Shift Manager - Blending & Canning

a2M Career Site; Pokeno; On-site; NZD 120,000 - 170,000; Full time

Job summary

a2 Milk Company is seeking a Shift Manager – Blending & Canning for our Pokeno manufacturing site. In this hands-on leadership role, you will drive safe, efficient production, develop a high-performing team, and deliver daily output to meet quality objectives.

You will lead up to 18 direct reports, apply Lean practices, monitor safety, quality and OEE, and partner with maintenance to ensure equipment reliability. Strong people leadership and data literacy are essential to succeed in this role.

Qualifications

• Experience leading teams in manufacturing or production.
• Experience in food manufacturing with knowledge of quality and food safety systems.
• Experience with Lean Manufacturing and continuous improvement.
• Strong health and safety practices in manufacturing.
• Dairy powder and/or infant formula powder experience is desirable.
• Strong communication and people leadership skills.
• Hands-on approach with strong problem-solving and time management.
• Good computer literacy and confidence with manufacturing data and systems.

Responsibilities

• Lead and develop a team of up to 18 direct reports.
• Drive daily production performance across safety, quality, efficiency, waste, rate and OEE.
• Ensure production processes, food safety requirements and quality systems are followed and maintained.
• Lead daily team meetings and resolve issues affecting output and performance.
• Use Lean Manufacturing and structured problem-solving approaches to deliver continuous improvement initiatives.
• Monitor manufacturing data, work orders and variance reports to identify opportunities to improve productivity and reduce waste.
• Work closely with maintenance and site services teams to ensure equipment reliability and preventative maintenance activities support production requirements.
• Supporting a strong safety culture by identifying hazards, managing incidents and ensuring corrective actions are followed through.
• Acting as a key point of contact for plant systems and supporting improvements across production, traceability and efficiency reporting systems.

Skills

Team leadership

Lean manufacturing

Problem solving

Food safety

Communication

Time management

Dairy powder

Data analysis

Job description

Our Story:

The a2 Milk Company, driven by science and a pioneering spirit, disrupted the dairy and infant milk formula industry. Our vision is to create an A1-free world where dairy nourishes all people and our planet.

The a2 Milk Company seeks to achieve this through the naturally occurring a2 Milk® difference and by bringing a more sustainable approach to dairy.

The role:

As Shift Manager – Blending & Canning, you’ll play a key role in leading our production team at our Pokeno manufacturing site. You’ll be responsible for driving safe, efficient and high-quality production across the Blending & Canning areas, while developing a high-performing team and identifying opportunities to continually improve plant performance.

This is a hands-on leadership role where you’ll work closely with the Production Manager and wider site leadership team to deliver daily production requirements, maintain strong safety and quality standards, and drive improvements across people, processes and equipment.

More specifically, you will be involved in:

• Leading and developing a team of up to 18 direct reports, including performance, engagement, training and capability development.
• Driving daily production performance against key measures including safety, quality, efficiency, waste, rate and OEE.
• Ensuring production processes, food safety requirements and quality systems are consistently followed and maintained.
• Leading daily team meetings and working with production teams to identify and resolve issues affecting output and performance.
• Using Lean Manufacturing and structured problem-solving approaches to identify root causes and deliver continuous improvement initiatives.
• Monitoring manufacturing data, work orders and variance reports to identify opportunities to improve productivity and reduce waste.
• Working closely with maintenance and site services teams to ensure equipment reliability and preventative maintenance activities support production requirements.
• Supporting a strong safety culture by identifying hazards, managing incidents and ensuring corrective actions are followed through.
• Acting as a key point of contact for plant systems and supporting improvements across production, traceability and efficiency reporting systems.

What you will bring:

• Previous experience leading teams within a manufacturing or production environment, ideally with 2+ years in a leadership role.
• Experience working within food manufacturing, with knowledge of quality and food safety systems.
• Experience with Lean Manufacturing, continuous improvement and structured problem solving.
• Strong understanding of health and safety practices within a manufacturing environment.
• Experience working with dairy powder and/or infant formula powder would be highly desirable.
• Strong communication and people leadership skills, with the ability to motivate, develop and hold team members accountable.
• A practical, hands-on approach with strong problem-solving and time management skills.
• Good computer literacy and confidence working with manufacturing data and systems.