FoodNerd - Operations Manager

43North•Buffalo, NY

2d•Onsite

About The Position

FoodNerd is a fast-growing food company based in Buffalo, New York, making organic, nutrient-dense foods using innovative processing methods designed to preserve the nutrients naturally found in our ingredients. We sprout our own vegetable seeds, combine sprouts with real fruit ingredients, cold mold our products, freeze-dry them, package them, and ship them from our Buffalo facility. We’re still early in our journey, and that’s important. We’re building and improving our manufacturing operation while we’re running it. Our equipment will change. Our technology will change. Our systems will change. The way we manufacture today won’t necessarily be the way we manufacture a year from now. We’re looking for an Operations Manager who thinks that’s exciting. The Operations Manager is the on-site leader responsible for making sure our production operation performs every day. You’ll report directly to the COO and oversee a growing team of approximately 20–30 people across two shifts, with four direct reports: a Sprouting Lead and Production Lead on each shift. This is not a desk job. We expect you to spend approximately 90% of your time gowned up and on the production floor. You should know what’s happening in the facility because you’re there watching it happen, talking to the team, identifying problems, and making sure we’re executing against the plan. You’ll have significant ownership from day one. You’ll determine what we need to produce, set the daily production schedule, manage labor and productivity, monitor yield and scrap, minimize downtime, maintain inventory accuracy, oversee warehouse and shipping operations, and make sure the data in our ERP accurately reflects what’s happening on the floor. You’ll also work closely with our Quality team to ensure our production processes and people consistently execute against our food safety and quality standards. When something isn’t working, we don’t just want you to report the problem. We want you to pull the thread, figure out why, and help solve it.

Requirements

Approximately 3–5 years of hands-on manufacturing or production leadership experience, or equivalent experience demonstrating that you’re ready for this level of ownership.
Experience directly leading people in a production environment.
Comfort working with ERP systems, entering production information, and reading operational reports.
Strong problem-solving skills and a willingness to dig into problems rather than simply escalate them.
Comfort using AI tools as part of how you learn and solve problems.
A track record of identifying opportunities to improve processes and actually implementing those improvements.
The ability and willingness to spend the large majority of your day on the production floor.
The flexibility to work across our two production shifts as the needs of the business require.

Nice To Haves

Experience in food manufacturing or another GMP-regulated manufacturing environment is strongly preferred.
Experience with FDA GMP requirements, food safety, traceability, lot control, or SQF is a significant plus.

Responsibilities

Own daily production execution across both shifts, from sprouting through cold molding, freeze drying, packaging, and finished goods.
Use our ERP and your knowledge of what’s happening on the floor to determine what needs to be produced and when, including managing upstream and downstream constraints throughout the production process.
Set and communicate daily production schedules and ensure the team executes against them.
Own production output and schedule attainment, labor productivity, yield, scrap, and downtime.
Identify bottlenecks as they develop and take action to keep production moving.
Lead four direct reports and oversee a growing production organization of approximately 20–30 people across two shifts.
Set clear expectations and hold people accountable for meeting them.
Coach and train team members when needed, provide feedback on performance, and work with other leaders on personnel decisions.
Be willing to jump into the process yourself when the operation needs help.
Own inventory accuracy across the facility.
Ensure receiving, material movements, work-in-process, and finished goods are accurately tracked in our systems.
Oversee physical inventory counts and help identify and resolve discrepancies.
Oversee warehouse and shipping operations, including fulfillment of retail and e-commerce orders as applicable.
Ensure production data is entered into our ERP accurately and on time, whether you’re entering it yourself or training and holding team members accountable for doing it.
Look at a process and identify a better way to do it. Implement the better way. Test it. Evaluate the results. Keep the improvement if it works, or go back and try something else if it doesn’t.
Standardize successful improvements and train the team.
Help develop, document, implement, and enforce SOPs and standard work throughout the facility.