Your Opportunity as the Human Resources Manager
This is a pivotal moment for the Columbus site and the Human Resources Manager will play a central role in what comes next. As a key member of the plant leadership team, this role partners closely with operations to strengthen performance, rebuild momentum, and elevate the employee experience. Beyond leading core HR functions—including labor relations, talent management, and employee relations—this role offers a unique opportunity to be a culture amplifier: reinforcing values, rebuilding trust, and helping leaders create a high‑performing, engaged, and connected workplace. The ideal candidate brings strong manufacturing and union experience, a hands‑on leadership style, and a passion for shaping not just how work gets done—but how it feels to work here.
Location: Columbus, GA
Work Arrangements: 100% Onsite
In this role you will:
Serve on plant leadership team; acts as a coach, advisor, and confidante to operations leaders.
Manage plant HR activities such as hourly recruiting, performance management, employee/labor relations, and local talent management efforts.
Help drive high performance work systems with a leadership role in driving organization capability.
Play a leadership role in building organizational capability and advancing high performance work systems for the future.
Build strong labor management relationships through regular collaboration with union leadership while ensuring effective administration and interpretation of the collective bargaining agreement.
Lead and manage site level investigations, ensuring timely, thorough, and compliant execution of the investigation process in alignment with company policies and protocols
Leverage specialized knowledge about the unique plant’s practices, business needs, people, and procedures to execute HR tasks.
Support the functional strategy by designing programs, policies, and practices to attract, retain, and/or engage talent in alignment with the business strategy.
Manage supplemental activities such as community outreach, employee events, etc.
Enhance the organization's human resources by planning, implementing, and evaluating employee relations and human resources policies, programs, and practices.
Provide excellent service to ensure activities deliver the intended experience for end users in an efficient and effective manner; manage tasks of self and team to ensure deadlines are met according to established service levels/targets.
What we are looking for:
Minimum Requirements:
Bachelor's degree in Human Resources or related field
5 + years HR functional experience (e.g., employee relations, staffing, compensation, benefits, learning, employee data)
Experience leading in a unionized manufacturing environment, including administration and interpretation of a collective bargaining agreement
Experience working at a manufacturing site
Experience leading and mentoring a team and helping to foster a positive work culture
Experience delivering and improving HR plant processes to maximize efficiency & deliver quality services
Experience successfully managing multiple priorities & projects through successful delivery & implementation under time, budget, and political pressure
Experience working, monitoring, and interacting with third-party vendors
Strong people leadership skills and demonstrated track record of success leading initiatives
Significant business/operational knowledge with an understanding of risks, challenges, and advantages
Additional skills and experience that we think would make someone successful in this role (not required):
HR Generalist experience
Food manufacturing experience
Workday system knowledge
Experience working in High Performance Organization work systems
PHR or SPHR certification
The Right Place 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.
Stay connected with us on LinkedIn®
We're an equal opportunity employer. All applicants will be considered for employment without attention to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information, age, national origin, disability status or protected veteran status.
Skills Required
- Bachelor's degree in Human Resources or related field
- 5+ years HR functional experience
- Experience leading in a unionized manufacturing environment
- Experience working at a manufacturing site
- Experience leading and mentoring a team
- Experience improving HR plant processes
- Experience managing multiple priorities
- Experience working with third-party vendors
- Strong people leadership skills
The J.M. Smucker Co. Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about The J.M. Smucker Co. and has not been reviewed or approved by The J.M. Smucker Co..
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Retirement Support — Retirement programs are described as strong, with a company 401(k) match, immediate vesting in some materials, and access to an Employee Stock Purchase Plan. These elements contribute to a favorable view of total compensation value.
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Parental & Family Support — Paid parental leave for all parents and on-site childcare at key locations signal a family-forward approach. Additional supports such as adoption assistance and pet-related leave reinforce this emphasis.
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Leave & Time Off Breadth — Paid time off, seasonal compressed schedules, and flexibility options are highlighted across materials. The ability to start with substantial PTO and buy additional time enhances perceived time-off breadth.
The J.M. Smucker Co. Insights
What We Do
Each generation of consumers leaves their mark on culture by establishing new expectations for food and the companies that make it. At The J.M. Smucker Co., it is our privilege to be at the heart of this dynamic with a portfolio that appeals to each generation of people and pets with products found in 90 percent of U.S. homes and countless restaurants. This includes a mix of iconic brands consumers have always loved such as Folgers®, Jif® and Milk-Bone® and new favorites like Café Bustelo®, Smucker’s® Uncrustables® and Rachael Ray® Nutrish®. By continuing to immerse ourselves in consumer and pet parent preferences for food, how it’s purchased and how the companies that make it should operate, we will maintain the important role we play in their lives. This will allow us to continue growing our business and the positive impact we have on all of those who count on us.
