Plant Manager

Plant Manager – Food Manufacturing - KSA

Our client, a MNC Food Ingredients company is looking to hire a Senior Operations cum Plant Manager for their new production facility in Saudi Arabia.

Budget: SAR 50K – 60K (plus benefits)

Note: Only candidates with Food Manufacturing specifically Food ingredients, Dairy OR Meat Industry. Having strong experience of managing Big Plant Operations along with people management experience will be selected for this role.

Job Purpose: The Senior Operations & Plant Manager leads the end-to-end performance of the manufacturing facility, delivering strategic and operational excellence across safety, quality, service, cost, sustainability, and people development to drive business profitability and growth in alignment with corporate objectives.

The Senior Operations & Plant Manager drives the design, procurement, construction, and commissioning of the processing facility as initial project lead, with pathway to Plant Manager post start‑up.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering / Food / Diary Processing with ten years manufacturing management experience.
• Experience 10 - 15+ years as a Plant Manager.
• Expert in processes, equipment, food safety, ERP/MES. Worked with and knowledge of dry mixes, soups/bases, sauces, seasonings, etc. and packaging (technologies and equipment). Manage risks/crises proactively.

Job Responsibility:

• The Senior Operations & Plant Manager is accountable for end‑to‑end performance of the plant, providing strategic and operational leadership to deliver safety, quality, service, cost, people development, and sustainability objectives in line with business strategy.
• Develops and delivers the plant operations budget (operating and capital), reviews production costs and plant efficiency, and implements actions to achieve profitability and cash flow targets.
• Develops plans for cost‑effective use of materials, machines, utilities, and employees, ensuring achievement of plant efficiency metrics and business KPIs.
• Manages Plant Operating and Capital Budgets and manufacturing‑related cost improvement initiatives, including value engineering and waste reduction. Reviews/approves Factory Operational Readiness Plan, executes commissioning, start up, training curriculum, and employee hiring/onboarding for factory ramp up.
• Manages URS development for factory functions, ensuring engineering design meets operational requirements and aligns with project budget.
• Leads production planning and execution, ensuring all products manufactured and distributed meet regulatory (legal), food safety, quality, and customer service requirements and are produced on schedule to meet demand.
• Drives plant operational roadmap in partnership with corporate functions and collaborates with Supply Chain, Sales, and Finance on S&OP, demand surges, and NPI.
• Provides overall leadership to operational, technical, and support teams (Production, Packaging, Warehousing, Shipping, Maintenance, Planning, Purchasing), ensuring effective collaboration with Quality, Supply Chain, Finance, HR, and Commercial.
• Responsible for managing third‑party service providers, including external warehouses and other third‑party operations, ensuring performance, compliance, and cost targets are met.
• Develops and manages Supply Chain Project Management Plan, operational stakeholder engagement, and communication plans and also creates operational team structure, RACI, and decision matrix; manages resource needs, project tools, risk matrix, and change requests.
• Leads Health, Safety and Environment programs, ensuring compliance with applicable laws, regulations, and company policies and achievement of plant safety and sustainability goals.
• Manages the Environment Management Systems and drives Plant Sustainability initiatives in line with corporate and legal requirements. Develops and manages Supply Chain Project Management Plan, operational stakeholder engagement, and communication plans.
• Champions the use of data, digital tools and manufacturing systems (OEE dashboards, MES, ERP) to drive performance visibility, decision‑making, and loss elimination.
• Owns plant risk management including business continuity planning, crisis management, and mitigation of operational, quality, safety, and supply risks.
• Ensures the plant complies with all applicable laws, regulations, relevant industry codes of practice, and company policies across the country of raw material supply, production, and finished goods destination.
• Ensures effective internal controls over inventory, assets, and operational processes to meet governance and audit requirements.
• Provides strategic leadership to align plant operations with company business objectives, including capacity planning, network footprint, and make‑or‑buy decisions.
• Drives the plant’s long‑term operational roadmap (automation, digitalization, layout changes, technology upgrades) in partnership with corporate functions.
• Collaborates closely with Supply Chain, Sales, and Finance to support S&OP, ensuring feasible production plans, service level targets, and optimized inventory across the network.
• Leads cross‑functional forums to manage demand surges, new product introductions, and portfolio changes, minimizing write‑offs and service failures.
• Supports key customer initiatives by ensuring on‑time launches, customized specifications, and reliable service performance, and participates in major customer visits or audits as plant owner.
• Partners with R&D and Commercial on new product development, industrialization, and value engineering to deliver margin improvement and innovation speed‑to‑market.