Production Specialist

Hans Kissle•Haverhill, MA

About The Position

The Production Specialist provides day-to-day coverage for Supervisors across Salad Mixing, Salad Fillers (GMC), Salad Packaging, and Prepared departments. When not covering a supervisor’s day off or vacancy, the role partners closely with the Prepared Department Supervisor to drive performance, safety, quality, and continuous improvement. This position mirrors many responsibilities of a department Supervisor and is designed as a development role with a clear pathway to a full-time Supervisor assignment. The ideal candidate is a hands-on leader who can adapt quickly, standardize best practices across lines, and build strong teams.

Requirements

3+ years in food manufacturing or high-throughput CPG operations; fresh/ready-to-eat salads or prepared foods preferred experience.
Prior experience as a Lead, Line Captain, or Assistant Supervisor; proven ability to run a line/department.
Strong knowledge of GMPs, HACCP, allergen control, sanitation, and basic microbiological risk awareness.
Proficient with production documentation, ERP/MES, and standard office tools (Excel/Teams/Outlook).
Ability to read/interpret SOPs, specs, and production schedules, solid math for yields and counts.

Nice To Haves

Familiarity with SQF programs and audit expectations is a plus.
Bilingual (English/Spanish) a plus.

Responsibilities

Provide full department leadership during Supervisor absences in Salad Mixing, Salad Fillers (GMC), Salad Packaging, and Prepared.
Assist in daily huddles, set shift goals, assign labor, and manage breaks/rotations.
Maintain standard work, SOPs, and visual controls; ensure consistent execution across all covered departments.
Enforce GMPs, HACCP, allergen control, and sanitation standards; support SQF and internal audit readiness.
Drive a safety-first culture: conduct start-up safety checks, lead near-miss reporting, and complete incident investigations per OSHA expectations.
Oversee CCP checks, lot traceability, label accuracy, and shelf-life management.
Partner with QA to disposition holds, implement corrective actions, and prevent recurrence.
Manage schedule adherence, changeovers, and start-up/shut-down procedures to minimize downtime.
Monitor yield, waste, throughput, and OEE; escalate issues and execute short-term countermeasures.
Coach and direct operators, leads, and floaters; reinforce accountability and recognition.
Train on SOPs, safety, and quality checks; certify cross-training to increase flexibility.
Support attendance, performance feedback, and basic employee relations in alignment with HR policies.
Verify material availability (ingredients, film, labels, packaging); prevent line stoppages through proactive staging.
Ensure accurate transactions in ERP/MES (e.g., lot scans, yields, labor) and maintain clean, complete shift documentation.
Identify bottlenecks and wastes; lead 5S, standard work updates, and kaizen events.
Assist in trials, new product launches, and process changes, capture learnings into SOPs.