Food Plant Manager

Food Plant Manager – Union City, CA

About the job

IRCA is a leading international provider of semi-finished ingredients for the bakery, pastry and gelato markets, serving independent producers as well as large food manufacturers (e.g. CPG). Core products include chocolate, chocolate decorations, creams, pastry mixes, gelato ingredients, and other bakery / pastry ingredients.

The Company, headquartered in Italy, was acquired by Advent International, the global Private Equity firm, in July 2022, and has a strong track record of growth over the last decade. IRCA has made 2 bolt-on acquisitions in the areas of candied fruits (Cesarin) and pistachio ingredients (Anastasi) in 2022, and recently entered exclusive negotiations to acquire a leading manufacturer of sweet and cereal products in Europe and the US. The target’s business focuses on high value add specialty ingredients for the Food Manufacturers segment, with a portfolio that incorporates a range of products including sweet particulates, chocolate confections, baked inclusions, variegates and fruit purées.

This transformative deal would create a global leader in the semi-finished ingredients industry, with 22 manufacturing facilities in Europe, US and Vietnam and a combined €1 billion of revenues (2022).

Purpose of Position

The Plant Manager is accountable for leading the overall operations at our plant located in Union City, CA. The Plant Manager will build capability throughout the plant team to ensure the sustainable performance and growth of the site through capacity, resource, and talent planning in close partnership with relevant functional leaders. The Plant Manager will ensure strong collaboration with our various leaders throughout Irca Group and our commercial colleagues to connect with our overall manufacturing planning and performance. The Plant Manager will work to ensure that our plant teams are clear on our vision and our purpose, including clearly understanding how their roles and collective plant performance help contribute to us being our customers’ most valued partner.

Key responsibilities

Leading out on improvement of plant Organizational Health targets (including active & clearly communicated engagement plans across selected areas of priority)

Lead plant level productivity across areas of asset management, performance, and efficiencies in line with agreed business terms

Development of plant strategy, underpinned by a master schedule in line with growth plans and relevant manufacturing strategy

Lead and embed a CI mindset across the plant, actively seeking improvements and efficiency of operations, demonstrating an ability and team encouragement to identify and drive continuous improvement initiatives

Lead key change initiatives across the plant (and connect to plant master schedule), with required functional support e.g., automation, digital, sustainability etc.

Lead a performance management and measurement discipline across the plant, with focused analysis of plan performance data, recognizing individual/team achievements, setting clear plans to address performance gaps, understanding trends and proactively identifying opportunities for improvement

Working with our manufacturing and broader functional leadership to ensure a connected view of plant priorities and connectivity to our EUM/commercial strategy, in line with customer segmentation criteria – ensuring a clear representation of plant perspectives, ideas and considerations needed to inform best decision making for the company.

Play an active part in New Product Development (NPD) processes in line with agreed ways of working, partnering with RDA and commercial as required to bring clarity to implications e.g., cost, service levels, OTIF etc.

Work with manufacturing leadership to ensure that all plants are sharing best practice across the plant network, participating in our Plant Leadership community

Driving proactive resolution for areas that do/could potentially impact plant performance through partnering with the relevant function in IO (QSHE, Engineering, Supply Chain, Procurement)

Professional Skills & Education:

8 + years of progressive experience in manufacturing and plant operations at a leadership level

BA/BS/MS in Engineering, Business, Food Science preferred

Demonstrated success as a change agent & developing/implementing continuous improvement initiatives and accountability programs

Demonstrated success assessing, developing, and retaining top talent

Proven ability to drive process improvements, adhere to budgets, and maintain regulatory compliance

Financial analysis acumen and experience maintaining budgets or capital spend

Language Skills:

Fluent in verbal and written English required

Ability to verbally communicate in Spanish preferred

Behavioral requirements:

Proven ability to lead direct and in direct reports

Continuous Improvement

Strategic Thinking, Managing Change, Critical Thinking, Continuous Cost Focus, Technical Expertise, Influence and Delivery of Sustainable Results

Develop strong working relationships with colleagues across various departments, including financial, supply chain, sales and commercial entities, and seniority level leaders.

Multi-tasking, organizational and time management expertise.

Problem solving skills.

Why Join Us:

Irca Group offers career growth opportunities as well as competitive compensation and benefits:

Medical, Dental, & Vision, 401(k) matching, Paid Vacation, Sick Time, and Holidays, Employee Education Tuition Reimbursement Program

Salary Base Range of $175,000 – $205,000 for Employees Located in California* in addition to Annual bonus (based on the incentive program terms and conditions)