Leading Hand

Arnott'S; Auckland; On-site; NZD 65,000 - 90,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Free onsite parking

Discounted company products

Supportive and collaborative team

Job summary

Arnott's in Auckland is seeking an experienced Afternoon Shift Leading Hand to drive safe, efficient production and packaging in a food manufacturing environment. You will lead on the floor, coach the team, ensure quality and food safety standards, and actively contribute to continuous improvement while coordinating daily shift activities.

The role requires hands-on leadership, strong communication, and a commitment to safety and quality with a focus on meeting production targets and maintaining

Qualifications

• Experience in a food manufacturing or FMCG environment.
• Proven background as Leading Hand, Senior Operator or Team Leader.
• Strong leadership and coaching skills with ability to motivate teams.
• Solid problem-solving and decision-making abilities.
• Commitment to workplace safety, quality and food safety standards.
• Effective communication and organisational skills.
• Continuous improvement mindset with a hands-on approach.

Responsibilities

• Promote a strong safety culture and comply with health, safety and environmental requirements.
• Support incident prevention, hazard identification and continuous improvement initiatives.
• Ensure food safety, GMP and quality standards are met at all times.
• Monitor production performance, waste, yield and efficiency, with improvement focus.
• Coordinate daily production activities to meet schedules safely and effectively.
• Coach and develop team members to maintain high performance and quality.
• Assist with labour planning, break management and resource allocation for productivity.
• Support production trials, process improvements and autonomous maintenance tasks.
• Ensure materials, ingredients and equipment are ready for production schedules.
• Complete production records, quality checks and shift handovers accurately.
• Escalate operational issues promptly and collaborate to resolve them.

Skills

Leadership & coaching

People management

Safety culture

Communication

Organisational skills

Job description

Lead a team where Safety, Quality and Performance come first.

We are seeking an experienced and hands-on Afternoon Shift Leading Hand to support our production and packaging operations. This role is ideal for someone who thrives in a food manufacturing environment, enjoys developing others, and takes pride in maintaining the highest standards of safety, quality, food safety and operational excellence.

Working closely with the Operations Team Leader, you will play a key role in coordinating shift activities, supporting team performance, ensuring production targets are achieved and driving a culture of continuous improvement.

About the Role

As a Leading Hand, you will lead by example on the production floor, ensuring all work is completed safely, efficiently and in accordance with company quality and food safety standards. You will provide practical leadership and operational support while remaining actively involved in day-to-day production activities.

Key Responsibilities

• Promote and champion a strong safety culture, ensuring all activities are completed in accordance with workplace health, safety and environmental requirements.
• Support incident prevention, hazard identification and continuous improvement initiatives across the shift.
• Ensure compliance with food safety, GMP, quality and manufacturing standards at all times.
• Monitor production performance, waste, yield and process efficiency, identifying opportunities for improvement.
• Coordinate daily production activities to ensure production plans are achieved safely and effectively.
• Support and coach team members to deliver high standards of performance, safety and quality.
• Assist with labour planning, break management and resource allocation to maximise productivity.
• Support production trials, process improvements and autonomous maintenance activities.
• Ensure materials, ingredients and equipment are prepared and available to meet production schedules.
• Complete production records, quality checks and shift handovers accurately and on time.
• Escalate operational issues promptly and work collaboratively to resolve them.

About You

To be successful in this role, you will bring:

• Experience in a food manufacturing, FMCG or similar production environment.
• Previous experience as a Leading Hand, Senior Operator or Team Leader.
• Strong leadership and coaching skills with the ability to motivate and engage others.
• Sound problem-solving and decision-making capabilities.
• A genuine commitment to workplace safety, quality and food safety standards.
• Strong communication and organisational skills.
• A continuous improvement mindset and a hands-on approach.

Why Join Us?

• Free onsite parking
• Discounted company products
• Supportive and collaborative team environment
• Opportunity to influence operational performance and continuous improvement
• Stable Afternoon Shift role with room for growth and development

If you're a hands-on leader who thrives in a manufacturing environment and enjoys helping teams succeed, we'd love to hear from you.