Head of Engineering and Asset Optimisation

Tribe Group; Auckland; On-site; NZD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive salary

Discounts on health & wellness

Naturopathic health support

Birthday day off

subsidised onsite café

Job summary

Vitaco seeks an experienced engineering leader to oversee engineering, reliability and asset optimisation across Auckland manufacturing operations. You will build high-performing teams and drive safety, quality and efficiency across multiple sites.

Reporting to the General Manager Operations, you will lead a multidisciplinary function across sites, develop asset governance, drive RCA and RCM frameworks, and champion digital manufacturing initiatives.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Mechanical, Electrical or Industrial Engineering.
• Proven engineering leadership experience in FMCG/manufacturing.
• Experience leading engineering teams across multiple sites.
• Strong expertise in reliability maintenance and asset management.
• Experience driving digital transformation initiatives.
• Strong budgeting and capital planning skills.
• Outstanding stakeholder management and communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Lead Engineering and Maintenance across multiple manufacturing sites.
• Develop and maintain Asset Management governance and lifecycle processes.
• Drive reliability improvement using RCA, FMEA and defect elimination.
• Lead RC M framework development and embedding best practices.
• Build a high-performing engineering culture through coaching.
• Drive continuous improvement and digital manufacturing initiatives.
• Oversee CMMS governance, MES integration and data analytics capabilities.
• Manage engineering budgets and long-term asset replacement strategy.
• Optimise spare parts inventory and governance to minimise risk.
• Partner with Operations, Quality, Supply Chain and Safety for outcomes.
• Ensure high HSE standards across engineering activities.

Skills

Engineering leadership

Reliability

Asset management

RCM framework

Budgeting & finance

Stakeholder mgmt

Digital transformation

Education

Bachelor's or Master's in Mechanical, Electrical or Industrial Engineering

Tools

CMMS

MES

Data analytics tools

Job description

About The Opportunity

This is an exciting time to join Vitaco as they continue to grow and invest in their manufacturing capability. As a key member of the Operations Leadership Team, you'll lead engineering, reliability and asset optimisation across the Auckland manufacturing operations, building high-performing teams and playing a critical role in supporting their continued growth.

Reporting to the General Manager Operations, you'll lead a multidisciplinary engineering function responsible for ensuring our manufacturing assets operate safely, reliably and efficiently across multiple sites.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the Engineering and Maintenance function across multiple manufacturing sites.
• Develop and maintain Vitaco's Asset Management System, ensuring governance, standards and lifecycle processes support sustainable manufacturing performance.
• Drive reliability improvement through the application of asset criticality, FMEA, root cause analysis and defect elimination methodologies.
• Develop and embed a best-in-class Reliability Centered Maintenance (RCM) framework.
• Build a positive, high-performing engineering culture through coaching and leadership.
• Lead continuous improvement and digital manufacturing initiatives.
• Lead digital engineering and manufacturing initiatives including CMMS governance, engineering master data quality, MES integration, data analytics and predictive maintenance capabilities.
• Manage engineering budgets, maintenance planning and long-term asset replacement strategies.
• Lead spare parts optimisation, inventory governance and critical asset support strategies to minimise operational risk and optimise working capital.
• Partner with Operations, Capital Projects, Quality, Supply Chain and Safety teams to deliver outstanding business outcomes.
• Ensure world‑class Health, Safety, Quality and Environmental standards are maintained across all engineering activities.
• Establish engineering standards, contractor governance and lifecycle project handover requirements across all manufacturing sites.

The strategic leadership mandate is particularly important, and we are looking for someone who can set the long‑term engineering and asset direction, build capability and take performance to the next level.

Other important capabilities include AI and digital leadership particularly identifying opportunities and leading their practical adoption across engineering.

What You’ll Bring

You're an experienced engineering leader who enjoys solving complex problems, developing people and creating sustainable operational improvements.

To Be Successful In This Role You'll Bring

• A Bachelor's or Master's degree in Mechanical, Electrical or Industrial Engineering.
• Extensive engineering leadership experience within FMCG, food manufacturing or another complex manufacturing environment.
• Proven experience leading engineering teams across multiple manufacturing sites.
• Strong expertise in Reliability Centred Maintenance, preventative maintenance and asset management.
• Strong expertise in asset lifecycle management, reliability engineering and risk‑based maintenance strategies.
• Experience driving continuous improvement and digital transformation initiatives.
• Strong commercial and financial acumen, including budgeting and capital planning.
• Outstanding stakeholder management and communication skills.
• A leadership style that builds trust, accountability and high‑performing teams.
• Demonstrated success developing technical capability, succession planning and engineering leadership pipelines.
• A genuine passion for safety, quality and operational excellence.

What’s on Offer

At Vitaco, their vision is Empowering Healthier Lives.

We are one of Australasia's leading health and wellness companies, employing more than 700 people across New Zealand and Australia. Our portfolio includes trusted brands such as Musashi, Nutra-Life, Healtheries, Athena and Balance, with products manufactured and distributed to customers across Australasia and more than 30 countries worldwide.

We're incredibly proud to have been recognised as an HRD 5‑Star Employer of Choice for two consecutive years (2025 & 2026), reflecting our commitment to creating a workplace where our people can thrive.

• Competitive salary with annual salary review
• Discounts on our amazing health and wellness products.
• Discounted Southern Cross insurance
• Access to wellness initiatives and subsidized onsite café.
• Naturopathic advice from in‑house experts.
• Celebrate your birthday with a day off!

A fun, supportive team environment that champions collaboration and innovation, as shown by their recent recognition as the Extra-Large Workplace winner at the 2026 New Zealand Best Places to Work Awards.

To apply for this vacancy, you MUST be a New Zealand citizen, resident, or have already secured the right to work in New Zealand and therefore hold a valid visa.