Plant Manager – Food Manufacturing Operations

Location: Clarkton, NC

Pay Range: $100,000–$130,000/year (depending on experience)

Schedule: 1st Shift

iBoost Talent is seeking a hands-on Plant Manager to lead daily operations for a well-established food manufacturing facility in Clarkton, NC. This role is responsible for driving plant performance across production, food safety, quality, maintenance coordination, and warehouse operations.

The ideal candidate is an experienced manufacturing leader with a strong background in food production, continuous improvement, team development, and operational excellence. This leader will play a key role in maintaining a safe, efficient, and high-performing plant environment.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead daily plant operations to achieve production, safety, quality, and efficiency goals
• Manage production activities, scheduling, workflow, and resource allocation
• Lead and develop supervisors and teams across production, quality, maintenance, and warehouse functions
• Drive a strong safety culture while maintaining compliance with OSHA and food safety standards
• Ensure compliance with GMP, HACCP, SQF, and other food manufacturing requirements
• Monitor operational KPIs including productivity, yield, waste, downtime, labor efficiency, and throughput
• Identify improvement opportunities and implement continuous improvement initiatives
• Partner with maintenance teams to support equipment reliability and preventive maintenance efforts
• Support employee training, development, engagement, and performance management
• Work closely with Quality Assurance to maintain product quality and regulatory compliance
• Lead daily operational meetings and performance reviews
• Manage operational costs, budgets, and productivity improvements
• Maintain accurate production, safety, and compliance documentation
• Support customer, internal, and regulatory audits
• Build a culture of accountability, teamwork, and continuous improvement

Qualifications

• 5+ years of plant management or senior manufacturing leadership experience
• Experience in food manufacturing, food processing, agriculture, or related production environments preferred
• Strong understanding of food safety programs including GMP, HACCP, and SQF
• Experience managing production teams, supervisors, and cross-functional departments
• Strong knowledge of manufacturing KPIs, production planning, and process improvement
• Experience with continuous improvement methodologies such as Lean Manufacturing, Six Sigma, or Kaizen preferred
• Ability to analyze data, solve problems, and improve operational performance
• Experience coordinating with maintenance and production equipment teams
• Experience managing budgets and controlling operational costs
• ERP/manufacturing systems experience preferred
• Strong communication, leadership, and team-building skills
• Bachelor's degree preferred; equivalent manufacturing leadership experience considered

Preferred Backgrounds

Candidates with experience in:

• Food processing
• Peanut, grain, agricultural, or snack food manufacturing
• Bakery, protein, or consumer food production
• High-volume manufacturing operations
• Multi-shift plant leadership

Why This Opportunity

Join a well-established food manufacturing operation where you will have the opportunity to lead plant performance, develop teams, improve processes, and make a direct impact on operational success.