What are the responsibilities and job description for the Manager of Cheese Operations position at Colony Brands, Inc.?
Colony Brands, Inc. is one of North America’s largest and most successful direct marketing catalog and e-Commerce companies. Our company has grown from a premier mail-order cheese company to include a diverse portfolio of affiliates, brands and products ranging from apparel and food to home décor and kitchen appliances, while maintaining our roots as a private, customer-centric business based in Monroe, WI. Do you relentlessly pursue excellence from yourself and others? If so, then Colony Brands, Inc. may be the place for you to impact our business and your career!
What You’ll Do
As the Manager of Cheese Operations, this position will lead all aspects of Cheese Operations through visible production floor leadership, technical expertise, employee development, and operational excellence. This role is responsible for building a high-performing culture while driving safety, quality, productivity, customer service, continuous improvement, and operational performance. This Manager leads with Safety (both Human and Food) and is responsible for quality, crewing, scheduling optimization, and meeting production demands within established cost and quality standards. This position maintains overall accountability for Cheese Operations and serves as the primary operational and technical leader for the department. The successful candidate will demonstrate the ability to learn, troubleshoot, and become a subject matter expert in equipment, processes, and production systems to increase efficiencies, reduce waste, and build team capability. This position is responsible for employee development, performance management, staffing, audits, certification activities, budgeting, and working collaboratively across the organization to achieve business objectives and build plan targets.
Required Qualifications
We're looking for an experienced manufacturing leader who combines strong people leadership with operational and technical capability. Our products, workload, and days are varied requiring someone with strong planning and analytical skills who is adept at handling scheduling and input changes. This role requires an individual who can effectively lead teams, solve problems, develop employees, analyze operational performance, and drive continuous improvement in a dynamic manufacturing environment.
In Addition, We Are Looking For
What You’ll Do
As the Manager of Cheese Operations, this position will lead all aspects of Cheese Operations through visible production floor leadership, technical expertise, employee development, and operational excellence. This role is responsible for building a high-performing culture while driving safety, quality, productivity, customer service, continuous improvement, and operational performance. This Manager leads with Safety (both Human and Food) and is responsible for quality, crewing, scheduling optimization, and meeting production demands within established cost and quality standards. This position maintains overall accountability for Cheese Operations and serves as the primary operational and technical leader for the department. The successful candidate will demonstrate the ability to learn, troubleshoot, and become a subject matter expert in equipment, processes, and production systems to increase efficiencies, reduce waste, and build team capability. This position is responsible for employee development, performance management, staffing, audits, certification activities, budgeting, and working collaboratively across the organization to achieve business objectives and build plan targets.
Required Qualifications
- Minimum 5 years of progressive leadership experience driving safety, quality, productivity, cost, & culture improvements
- Developing employees, supervisors, and future leaders
- Leading root cause analysis and corrective/preventive action (CAPA) activities
- Managing labor, staffing, scheduling, budgets, financial performance, and operational performance
- Strong analytical skills and ability to utilize operational data to improve business results
- Participating in capital improvement projects, equipment upgrades, or process improvement initiatives
- Demonstrating strong communication, employee relations, and critical thinking skills
- Capability to successfully lead in a fast-paced, collaborative manufacturing environment
We're looking for an experienced manufacturing leader who combines strong people leadership with operational and technical capability. Our products, workload, and days are varied requiring someone with strong planning and analytical skills who is adept at handling scheduling and input changes. This role requires an individual who can effectively lead teams, solve problems, develop employees, analyze operational performance, and drive continuous improvement in a dynamic manufacturing environment.
In Addition, We Are Looking For
- A solution-oriented and customer-focused demeanor who leads with professionalism, empathy, and integrity
- Strong organizational, change management, and project management skills
- Strong computer skills, including Microsoft Excel, PowerPoint, Word, and ERP system experience
- Experience utilizing data, KPIs, and operational metrics to drive decision-making
- Food manufacturing knowledge/experience is preferred
- Continuous Improvement, Lean Manufacturing, Six Sigma, or Operational Excellence experience preferred
- Demonstrated emotional intelligence with a proven ability to coach, develop, and motivate employees