Production Manager

Job Description

Sugar Foods Corporation

Position Summary for Production Manager

The Sugar Foods Villa Rica operation is a food manufacturing, packaging and distribution facility. Production Managers/Supervisors at Sugar Foods serve as owners of a designated process area and a shift. Production Managers works closely with the Plant Manager and Supervisors, who are responsible for working hands-on with their Lead Operators and Operators on the floor to ensure the set-up, operation, basic maintenance, and technical troubleshooting of the lines in their area. Machines at Sugar Foods include ovens, baggers, case packers, case erectors, and Ropaks, among others. The Villa Rica plant is a fast-paced 24-hour operation where Managers are required to be on the floor working with their teams, and removing obstacles for their teams. Managers are expected to role model good judgement with an emphasis on safety first and attention to producing quality products. Managers are expected to follow standard work processes in-order-to maximize the effectiveness of their teams while always looking for opportunities for improvement. Managers must work closely with the Supervisors and the Lead Operators, Operators, as well as their Maintenance and Quality Technicians on daily operations and continuous improvement projects.


The Sugar Foods Way

At Sugar Foods, the Customer is King and our team is our Family. The vision of Sugar Foods is for our products to be on every plate and in every cup. We continue to grow our business and adapt to changing business conditions in order to consistently provide value to our customers, our associates, and our community.


Your Overall Responsibilities as a Sugar Foods Production Manager

1. Effectively and consistently manage your day, your team, and your responsibilities to a standard
2. Walk your floor with purpose and continuously engage your leaders throughout the shift
3. Learn and have functional understanding of the production area/lines you are responsible for
4. Develop your Supervisors and Operators to engage with their teams and be proactive problem solvers
5. Drive overall performance of your lines to meet or exceed safe production goals
6. Monitor deviations and communicate with the GM and Maintenance in real time
7. Ensure your supervisors and operators have the tools they need to have a successful run
8. Manage and oversee schedules, crewing, and head count to ensure timely start-up and hand-off
9. Ensure GMP's and PPE are followed across your area at all times
10. Ensure successful start-up and hand-off to standard
11. Communicate and review shift reports for identifying trends and issues
12. Review continuous improvement plan with the GM and execute along with your team
13. Ensure material usage and waste is monitored and controlled
14. Inspire and encourage team members with clear feedback and goals
15. Celebrate success and appreciate the contributions of your team members
16. Identify training needs by evaluating strengths and weaknesses of Supervisors and Operators
17. Work with HR on the plan to onboard, develop and train new hires
18. Identify and escalate issues with the GM for overall successful operation of your area

What We Expect of a Sugar Foods Production Manager

To be a successful Production Manager at Sugar Foods you must:

Commit to Ownership: Ownership leads to accountability, responsibility, and success. The most important aspect to our success is ownership. This includes ownership of your area, your equipment, your processes and most importantly, your people.

Get to Know Your People: In the first three months, it will be critical that you engage your team members and get to know them as individuals. Your primary role is to set your team up for success, remove obstacles, and work through them to meet quality production goals safely.


Commit to Your Schedule and Be Flexible with Time: The second shift runs from 3:30pm to 3:30am. Therefore, it is important for you and your leaders to be present at shift hand-offs, as it will be critical to setting your team up for success. Managing can also require having your supervisors working alternate shifts to cover for a colleague, coming in at off-hours to check-in on your team, and getting involved in side projects. We expect our Managers to put in 10 to 12 hours a day, for 5 days a week.


Be Present and Accessible: The value we provide to our customers starts on our floor, which means our operators, packers, stackers, lift drivers, and sanitors are the foundation of our success. At Sugar Foods, we expect our Production Managers to spend the majority of their time on the floor with their teams observing, guiding, coaching, mentoring, holding team members accountable and appreciating their efforts


Treat Your Team Like Family: At Sugar Foods, we are a family and being family means listening to the needs of your team members, coaching and developing your people, and treating them with respect.


