strong leadership and communication skills, with the ability to inspire diverse teams.

Responsibilities

• Lead and support production teams, ensuring excellence.
• Oversee full production lifecycle from sourcing to fulfillment.
• Build and lead a global operations team as the company grows.

Skills

Food manufacturing experience

Leadership skills

Strategic thinking

Process-oriented mindset

Effective communication

Job description

Overview

Performance Profile: Head of Operations – Food Lab

About Food Lab

At Food Lab, we create the world’s best white-label liquids for brands you use every day. We ideate, formulate, and manufacture market-leading, customizable liquid products — from concept to production — helping brands move fast and stay ahead of consumer trends.

The Role

Food Lab is seeking a Founding Head of Operations to build and lead the operational backbone of our rapidly scaling business. Reporting directly to the CEO, this role will oversee two production facilities in the US and London while managing a growing global operations team. You’ll shape the systems, processes, and structure that allow Food Lab to scale efficiently and deliver world-class quality at speed.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead and support two Plant Managers and their production teams, ensuring excellence across production, safety, and quality.
• Lead and support the supply chain team
• Oversee the full production lifecycle — from sourcing and scheduling to fulfillment, logistics, and export/import compliance.
• Develop scalable systems, SOPs, and performance frameworks to optimize efficiency across all business units.
• Partner with the CEO and leadership team on strategic planning, forecasting, and capacity scaling.
• Manage relationships with suppliers, logistics partners, and key stakeholders to ensure reliability and cost-effectiveness.
• Build and lead a global operations team, scaling processes, and structure as the company grows internationally.
• Ensure best-in-class standards in food safety, regulatory compliance, and product traceability.
• Collaborate cross-functionally with product, finance, and commercial teams to enable smooth business operations.
• Drive a culture of continuous improvement, accountability, and operational excellence.

Ideal Candidate

• Proven track record in food manufacturing, CPG, or a high-growth production environment.
• Experience scaling multi-site operations and leading cross-border teams.
• Strategic thinker with a bias for action — equally comfortable designing systems and getting hands-on to make them work.
• Strong leadership and communication skills, with the ability to inspire and align diverse teams.
• Process-oriented, commercially minded, and excited to build something from the ground up.