Department Manager

Your Opportunity as a Department Manager 

The Department Manager is responsible for day-to-day direction and oversight for the manufacturing of bakery products and teams.  This individual will organize and lead production to ensure that products are produced consistently and efficiently to specified quality and operational standards to be shipped to customers on-time.  The Department Manager will lead the team to implement best practices and standards to continue to improve and manage to KPI’s. 

Location: Arkadelphia, AR (Hostess Manufacturing Plant) 

Work Arrangements: 100% on-site. Primarily day shift with availability on nights and weekends as needed 

In this Role You Will:   

• Be responsible for leading an operations department to support the business 

• Develop capability and leadership characteristics in Area Leaders, Process Engineers, Controls Leader, and Advanced Technical Leadership 

• Be responsible for meeting Quality, Safety, Reliability, and Cost targets for plant operations 

• Work with all plant functions to ensure all production needs are met 

• Coordinate activities to increase Autonomous Maintenance knowledge throughout the plant, utilizing Autonomous Maintenance to improve Operations measures 

• Lead and teach complete understanding of overall plant product flow including all inputs and outputs 

• Manage and leverage relationships with R&D and corporate engineering 

• Identify and eliminate operations losses; Lead in solving issues to cause and implement improvements 

• Manage capital budget/projects to improve Operations measures in the areas of capacity growth, production efficiencies, Quality, and Safety 

• Set plant direction by contributing to the Plant Leadership team 

• Administer any necessary discipline 

• Manage with Basic Beliefs as a foundation and preserves Smucker culture 

• Execute effective communication to all levels of the organization 

The Right Role for You  

We are bold, kind, strive to do the right thing, we play to win, and we believe in a strong community that thrives together. Our culture is rooted in our Basic Beliefs, and we believe in supporting every employee by meeting their physical, emotional, and financial needs.  

What We are Looking For:   

Minimum Requirements:  

• A bachelor’s degree is required; an engineering or technical degree is preferred 

• At least 3 years of manufacturing operational experience managing people and teams 

• Priority setting and Problem solving: Demonstrated ability to be decisive, proactive, and strategic in decision making  

Additional skills and experience that we think would make someone successful in this role:   

• Food processing or manufacturing experience 

• Experience in a high-performance work environment 

• Work effectively across organization boundaries and with diverse teams 

• Excellent communication (both written and verbal) and listening skills 

• Strong organization skills 

• Experience directing and managing vendors 

• Must be willing to travel at least 10% and be available after hours/weekends 

Work Environment: This job operates in a manufacturing environment. The noise level in the work environment and manufacturing sites can be high. 

Physical Demands: 

• Regularly required to talk and hear.   

• Frequently required to stand; walk; use hands and fingers to handle or feel; and reach with hands and arms. 

• Occasionally required to sit; climb or balance; and stoop, kneel, crouch or crawl. 

• Able to lift objects up to 50 pounds frequently. 

• May push and pull heavy trash carts, dough carts, portable equipment, and catch pans. 

• Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception and ability to adjust focus.  

Learn More About Working at Smucker    

Helping our Employees Thrive   

Delivering on Our Purpose   

Our Continued Commitment to Ensuring a Workplace for All   

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