Interim Chief Operating Officer

About

Our client is scaling a new generation of high performance; home compostable Packaging made from agricultural by-products.

We need an ambitious manufacturing leader who can build systems, strengthen management capability, commission automation and create the disciplined operating rhythm required for sustained growth.

Responsibilities:

• Build practical capacity plans across labour, equipment, moulds, racks, growing and drying, then identify and remove the bottlenecks that restrict safety, quality, output, cost or delivery.
• Maintain a visible safety culture, full audit readiness, robust quality controls, complete traceability and disciplined investigation of incidents, defects and deviations.
• Implement Lean manufacturing, Six Sigma, 5S, standard work, visual management and structured root cause analysis across the production operation.
• Lead and develop operational managers, engineers, technicians, shift leaders and production teams, setting clear standards for behaviour, accountability and performance.
• Use ERP, production and financial data to improve labour productivity, yield, equipment utilisation and manufacturing cost, then present clear risks and investment cases to the CEO and Board.

Essential Experience:

• A Master’s degree, such as an MSc or MEng, in Engineering, Science or a closely related discipline.
• Substantial and sustained senior leadership experience in technically complex, high volume manufacturing, with a strong record of operational improvement over a number of years.
• Experience leading sizeable, multi shift manufacturing teams in a high care, high risk or highly controlled food manufacturing environment, complex automated food production or a comparable regulated operation.
• Practical experience of PLC controlled manufacturing systems, industrial automation and the commissioning or optimisation of production equipment.

Particularly valuable

• Lean Six Sigma Green Belt or equivalent practical experience.
• Experience implementing OEE, standard work, visual management and structured root cause analysis.
• Experience scaling manufacturing through a significant increase in volume and building operational systems rather than simply inheriting them.
• Experience within a startup, scale up or rapidly growing manufacturing business.
• Experience working with biological materials, controlled environments or perishable feedstocks.
• Experience presenting operational performance and investment proposals at Board level.