Technical Manager

The Sterling Choice; Greater Manchester; On-site; GBP 75,000 - 95,000; Full time

Job summary

The Sterling Choice is seeking a Technical Leader to take the technical lead across a well-established food manufacturing site, sitting on the senior leadership team and owning Food Safety, Quality, Hygiene, Compliance and customer standards.

You’ll lead, coach and develop the team, build succession plans and influence at senior level, while working closely with Production, Engineering and Supply Chain to deliver practical improvements.

Qualifications

• Experience leading Technical or Quality in food manufacturing.
• Ability to develop people and succession plans.
• Experience with UK retailers, audits and Codes of Practice.
• Strong knowledge of BRC, HACCP and food manufacturing standards.

Responsibilities

• Lead, coach and develop the technical team on site.
• Own Food Safety, Quality, Hygiene, Compliance and customer standards.
• Collaborate with Production, Engineering and Supply Chain to deliver practical improvements.
• Influence at senior level and build the next layer of leadership.

Job description

The best Technical Managers don’t just protect standards. They make the whole site better.

That’s what this role needs.

You’ll take the technical lead across a well-established food manufacturing site, sitting on the senior leadership team and owning Food Safety, Quality, Hygiene, Compliance and customer standards.

But this isn’t a turnaround job.

The site is stable. The team is experienced. Audit performance is strong. What they need now is someone who can take that foundation and move it forward.

A big part of the opportunity is people.

You’ll inherit a settled Technical function with strong tenure and good knowledge, but there’s also a clear succession challenge ahead. Some experienced people are approaching retirement, others are still developing, and the business wants someone who can build the next layer of leadership rather than simply keep the department ticking over.

You’ll lead, coach and develop the team, create proper succession plans and make sure good people can see a future for themselves on site.

You’ll also need to be commercially minded.

That means working closely with Production, Engineering and Supply Chain, challenging when necessary, but always with solutions. This isn’t about being the Technical police. It’s about having enough gravitas to hold people to account while still being the person they want in the room when something needs fixing.

Customer and retailer experience matters too. You’ll need experience dealing with UK retailers, customer visits, audits and Codes of Practice, alongside a strong grounding in BRC, HACCP and food manufacturing standards.

There’s also scope to look at hygiene, technical efficiency and how the function can work smarter, not just harder.

You’ll need to have led Technical or Quality in food manufacturing before, know how to develop people, and be comfortable influencing at senior level.

If you’re the kind of Technical leader who enjoys building teams, improving standards and helping shape what a site becomes next, this is worth a confidential conversation.