Collaborate with Colleagues: At Sugar Foods, we are one team and we can only win as one team. This means collaborating, supporting, and assisting your colleagues and teammates whenever needed.


Adapt as You Go: Sugar Foods is a dynamic and ever-growing company where flexibility is important. As we continue to expand, automate, and adapt to customer needs we expect our leaders to adjust to the needs of the business and their people. At Sugar Foods, we believe in an all-hands-on-deck mentality when it comes to solving problems. As a leader at Sugar Foods, you will stretch your skills or work on projects that you may not have a lot of background in.


Be Curious: At Sugar Foods, we like to see curiosity in all of our associates. Ask why, and proactively dig for an answer. Do not accept the status quo!


Job Specifications

The Background we are looking for:

1. Five (5) years of hands-on managerial experience
2. Experience working in food processing and/or packaging
3. Strong background in understanding and working knowledge of manufacturing equipment
4. Experience in generating and executing tactical and strategic planning
5. Experience in identifying talent to build teams, developing and coaching supervisors and other staff

Your Specific Responsibilities as a Sugar Foods Production Manager

Manage Start-up and Shift Hand-off:

1. Walk the floor with your Supervisors to identify and remove obstacles
2. Ensure successful shift start-up and hand-off
3. Ensure your Supervisors and Lead Operators huddle with their counterparts from the previous shift to learn about any problems, challenges, or concerns they may have encountered in order to ensure a smooth hand-off and start-up
4. Review production schedule and shift hand-off reports and help your supervisors properly prepare for the requirements of that day's shift
5. Make sure team members communicate effectively with material handlers who supply your lines to ensure you have the right materials for proper line set-up for your run
6. Make sure Operators communicate effectively with line associates and temp staff (packers and stackers) to ensure proper line set up (materials and settings) and schedule execution
7. Ensure that all safety mechanisms are working properly and that all team members understand and adhere to safety rules

Ensure that your Supervisors and Operators Run their Lines Safely and Effectively

1. Ensure the machines and lines are inspected and are in readiness for safe start-up
2. Work with Supervisors to ensure machines start-up, and machines run at expected standards

1. Zero Quality Defects
2. Zero Safety violations
3. 80% OEE machine / line productivity

1. Monitor production line and output
2. Routinely inspect products to verify conformity to specifications such as measurements, code dates and weights
3. Closely work with supervisors and maintenance team on resolving any mechanical problems
4. Ensure that supervisors are coordinating with operators on providing break relief

Manage and Optimize Machines and Lines

1. Ensure the preventative maintenance work is up to date
2. Work area remains clean and organized
3. Optimize utilization of line associates and equipment resources to ensure the safest and most valuable use of your team and equipment
4. Share and seek improvement ideas with the GM
5. Identify process Improvements and make suggestions to your supervisor

Keep Yourself and Your Teammates Safe

1. Train team and ensure adherence to Sugar Foods safety rules
2. Maintain 5S in your area
3. Ensure all machine safety devices are intact and working
4. Ensure proper use and storage of all safety tools
5. Coach your teammates - When you see something unsafe, say something
6. Ensure your supervisors are sharing safety tips every day at shift hand-off

Deliver High Quality Products

1. Own quality and strive for "First Time Quality" every time
2. Ensure machines and lines are properly set to produce to our quality standard
3. Ensure Machine Operators are performing all required quality checks and record (scales, seal testing, package integrity etc.)
4. Empower the team to stop production of line or machine when quality is not at expected level
5. Work with Maintenance team to keep the machines in good shape

U.S. Employment: If you have any difficulty using our on-line system, you may use the alternative method described below to contact someone about your interest in employment at Sugar Foods Corporation. Please reference this statement and job reference you are applying for when contacting us. Tel: View phone number on click.appcast.io.


Sugar Foods is an E-Verify Company and provides reasonable accommodation for qualified individuals with disabilities and disabled veterans in job applicant procedures. "Equal Opportunity Employer: Minority/Female/Veteran/Disabled/Gender Identity/Sexual Orientation"