Senior Manager, Operations - San Leandro, CA

Ghirardelli Chocolate Company; San Leandro (CA); On-site; USD 144,000 - 160,000; Full time

Job summary

An established industry player is seeking a Senior Operations Manager to lead a dynamic team in a fast-paced environment. This role focuses on ensuring production efficiency, safety, and quality while fostering a culture of continuous improvement. The ideal candidate will have extensive experience in operations management, particularly in the food sector, and will be instrumental in driving key initiatives that enhance productivity and operational excellence. Join a company that values innovation and teamwork, and make a significant impact on its success!

Qualifications

• 8+ years of experience in operations management, preferably in food manufacturing.
• Strong leadership and coaching skills to develop production teams.
• Proficient in Lean methodologies and continuous improvement practices.

Responsibilities

• Ensure production meets safety, quality, and delivery expectations.
• Drive continuous improvement projects and manage departmental budgets.
• Foster teamwork and communication across various departments.

Skills

Leadership

Analytical Skills

Problem Solving

Lean Tools

Communication Skills

Food Processing Knowledge

SAP Experience

Education

BA in Engineering

BA in Food Science

Tools

MS Office

SAP

Job description

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Senior Manager, Operations

#1621

San Leandro, California, United States

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Location

San Leandro, California, United States

Employment Type

Regular

Our Company/Job Summary

The Senior Operations Manager will ensure that production resources meet the safety, quality, cost, and delivery expectations over a three-shift operation. This position is additionally responsible for developing their team, setting direction, and enabling their team to drive results. The Senior Operations Manager will be a leader in implementing and influencing a continuous improvement culture across the Operations department based on the WCOM (World Class Operations Management) and TPM (Total Productive Maintenance) philosophy, implementing a culture of continuous improvement to increases operational efficiencies and productivity through a TPM Pillar approach and launching cross functional teams to eliminate losses.

Scope of Responsibilities

• Foster a safe working environment promoting safety related processes and procedures - Work towards 0 accidents


• Shows strong leadership in promoting safety processes and procedures


• Enforce and coach on all internal and external safety regulations.


• Be familiar with State and Federal Safety Requirements.


• Responsible to maintain and improve existing HACCP and other quality programs.


• Ensure quality deviations are reviewed and corrective actions to avoid reoccurrence are identified.


• Ensure that sanitation and housekeeping of assigned areas meet Ghirardelli standards as well as regulatory requirements.


• Hold employees accountable for the quality of product.


• Manage labor and material variances and develop action plans to reduce costs.


• Drive improvements to line efficiencies through the development and execution of improvement plans and corrective actions for deviations from standard.


• Participate in long-term capital planning.


• Control production department budgets in respective areas of responsibility.


• Responsible for material flow and material usage in the assigned area.


• Effectively communicate across the organization, including Production, Warehouse, Planning, Human Resources and other departments


• Fosters and promotes a culture of teamwork between all plant departments


• Motivate plant employees by recognizing positive achievements with regard to safe practices, work quality, attitude, attendance, follow-through and organization.


• Leadership, coaching and development of direct report salaried production supervisors.


• Work closely together with Human Resources department to guarantee that all labor issues are addressed in a timely manner and according to the union contract.


• Participate and drive resolution with grievance meetings, contract negotiations, mediation and arbitration as needed.


• Drive continuous improvement projects in area, working closely with Industrial Performance, QA, Scheduling, Maintenance, R&D and Engineering


• Support Engineering Department when new processes and machinery are designed, built, installed and trained for. Meet with Engineering on all new design reviews for installations and upgrades


• Lead the implementation of TPM philosophy within their area to prioritize projects to improve the factory efficiency and losses


• Hire, develop and manage performance of team. Create an inclusive environment that embraces our values and purpose.


• Provide direct support to other areas of Supply chain, such as Co-Pack, Supply Planning, etc.


• Utilizes expertise in the organization to drive key initiatives


• May perform other duties as assigned.


• Complete special projects and other duties as assigned or as necessary.

Specific Knowledge & Skills

• BA degree in Engineering, Food Science, or related discipline and minimum 8 years of related experience


• 2-3 years of direct supervision experience


• 1-2 years of department manager experience


• Previous experience in chocolate manufacturing and/or consumer packaging goods (CPG) preferred


• Deductive reasoning, strong analytical and problem solving skills


• Employs Lean tools in order to accomplish business objectives


• Applies a structured methodology and lead change management activities


• Ability to direct and lead direct reports with strong skills in leading, organizing and developing people


• Excellent organizational skills


• Ability to set expectations and hold employees accountable


• Ability to set priorities and to be self-disciplined and consistent


• Good written and oral communications skills


• Ability to develop and implement action steps and follow through with the people responsible for them


• Ability to work effectively in a union environment and gain knowledge of the Union Contract


• Good knowledge of food processing and packaging machinery


• Computer literacy in MS Office


• Experience with SAP a plus

Other Job Requirements

• Required to regularly sit. Occasionally required to stand or walk.


• Occasionally required to lift and/or move up to 25 pounds.


• This position must be able to concentrate for extended periods of time paying close attention to detail.


• Potential for very warm or very cold working environment/depending on area of assignment.


• Interfacing with various manufacturing equipment and office computer equipment.


• Regular communication with direct reports and internal and/or external customers


• Must be able to kneel, bend, crouch and climb as required


• Must be capable of using protective equipment such as hard hats, safety glasses/goggles, safety shoes, hearing protection, etc.


• Flexibility around work hours to interact with key employees on all shifts.

Salary: $144773 - $160000 / year

Salary Range

$160K