Director of Operations

Women's Bean Project; Denver (CO); On-site; USD 120,000 - 170,000; Full time

Job summary

Women's Bean Project, a Denver-based nonprofit, seeks a Director of Operations to lead a mission-driven food manufacturing operation serving women in transition. You will drive production, safety, quality, and continuous improvement, while guiding teams with empathy and accountability.

The role requires hands-on leadership on the production floor, strategic budgeting, and collaboration with Finance, Sales, and Marketing to grow capacity and impact.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of progressive leadership in food, beverage, CPG, or another regulated manufacturing environment.
• Experience with operational budgeting, cost management, and continuous improvement.
• Working knowledge of food safety and quality systems, GMPs, and regulatory compliance.
• Experience with production planning, inventory management, procurement, and supplier management.

Responsibilities

• Lead daily operations to optimize labor, materials, workflows, capacity, and productivity.
• Champion workplace safety, food safety, and quality with GMP, sanitation, audits, and corrective actions.
• Coach and develop managers and production staff with a trauma-informed approach.
• Manage operational budgets, costs, variance analysis, and continuous improvement initiatives.
• Develop capital and technical investment plans; oversee plant systems and maintenance.
• Support ERP system selection and implementation from an operations perspective.
• Oversee production planning, inventory, procurement, supplier performance, and cross-functional collaboration.

Skills

Leadership experience

Budgeting

Trauma-informed leadership

Continuous improvement

Education

Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Business, Food Science, Supply Chain

Tools

ERP/MRP familiarity

Job description

Position Overview

Women's Bean Project is on a mission to expand our reach and serve more women in the Denver community. Every soup, dip, and snack we make is produced and packaged by women in our transitional employment program, and every product sold helps fund the work of transforming lives through employment. As Director of Operations, you'll lead the engine that makes that mission possible.

This is an opportunity to lead a food manufacturing business with products on shelves at retailers across Colorado and the country, while building a workplace where women rebuild confidence, stability, and their futures. We're looking for a visible, hands-on leader who brings technical depth, business acumen, and disciplined execution, and who leads people with patience, respect, and care.

Who We Serve

The women who join Women's Bean Project have faced chronic unemployment, often alongside significant barriers and histories of trauma. In our transitional employment program, they make and package our products while receiving comprehensive wraparound support, case management, training, and education, with the goal of leaving with increased stability and a job outside Women's Bean Project. Because team members are meant to move on, strong operations depend on training, clear systems, and steady leadership that set each new cohort up to succeed.

This role requires a trauma-informed leadership style. You understand that behavior is shaped by past experiences, and you lead with consistency, clear expectations, respect, and a focus on safety and trust. You hold high standards, knowing that accountability and compassion work together.

What You'll Do

• Run daily operations: Lead production to optimize labor, materials, workflows, capacity, and productivity. Own key performance measures and use data to find and fix losses and risks.
• Keep people and products safe: Champion workplace safety, food safety, and quality, with strong GMP, sanitation, audit, root-cause, and corrective action systems that meet regulatory and certification requirements.
• Lead and develop people: Coach and develop managers and production staff through clear expectations, floor presence, and training, applying a trauma-informed approach to supervision and team culture.
• Own the numbers: Manage operational budgets, cost controls, and variance analysis, and lead continuous improvement to reduce waste, downtime, and cost without compromising safety, quality, or service.
• Build for growth: Develop capital and technical investment plans and lead projects from concept through startup. Oversee plant systems, infrastructure, maintenance, and process improvements that expand capacity.
• Help shape our technology transformation: Play a key role in selecting and implementing a new ERP system, bringing the operations perspective to process mapping and production and inventory requirements, and helping the team adopt new tools.
• Manage supply chain and partners: Oversee production planning, inventory, procurement, supplier performance, and delivery, and partner with Finance, Sales, and Marketing on new products, reformulations, and cost savings.

Who You Are

You're a steady, approachable operations leader who is as comfortable on the production floor as in a budget review. You're a builder at heart: organized, decisive, quick to learn new systems, and able to lead through change without losing sight of the people doing the work. Most importantly, you believe every woman should have the opportunity and support to transform her life, and you want your operational expertise to make that possible.

What You'll Need

• 5+ years of progressive leadership in food, beverage, CPG, or another regulated manufacturing environment, including production management
• Experience with operational budgeting, cost management, and continuous improvement
• Working knowledge of food safety and quality systems, GMPs, and regulatory compliance
• Experience with production planning, inventory management, procurement, and supplier management
• Comfort with technology and hands-on experience with ERP/MRP systems
• Experience with, or a strong commitment to learning, trauma-informed leadership practices

Nice to Have

• Bachelor's degree in engineering, business, food science, supply chain, or a related field
• Experience participating in an ERP selection, implementation, or migration
• Experience helping an operation grow, such as expanding capacity, adding equipment, or leading capital projects

Work Environment

This is an on-site role at our Denver production facility, with regular time on the production floor. You’ll need to b able to stand for long periods of time and a ble to safely lift and move boxes weighing up to 30 pounds.

More About Women's Bean Project

Founded in 1989, Women's Bean Project is a Denver-based food production nonprofit organization that uses employment and workforce development to help women transform their lives. Through meaningful work, skill-building training, and supportive services, we help women build confidence, gain economic stability, and create a path toward a brighter future.