Job Description

Plant Manager – Aseptic Packaging Operations

Location: Pittsburgh, PA (Full relocation provided)

Reports To: Ownership / PE Sponsor

Compensation & Growth: $130K–$170K base + EBITA-based bonus + potential equity/long-term payout; clear path to Director of Operations or President upon planned sale in 5–7 years.

About the Role

Our privately held, PE-backed aseptic food packaging facility is undergoing a major turnaround and modernization. We run a single, non-climate-controlled shift today—hot in summer, cold in winter—but we’re planning to scale to multiple shifts and lines. We need an entrepreneurial, hands-on Plant Manager (or seasoned Operations Manager) who thrives in a small but high-stakes environment, knows liquid or can filling (food, beverage, shampoo, etc.), and can drive real change from the floor up.

Responsibilities

• Full Operational Ownership: Lead batching, processing, aseptic filling, canning/bottling, packaging, and shipping.
• Team Leadership: Directly manage Packaging, Process, Maintenance, and Quality Supervisors plus ~25 hourly staff.
• Turnaround Change Agent: Assess and rebuild processes, vendor relationships, and team culture left in disarray by prior leadership.
• Scheduling & Labor Planning: Implement shift structures, labor plans, and staffing as volume scales.
• KPI Development: Establish and track throughput, downtime, yield, labor efficiency, and other key metrics.
• Food Safety & Compliance: Oversee GMP, HACCP, SQF, and any regulatory programs; lead training on new systems.
• Equipment & Maintenance: Monitor performance, partner with Maintenance Manager to drive uptime and coordinate capital projects.
• Continuous Improvement: Apply lean/six-sigma tools to reduce waste, improve quality, and standardize workflows.
• Visible Floor Leadership: Be scrappy and resourceful—recruit, train, hold teams accountable, and build technical and supervisory capabilities.
• Future-Proofing: Help define and implement the systems and infrastructure needed for multiple lines, shifts, and eventual expansion.

Team Structure & Reporting

• Reports directly to Ownership/PE sponsor.
• Manages four direct reports: Packaging Supervisor, Process Supervisor, Maintenance Manager, Quality Supervisor, plus ~25 hourly employees.

Job Requirements

Education & Experience

• Bachelor’s degree required (Engineering or technical field strongly preferred).
• 5–7+ years of plant or operations leadership in a high-speed liquid/aseptic filling, canning, or CPG packaging environment (food, beverage, personal care, etc.).
• Proven record as a turnaround manager—comfortable in a small, “hot and dirty” facility with minimal structure and high complexity.
• Experience in lean or six-sigma methodologies with certifications preferred.

Skills & Competencies

• Mechanical & Operational Savvy: Deep understanding of filling, capping, and packaging equipment.
• Entrepreneurial Leadership: Ability to wear multiple hats—from recruiting and vendor management to hands-on production support.
• Change Management: Strong communicator and coach who can train, teach, and develop a largely unmanaged workforce.
• Process Builder: Comfortable building systems from scratch in a startup-like setting.
• Problem Solver: Resourceful under pressure, able to diagnose issues quickly and implement lasting solutions.
• Cultural Fit: Scrappy, hands-on, and ready to roll up sleeves; thrives in minimal-bureaucracy environments.

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