Operations Manager, Honest Origins

Trinidad Benham; Antioch (TN); On-site; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Employee ownership (ESOP)

401(k) with employer match

Medical, dental, vision, life coverage

Paid holidays and vacation

Tuition assistance

Job summary

Honest Origins in Antioch, TN seeks an Operations Manager to lead day-to-day cooked instant rice manufacturing and a major expansion project. You will oversee safety, quality, throughput, and staffing while driving continuous improvement and employee ownership.

This hands-on leader will coordinate with Engineering, QA/Food Safety, Maintenance, and Supply Chain to ensure reliable production and readiness for audits, with a focus on safety, cost controls, and customer service.

Qualifications

• Hands-on plant operations leadership in a food manufacturing setting.
• Experience coordinating with engineering, QA/food safety, maintenance, and supply chain.
• Proven ability to manage lean manufacturing, process improvement, and safety programs.
• Strong collaboration with HR on workforce planning and training.

Responsibilities

• Lead day-to-day cooked instant rice operations to meet safety, quality, service, and productivity goals.
• Develop production plans, staffing, and cross-functional action plans based on demand and capacity.
• Monitor performance metrics, drive corrective actions, and ensure compliance with food safety and environmental requirements.
• Partner with QA/Quality, Maintenance, and Supply Chain to maintain process controls and readiness for audits.
• Drive lean initiatives to reduce waste and cost while improving capacity and reliability.
• Lead the expansion project by coordinating design reviews, equipment selection, and start-up readiness.
• Provide visible leadership, coach teams, and foster an employee-owned culture grounded in safety and quality.

Job description

Department: Plant Office Administration (Exempt)

Employment Type: Full Time

Location: Antioch, TN

Description

The Operations Manager is a hands‑on manufacturing leader responsible for safe, reliable, and efficient day‑to‑day operations at Honest Origins, a food manufacturing operation producing cooked instant rice. During the initial phase of this role, the Operations Manager will also provide operational leadership for a significant facility construction and expansion project, including equipment installation, commissioning, start‑up, and transition to stable production. The position requires plant‑level leadership capability and is intended to build the breadth and readiness needed to assume broader Plant Management responsibilities as business needs evolve.

This leader will direct production priorities; support maintenance, quality, sanitation, warehousing, and shipping activities; manage operating performance; and build an employee‑owner culture grounded in safety, food quality, accountability, continuous improvement, teamwork, and customer service. The Operations Manager partners closely with Engineering, Quality/Food Safety, Maintenance, Supply Chain, Finance, Human Resources, and external contractors to deliver both current operating results and successful expansion outcomes.

Key Responsibilities

Essential Functions

• Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform these essential functions.
• Lead day‑to‑day cooked instant rice manufacturing operations to achieve safety, food safety, quality, service, cost, yield, throughput, and productivity objectives.
• Develop daily and weekly operating priorities, production schedules, staffing plans, and cross‑functional action plans based on customer demand, inventory requirements, material availability, and equipment capacity.
• Monitor key operating measures, including safety performance, schedule attainment, downtime, labor efficiency, yield, waste, quality results, sanitation performance, inventory accuracy, and on‑time shipment; lead corrective action when performance falls short.
• Ensure operations comply with company policies and applicable food safety, quality, environmental, and workplace safety requirements, including plant programs, inspections, audits, emergency response, and required documentation.
• Partner with Quality and Food Safety leadership to maintain process controls, product specifications, traceability, sanitation standards, corrective actions, and readiness for customer and certification audits.
• Provide visible floor leadership; coach leads and employee oweners, remove barriers, reinforce standard work, and create clear accountability for results.
• Build a culture of employee ownership, engagement, trust, continuous improvement, responsibility, and problem‑solving through consistent communication and leading by example.
• Partner with Human Resources on workforce planning, recruiting, onboarding, performance management, employee development, engagement, and consistent application of company policies and corrective action practices.
• Lead lean manufacturing and process‑improvement efforts that reduce waste and operating cost while improving capacity, reliability, flow, quality, and service.
• Coordinate with maintenance to prioritize preventive maintenance, repairs, reliability improvements, utilities, facility needs, and equipment performance.
• Manage operating expenses and contribute to annual budgeting, forecasting, capital planning, and evaluation of actual performance against plan.
• Ensure accurate control and reporting of raw materials, work in process, finished goods, supplies, and other plant inventory; support effective receiving, warehousing, and shipping processes.
• Build effective vendor, contractor, and service provider relationships while maintaining clear scope, safety, quality, schedule, cost, and escalation expectations.
• Facilitate regular operating reviews, project updates, shift communications, and cross‑functional meetings to ensure timely decisions and accurate information flow.

Construction & Expansion Project Leadership

• Serve as the primary operations representative for the facility expansion, ensuring the design and construction plan supports safe, sanitary, maintainable, and efficient food manufacturing operations.
• Work with executive leadership, Engineering, project managers, contractors, equipment suppliers, Quality/Food Safety, IT, Finance, and other stakeholders to align scope, schedule, budget, operational requirements, and business continuity plans.
• Participate in design reviews, equipment selection, layout and workflow decisions, utility planning, hygienic design reviews, and operational risk assessments.
• Monitor project milestones, dependencies, risks, change requests, contractor performance, and readiness activities; promptly elevate concerns and recommend practical solutions.
• Plan operational readiness, including staffing, training, standard operating procedures, food safety and quality documentation, spare parts, maintenance plans, production trials, commissioning, acceptance testing, and start‑up support.
• Coordinate construction and installation activity around ongoing operations to protect employees, products, customers, and production continuity.
• Lead the transition from project completion to stable operations, including ramp‑up planning, performance validation, issue resolution, and handoff of equipment and documentation to operating teams.

Leadership Competencies & Interpersonal Skills

• Hands‑on, visible leadership with the judgment and presence to lead both daily operations and a complex expansion environment.
• Strong safety, food quality, customer service, and employee‑owner mindset.
• Ability to translate strategy and project plans into clear priorities, ownership, milestones, and measurable operating results.
• Calm, decisive problem‑solving under pressure, with appropriate escalation of safety, quality, cost, schedule, or business‑continuity risks.
• Collaborative, curious, adaptable, and respectful approach with employees, contractors, technical experts, and senior leaders.
• Ability to delegate authority, develop leaders, provide candid feedback, and hold individuals accountable for commitments and outcomes.
• Strong change leadership and communication skills, especially during facility construction, process redesign, equipment start‑up, and workforce growth.

Benefits

• Employee‑owned
• Advancement Opportunities
• Insurance coverage that includes medical, dental, vision and life insurance and flexible spending accounts
• 401(k) with employer match
• Paid holidays and competitive vacation/sick pay plans
• Tuition assistance program
• Employee stock ownership program (ESOP)