Plant Manager Jobs

About The Position

Requirements

• Read, write, speak and understand English.
• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Operations Management, Business or a related technical field preferred. Equivalent manufacturing leadership experience will be considered in place of a degree.
• Minimum of five years of progressive manufacturing leadership experience, including at least three years managing a department or site in a multi-shift, continuous operation.
• Experience in mixing/blending, bulk solids, powder handling, consumer packaged goods or packaging operations is strongly preferred.
• Prior full profit-and-loss or plant budget ownership is preferred.
• Proven safety leadership and working knowledge of OSHA and environmental compliance requirements.
• Strong financial acumen — budget development, cost control and variance analysis.
• Practical knowledge of lean manufacturing, continuous improvement and daily management systems.
• Ability to lead production planning, scheduling, inventory and shipping in a demand-driven environment.
• Strong people leadership: coaching, accountability, conflict resolution and employee relations.
• Ability to prioritize and multitask in a fast-paced environment and make sound decisions under pressure.
• Strong analytical and problem solving skills; comfortable using data to drive decisions.
• Effective written and verbal communication with employees, customers and senior leadership.
• Proficiency with ERP systems and Microsoft Office; experience with manufacturing reporting tools preferred.
• Must complete all required MTI and site-specific safety training, including new hire orientation, hazard communication, lockout/tagout, powered industrial truck safety, respiratory protection and emergency response, and maintain current certification as required.

Nice To Haves

• Experience in mixing/blending, bulk solids, powder handling, consumer packaged goods or packaging operations is strongly preferred.
• Prior full profit-and-loss or plant budget ownership is preferred.
• Experience with manufacturing reporting tools preferred.

Responsibilities

• Own site safety performance; set the expectation that no product ships and no task is performed outside of safe work practices.
• Ensure compliance with OSHA, EPA, state of Tennessee and MTI corporate EHS requirements, including lockout/tagout, machine guarding, confined space, mobile equipment and dust control programs.
• Lead incident investigation and root cause analysis; drive corrective actions to closure and share learnings across shifts.
• Champion behavior-based safety, hazard recognition and near-miss reporting across all three shifts.
• Direct end-to-end production: raw material receiving and inventory, mixing and blending, processing, packaging, palletizing and finished goods shipment.
• Manage shift-to-shift continuity across a 24/5 operation, including start-up and shutdown routines, changeovers and weekend/maintenance windows.
• Monitor and report daily plant performance — throughput, yield, uptime, scrap and giveaway — and act quickly on deviations.
• Partner with Quality to ensure product meets customer and brand-owner specifications, including formulation accuracy, moisture, particle size, packaging integrity and labeling.
• Support new product introductions, trials, line extensions and packaging changes with production and customer readiness.
• Own the site production plan and schedule; balance customer demand, inventory targets, raw material availability and line capacity.
• Direct warehouse, logistics and shipping operations to deliver on-time, in-full performance and accurate inventory records.
• Coordinate inbound raw material deliveries with suppliers and transportation partners to protect continuity of supply.
• Interface directly with customers, brand partners and commercial teams on service, quality and capacity commitments.
• Own the plant operating budget; deliver cost per ton, conversion cost, labor, energy, maintenance and packaging material targets.
• Analyze variances monthly, explain drivers and lead corrective action plans.
• Identify, justify and execute capital projects; manage project scope, spend and startup to plan.
• Build and maintain the site staffing and manning plan across all shifts, including hourly headcount, overtime control, temporary labor and succession for key roles.
• Partner with Human Resources on recruiting, onboarding, training, performance management, pay administration and employee relations.
• Develop supervisors and team leads; hold direct reports accountable for clear, measurable goals.
• Drive retention, attendance and engagement; maintain positive, direct employee relations and consistent application of company policy.
• Support a high-performance work system approach — skill-based development, cross-training and advancement from within.
• Ensure preventive and predictive maintenance programs protect equipment uptime in a continuous operation.
• Prioritize the maintenance backlog, manage spare parts strategy and control contractor spend and contractor safety.
• Manages, supports and achieves Operational Excellence and lean goals and initiatives, including 5S, inventory reduction, process flow and value stream mapping, standard work, Kaizen events and Total Productive Maintenance.
• Leads the site in a continuous improvement work environment and sustains daily management control — tiered shift meetings, visual boards and key performance indicator review.
• Supports quality and management teams with OE initiatives and actively identifies improvement opportunities.
• Uses structured problem solving and root cause analysis to eliminate repeat losses.
• Serve as the senior on-site leader and primary point of contact for the community, regulatory agencies and corporate functions.
• Maintain site security, housekeeping, facility condition and business continuity planning.
• Complete weekly and monthly reporting on safety, production, quality, cost and people metrics.
• Remain available by phone for off-shift and emergency plant issues.
• Other duties as assigned.

Benefits

• Competitive pay, commensurate with experience
• Health/Dental/Vision plans
• 401k company match
• Life Insurance
• Short Term Disability & Long-Term Disability
• Educational Assistance
• Employee Assistance Plan