DIRECTOR OF HUMAN HEALTH & SAFETY

AMPI•New Ulm, MN

1d•Hybrid

About The Position

AMPI owns six Midwest-based manufacturing plants where 10 percent of the nation’s American-type cheese and processed cheese is produced. The cooperative’s award-winning cheese and powdered dairy products are marketed to foodservice, retail and food ingredient customers. In 2019, the co-op launched its Dinner Bell Creamery brand and accompanying Co-op Crafted promise, highlighting more than 50 years of dairy farm families partnering with skilled cheesemakers.

Requirements

High School Diploma or General Education Degree (GED) required
Bachelor's degree in Occupational Safety, Industrial Hygiene, Human Health & Safety, Engineering, Human Resources, or related field
10+ years of progressive Health & Safety leadership experience, including at least 5 years supporting multiple manufacturing facilities.
Experience within food manufacturing, consumer packaged goods (CPG), agricultural processing, or related industries preferred.
Demonstrated success reducing OSHA recordable incidents, lost-time injuries, and workers' compensation costs.
Experience interacting with executive leadership teams and regulatory agencies.

Nice To Haves

Master’s degree preferred.
Certified Safety Professional (CSP)
Certified Industrial Hygienist (CIH)
Occupational Health and Safety Technologist (OHST)
OSHA Authorized Trainer

Responsibilities

Develop and execute a comprehensive corporate health and safety strategy aligned with company values and business objectives.
Establish annual and long-term safety goals, key performance indicators (KPIs), and continuous improvement initiatives.
Lead the organization's journey toward world-class safety performance and a zero-injury culture.
Advise executive leadership on emerging safety trends, compliance requirements, and enterprise risk factors.
Accountable for enterprise-wide safety performance metrics, including OSHA recordables, lost-time incidents, severity rates, workers' compensation costs, and leading indicator performance.
Design, implement, and maintain company-wide occupational health and safety programs, policies, procedures, and standards.
Ensure consistency in safety management systems across all manufacturing sites.
Ensure compliance with OSHA, DOT, workers' compensation, and state-specific safety regulations.
Lead preparation for and management of regulatory inspections, audits, and agency interactions.
Monitor regulatory developments and implement necessary changes throughout the organization.
Maintain company health and safety documentation and reporting systems.
Oversee investigations of serious incidents, near misses, workers' compensation claims, and significant safety events.
Identify systemic risk factors and implement corrective and preventive actions.
Develop and monitor leading and lagging indicators, including safety observations, near-miss reporting, behavior-based safety participation, audit completion, OSHA recordable rates, and corrective action closure performance.
Lead root cause analysis efforts and ensure sustainable corrective action implementation.
Analyze company-wide safety data and trends to prioritize improvement opportunities.
Build a strong safety culture through leadership engagement, employee involvement, communication, and accountability.
Coach plant managers and site leadership teams on safety ownership and expectations.
Develop and deliver safety leadership training programs.
Promote employee participation in safety committees, observations, and continuous improvement activities.
Develop occupational health strategies designed to reduce workplace injuries and improve employee well-being.
Partner with Human Resources and medical providers to manage injury prevention, return-to-work programs, and wellness initiatives.
Drive ergonomics and workplace design improvements to minimize injury risk.
Lead corporate safety audits across all facilities.
Establish audit protocols, scorecards, corrective action systems, and performance dashboards.
Benchmark company performance against industry best practices.
Drive continuous improvement using Lean, Six Sigma, or operational excellence methodologies.
Lead and develop plant-level Human Health & Safety professionals.
Establish clear expectations, development plans, and performance objectives for safety personnel.
Foster collaboration between sites and encourage sharing of best practices across the organization.
Develop and manage the corporate health and safety budget, including capital investments, safety programs, training initiatives, consultants, and compliance-related expenditures.
Travel up to 50% to manufacturing locations and industry events as required.