Hatchery Operations Leader: Scale Quality & Growth

Bell-; Fredericksburg (PA); On-site; USD 150,000 - 240,000; Full time

Job summary

Bell- in Fredericksburg, PA, seeks a Director of Hatcheries to provide strategic and operational leadership for all hatchery functions, ensuring high-quality chick production in line with production, quality, animal welfare, and operational requirements.

This role oversees hatchery performance, including hatchability, chick quality, biosecurity, food safety, safety, financial performance, team development, and continuous improvement, partnering with Live Production and FSQA to drive excellence.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Poultry Science, Animal Science, Agriculture, Business, Operations Management required.
• 10+ years of progressive leadership experience in hatchery, poultry, agriculture, or related operations.
• Experience leading leaders and managing complex operations.
• Strong knowledge of poultry production, incubation systems, animal welfare, biosecurity, and operational excellence.
• Experience managing KPIs, budgets, labor, and operational performance.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, and decision-making skills.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office and operational reporting systems.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Lead all hatchery operations and align performance with company goals and production requirements.
• Develop and execute strategies to improve hatchability, chick quality, productivity, and cost efficiency.
• Establish, monitor, and achieve key performance indicators (KPIs).
• Foster a culture of accountability, continuous improvement, teamwork, and employee engagement.
• Partner with senior leadership to identify opportunities for operational improvement and sustainable growth.
• Oversee egg handling, incubation, transfer, hatching, vaccination, chick processing, and shipping operations.
• Manage hatch schedules to ensure an accurate and reliable supply of chicks to Live Production and processing operations.
• Analyze operational performance and implement corrective actions when targets are not achieved.
• Partner with Maintenance to maximize equipment reliability, efficiency, and operational uptime.
• Ensure consistent execution of hatchery processes and operating standards.
• Ensure compliance with animal welfare, food safety, sanitation, and biosecurity standards.
• Collaborate with FSQA and Live Production teams to maintain egg and chick quality.
• Investigate hatchability, chick quality, and mortality concerns and implement sustainable corrective actions.
• Lead audit readiness and regulatory compliance initiatives.
• Promote a strong culture of animal care and responsible poultry production.
• Champion a proactive safety culture throughout hatchery operations.
• Ensure compliance with company policies, OSHA requirements, and applicable regulatory standards.
• Lead workplace incident investigations and implement appropriate corrective actions.
• Support occupational health and workplace safety initiatives.
• Identify and address operational risks before they impact team members or production.
• Lead, develop, and mentor hatchery management and supervisory teams.
• Establish clear performance expectations and accountability measures.
• Develop succession planning initiatives to strengthen the department's leadership pipeline.
• Drive training and workforce development programs.
• Build a high-performing, engaged, and collaborative hatchery team.
• Manage departmental budgets, labor, and resources to achieve operational and financial objectives.
• Identify and implement cost-reduction and efficiency opportunities.
• Monitor labor efficiency, operating costs, and cost per chick.
• Provide regular performance reporting, analysis, and recommendations to senior leadership.
• Balance operational performance with long-term financial sustainability.

Skills

Leadership

Analytical skills

Decision making

Communication

MS Office

Education

Bachelor's degree in Poultry Science, Animal Science, Agriculture, Business, Operations Management

Tools

MS Office

Operational reporting systems

Job description

Bell- in Fredericksburg, PA, seeks a Director of Hatcheries to provide strategic and operational leadership for all hatchery functions, ensuring high-quality chick production in line with production, quality, animal welfare, and operational requirements.

This role oversees hatchery performance, including hatchability, chick quality, biosecurity, food safety, safety, financial performance, team development, and continuous improvement, partnering with Live Production and FSQA to drive excellence.