Commercial Bakery Operations Supervisor

Job Description

Job Description

Role Snapshot

Step onto the floor in Manteno, IL and lead a high-volume commercial bakery through each production run. As the Commercial Bakery Operations Supervisor (full-time, contract-to-hire), you’ll set the pace for quality, safety, and throughput—coaching a team while staying hands-on with the lines. Opportunities are available on 1st and 2nd shift.

A Day in the Life

The shift kicks off with a line walk: you verify materials and recipes, assign workstations, and align rotations and breaks. As dough moves and packaging hums, you remove bottlenecks, coach operators on best practices, and partner with Quality to ensure products meet food-safety and quality standards. When equipment hiccups happen, you handle operator-level troubleshooting and escalate larger issues to maintenance or management. Throughout the day, you log output, downtime, material usage, and centerlines—translating the numbers into KPIs your team can act on. You close the loop with warehouse on materials and inventory to keep production flowing.

What You’ll Lead

• Hands-on leadership across daily bakery production.
• Training new team members on safety, GMP, quality expectations, and standard work.
• Workstation assignments, rotations, and break schedules.
• Monitoring flow; addressing bottlenecks and operator-level equipment issues.
• Food-safety, GMP, quality, and safety compliance checks.
• Partnership with Quality Assurance to meet established standards.
• Accurate documentation: output, downtime, material usage, and centerline records.
• Recipe/material verification and coordination with warehouse for materials/inventory.
• KPI tracking and communication to the team.
• Escalation of machinery issues, shortages, safety concerns, and production challenges.
• Ongoing coaching and direction to production employees.
• Continuous improvement around safety, quality, productivity, and efficiency.

Qualifications

• High school diploma or equivalent.
• 2–3+ years in food manufacturing or a comparable manufacturing environment.
• Proven ability to lead, train, coach, and direct on the production floor.
• Mechanical aptitude to troubleshoot equipment at the operator level.
• Knowledge of GMP and food-safety practices; solid math skills.
• Comfort reading and following work instructions, recipes, SOPs, and production requirements.
• Clear communicator and team collaborator; strong documentation habits.
• Thrives in a fast-paced manufacturing setting.
• Ability to lift up to approximately 50 lbs. and stand or walk for extended periods, with or without reasonable accommodation.
• Willing to work up to six days per week based on business and production needs.

Preferred

• Direct, hands-on food manufacturing experience.
• Familiarity with bakery lines, baggers, mixers, packaging equipment, or similar machinery.
• Bilingual skills.
• Technical certification related to mechanical equipment.

Compensation & Schedule

• Pay: $24.00–$28.00 per hour.
• 1st Shift: Approximately 5:00 AM–2:30 PM.
• 2nd Shift: Approximately 2:00 PM–10:30 PM.
• Assignment: Contract-to-Hire (full-time).

Benefits Upon Eligible Client Hire

• Health, dental, and vision coverage effective from day one.
• 401(k) with company match.
• Paid time off.
• Growth and development opportunities.
• Additional benefits.

What You’re Great At

• Leadership / People Management
• Continuous Improvement
• Food and Beverage Manufacturing
• Manufacturing Instruction (MI)
• FDA Regulations
• Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs)
• Supervisory Experience
• Production Optimization
• Coaching and Mentoring Experience
• Operational Metrics & KPI Management
• ERP & MRP Systems
• Inventory Management & Control
• Workplace Safety & EHS Management
• Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP)

Tools & Tech

• ERP Software

Ready to make an immediate impact while growing toward broader leadership? This role puts you at the center of people, product, and performance.