Manufacturing Process Owner: Lead Safety, CI & Ops

JobSpace; Hastings; On-site; NZD 120,000 - 150,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Pay for performance

Parental leave

Leave options

Great Place to Work NZ/Australia

In-house training

Corporate discounts

Job summary

Kraft Heinz NZ is seeking a Process Owner to lead our Tomoana Watties site manufacturing operations. You will drive safety, quality, and production outcomes while building capability across teams in a dynamic, manufacturing-focused environment.

You will influence continuous improvement and capital planning, with hands-on leadership on the plant floor and accountability for budgets and performance in a 24/7 operation.

Qualifications

• Experience in FMCG manufacturing with frontline leadership.
• Proven track record leading manufacturing teams and labour performance.
• Strong focus on safety, food quality compliance, and zero-harm mindset.
• Structured problem-solving and continuous improvement experience.

Responsibilities

• Lead health, safety and regulatory compliance for the area — run daily safety checks and promote safe work practices.
• Oversee day-to-day production results — accountability for output, efficiency, yield, waste and cost.
• Drive continuous improvement — maintain short- and medium-term improvement plans and coach problem-solving.
• Develop and manage the team — lead and coach team leaders and maintenance leaders; conduct performance reviews.
• Manage resources and budgets — own labour and cost centre budgets; allocate people and equipment.
• Improve equipment reliability — coordinate with engineering to reduce downtime and protect asset performance.
• Collaborate across functions — coordinate with quality, engineering, planning, HR and procurement; represent area in governance and audits.
• Make operational decisions and drive outcomes — set daily production priorities and capital work.

Skills

FMCG experience

Production leadership

Safety & quality compliance

Structured problem-solving

NZ employment legislation knowledge

Plant floor presence

Data-driven decision making

Education

Engineering degree

Food Science degree

Industrial Engineering degree

Business degree

Job description

Kraft Heinz NZ is seeking a Process Owner to lead our Tomoana Watties site manufacturing operations. You will drive safety, quality, and production outcomes while building capability across teams in a dynamic, manufacturing-focused environment.

You will influence continuous improvement and capital planning, with hands-on leadership on the plant floor and accountability for budgets and performance in a 24/7 operation.