Plant Manager (V1207)
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Job Location:
Veendam - Netherlands
Monthly Salary:
Not Disclosed
Posted on:
Yesterday
Vacancies:
1 Vacancy
Job Summary
About Wellness Pet Company
The Wellness Pet Company is on a mission to help the next generation of pet parents fulfill a shared life of wellbeing with their pets through a foundation of proven nutrition. We are committed to crafting high-quality pet food dental chews treats and topper recipes that are made with the perfect balance of high-quality natural ingredients paired with the latest scientific research and technologies. As a community of people working together Wellies are positively obsessed with how to deliver proven health outcomes that pet parents can see and pets can taste. Wellies bring their best to work every day come ready to collaborate embrace the hard things and own their outcomes.
When you join Wellness Pet you join a team whose aligned values and purpose create a unique and exciting place to work every day. Join us on our adventure to fulfill a life of wellbeing together with pets and their parents.
Wellness Pet Company - Veendam is a high-tech producer of vegetarian starch-based dog snacks sold under the name WHIMZEES. WHIMZEES are sold in more than 45 countries worldwide.
Our employees take pride in the natural products we produce for the pets who depend on us. We offer our employees a positive friendly work environment where you can grow your skills competitive pay and excellent benefits Come for a walk with us today!
Position Summary: The Plant Manager is responsible for the overall leadership performance and strategic direction of the manufacturing site. This role ensures the safe efficient and cost-effective production of high-quality products while meeting customer delivery expectations.
The Plant Manager drives continuous improvement manages full site financial performance and builds a high-performing organization grounded in accountability collaboration and operational excellence
Duties & Responsibilities:
Site Leadership & Performance
- Lead all aspects of site operations with full accountability for results
- Define and execute site strategy aligned with corporate objectives
- Establish monitor and drive KPIs across Safety Quality Delivery Cost and Engagement
- Represent the site with corporate leadership customers and external stakeholders
- Own site budgeting forecasting and capital investment planning (CAPEX/OPEX)
- Ensure effective risk management and business continuity plans
- Other duties as assigned
Operations Oversight & Optimization
- Maintain overall accountability for production performance and service levels
- Set production capacity resource plans and output targets
- Lead continuous improvement initiatives (Lean TPM OEE optimization)
- Analyze operational data to identify and resolve inefficiencies
- Drive cross-functional alignment across production maintenance quality and supply chain
Quality Food Safety & Compliance
- Ensure compliance with all food safety and quality standards (HACCP BRC/IFS ISO GMP)
- Lead audit readiness and execution (internal and external)
- Foster a strong quality and food safety culture
- Act as an escalation point for quality incidents and recalls
Health Safety & Sustainability
- Champion a zero-harm safety culture
- Ensure compliance with all health safety and environmental regulations
- Lead sustainability initiatives (energy waste water reduction)
- Track and report ESG performance metrics
People Leadership & Culture
- Lead coach and develop the site leadership team
- Drive talent development and succession planning
- Build engagement across a multi-shift workforce
- Foster a high-performance accountable culture
- Ensure clear and effective communication at all levels
Stakeholder Management
- Translate corporate strategy into site-level execution
- Partner with central functions (Supply Chain HR Quality Engineering Finance)
- Build alignment and momentum for change initiatives
- Report performance risks and improvement progress to senior leadership
Performance Management:
- Analyze operational data and identify improvement opportunities
- Drive corrective actions for deviations in performance
- Support the development and execution of production improvement plans
- Lead performance reviews and operational meetings
Education & Experience:
- Bachelors or Masters degree in Engineering Business Food Science or related field
- 810 years of manufacturing leadership experience (food or pharma preferred)
- Proven success leading plant and operations
- Experience in matrix or international organizations preferred
- Experience in shift-based manufacturing environments
Core Competencies:
Operational Excellence:
- Strong manufacturing and process knowledge
- Data-driven and KPI-focused
- Experience with Lean Manufacturing and continuous improvement
Business & Leadership Skills:
- Strong financial and business acumen
- Effective stakeholder management across functions and cultures
- Decisive resilient and results-oriented
Leadership & Communication
- Coaching and development-focused leadership style
- Strong communication skills across all organizational levels
- Ability to influence and align teams
Working Conditions:
- Work within a 5-shift continuous production environment
- Regular presence on the production floor
- Dynamic environment requiring flexibility and operational decision-making
The Wellness Pet Company is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace. We celebrate diversity and are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race color ancestry religion sex national origin sexual orientation age citizenship marital status disability or Veteran status.
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Required Experience:
Manager
Key Skills
About Company
We are pet people with a purpose. We are passionate about pets and believe that every pet should be born, bred, fed, and raised with love.
