Production Manager

About the Role:

• To support our rapid growth, we are searching for a Production Manager to work at our plant in SoCal, which has become one of the largest cold-process soap manufacturing operations in the country. This role reports to the Plant Director, to oversee manufacturing with the objective of producing personal care products in a safe, quality driven, and efficient manner.
• The Production Manager will work closely with our Plant Director and Process Engineers to properly manage and maintain new equipment.  The person in this role will also need to be comfortable troubleshooting automated equipment and build preventative maintenance programs to minimize equipment downtime. The ideal Production Manager has a blend of hard skills in machine operation and soft skills in people leadership that combine for high quality production output and development. This is a key role as we continue to keep scaling new innovative equipment.  
• This role will report to our Plant Director 
• This is a full-time role with company benefits based in Brea, CA.
• The anticipated base compensation range for this role will be $80,000 to $110,000. Compensation will be commensurate with the candidate's experience and local market rates.

What You'll Do:

• Direct supervision of production teams
• Ensure a best-in-class Safety, Environmental, and Health culture by leading by example and adhering to and improving upon existing processes and programs.
• In partnership with Human Resources, develop associate recognition, succession, and training programs.
• Establish departmental expectations and drive accountability.
• Analyze and improve upon key production metrics that will impact plant performance and efficiencies.
• Drive process improvements to advance associate safety, improve customer satisfaction, control costs and reduce waste.
• Own the department budget, including labor utilization, overtime, material cost variances and new product costing.
• Training and coaching of operators (Production Associates) to manage quality product and performance methods (metrics)
• Creating SOPS for new line of equipment emphasizing safety and quality measures
• Build a playbook for proper equipment set points and functionality.
• Owning preventative maintenance procedures and ad hoc troubleshooting
• Partner with R&D and Process Engineers in all aspects of implementing and scaling new natural cosmetic production process, including working with internal and external stakeholders to establish critical process parameters, coordinating materials for scale up activities, monitoring production for full scale testing, and troubleshooting and iterating as needed to finalize formula and process.
• Work cross-functionally with our soap manufacturing production team to determine the optimal order and duration of operations for end-to-end production process
• Some of the tools you will be familiar with include
  • HMIs
  • Photo Eye Sensors
  • VFDs (Variable Frequency Drive)
• Support the development of new products, facility improvements, and capital projects by aligning with corporate partners and coordinating with internal departments to provide input, resources, and collaboration.
• Ensure compliance with safety and environmental regulations as required by regional and local regulatory agencies
• Lead by example to ensure all plant employees maintain a clean and safe working environment and adhere to all safety and hygiene procedures
• Be an all-around team player – as an operator in a growing start-up, your responsibilities will constantly be growing and evolving

About You:

• Bachelor’s Degree in a relevant field required, e.g.: Management, Business Administration, Production/Operations Management, Engineering, Supply Chain
• 5+ years of manufacturing experience in Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG), Cosmetics, Personal Care, Food & Beverage or adjacent industry required (maintenance background strongly preferred)
• 3-5+ years of experience in a supervisory/management role in a manufacturing environment: evaluating, mentoring, and developing production teams; managing workload; participating in the hiring and promotion of employees for multiple functions
• Detailed, organized, and structured problem solver, with an ability to get things done without perfect resources, under significant time pressure
• Proactive manager who is comfortable creating new processes
• Ability to balance short-term tactical priorities, with a long-term strategic mindset
• Strong Analytical Leader who utilizes data to drive business decisions, business objectives and continuous improvement
• Strong communication (oral and written) skills, with ability to influence across multiple areas of the business and external partners
• Ability to use and teach basic problem solving techniques to successfully and efficiently resolve problems

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