Project Manager

Comaea Consulting; Waikato; On-site; NZD 150,000 - 210,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Salary package

Modern technology

Global culture

Job summary

Comaea Consulting is seeking a Project Manager for our client in the global food ingredients sector. You will oversee capital infrastructure projects from feasibility to commissioning, on-site, hands-on role.

You will lead cross-functional teams, manage contracts, budgets, and safety compliance while coordinating with international engineering teams in a fast-growth environment.

Responsibilities

• End-to-End Delivery: Manage major high-value capital expenditure (CapEx) projects, including plant modifications, infrastructure upgrades, and process optimizations.
• Contractor & Vendor Management: Direct external engineering consultants, civil contractors, and equipment vendors to ensure seamless on-site delivery.
• Financial Accountability: Manage project budgets, forecasting, procurement timelines, and variance reporting.
• Safety & Compliance: Ensure all projects strictly adhere to New Zealand health and safety legislation, food safety standards, and environmental consent requirements.
• Stakeholder Engagement: Act as the central point of contact between site operations, local leadership, and international corporate engineering teams.

Job description

Our client is a premier global food ingredients processing multinational. This industry-leading organisation is currently undergoing significant capital expansion and is looking to recruit a Project Manager to oversee major capital infrastructure projects and ensure successful delivery.

THE OPPORTUNITY

Reporting to the Senior Operations Leadership team, you will take end-to-end ownership of capital projects from initial business case feasibility through to commissioning and handover. This is a hands-on, site-based role crucial to the next phase of regional growth.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

• End-to-End Delivery: Manage major high-value capital expenditure (CapEx) projects, including plant modifications, infrastructure upgrades, and process optimizations.
• Contractor & Vendor Management: Direct external engineering consultants, civil contractors, and equipment vendors to ensure seamless on-site delivery.
• Financial Accountability: Manage project budgets, forecasting, procurement timelines, and variance reporting.
• Safety & Compliance: Ensure all projects strictly adhere to New Zealand health and safety legislation, food safety standards, and environmental consent requirements.
• Stakeholder Engagement: Act as the central point of contact between site operations, local leadership, and international corporate engineering teams.

CANDIDATE PROFILE

• 10+ years of project management experience within heavy industrial environments—ideally FMCG, advanced food manufacturing, or pharmaceutical processing.
• A tertiary Engineering degree or a recognized Project Management certification (PMP, Prince2) is highly regarded.
• Strong understanding of process piping, automation systems, structural installations, and commissioning phases.
• Solid familiarity with NZ health and safety standards (Health and Safety at Work Act) and environmental compliance.
• Exceptional leadership skills with the ability to influence cross-functional teams and manage external contractors effectively.

WHAT’S ON OFFER

• A competitive salary package plus benefits.
• The opportunity to work with world-class, modern processing technology.
• A collaborative, forward-thinking global culture with genuine career progression.

If you are looking to expand your footprint in the industry and wanting to make an impact, this could be for you!

All applications will be treated as strictly confidential.