Site Director Food Service Division
Locations: Huntington & Peterborough
Company: Pilgrims Europe
Pilgrims Europe is seeking an experienced and commercially astute Site Director to lead our Huntington and Peterborough Food Service sites. This is a critical senior leadership role with full accountability for site performance, including quality, health & safety, efficiency, cost control, and competitive advantage.
The successful candidate will have full P&L responsibility, lead and develop the senior management teams across both sites, and be accountable for all employees on site. You will play a pivotal role in driving operational excellence, delivering outstanding customer service, and supporting new product introductions on time and to specification.
Key Responsibilities
Overall leadership and optimisation of site performance across Huntington and Peterborough
Full accountability for financial performance, including profit, turnover, margin, cash flow, yield optimisation, working capital and cost control
Development and delivery of site strategy, budgets, business plans, forecasts and performance targets, aligned to overall business strategy
Ensuring robust production and material planning to meet customer demand and operational efficiency
Leading, developing and coaching the site senior management teams and wider workforce, addressing underperformance through training and corrective action where required
Driving Operational Excellence and labour optimisation, embedding a high-performance culture with strong ownership for continuous improvement and innovation
Benchmarking against best-in-class operations, introducing new methods and technologies, and proactively driving improvement initiatives
Ensuring all plant and equipment are correctly operated, cleaned and maintained, and developing a rolling capital investment plan in conjunction with the Group Technical team
Delivering best-in-class standards in product quality, customer service and operational performance
Ensuring full compliance with all statutory, regulatory and customer requirements, including food safety, health & safety, environment, employment law and trading standards
Developing and maintaining systems, procedures and working practices that meet group policies, accreditation standards and customer requirements
Experience & Qualifications
Senior management experience within manufacturing, with a minimum of 5 years at a senior leadership level
Proven track record of leading a key function or site within manufacturing or food production
Strong understanding of manufacturing processes and up-to-date knowledge of processing equipment
Relevant qualifications in food, engineering, manufacturing, supply chain management, economics, or similar
Demonstrable change management experience
Customer-facing experience, including managing and developing key customer relationships
Experience managing large, multi-disciplinary workforces
Proven capability in developing, motivating and coaching teams
Strong negotiation experience (internal and external), including pay negotiations
Experience communicating effectively at all levels and across all functions
Successful involvement in capital project implementation
High level of IT literacy
Technical & Commercial Capability
Strong people leadership and delegation skills
Performance management expertise, including KPI development and delivery
Sound understanding of management accounting, budgeting and financial controls
Strong commercial acumen with experience of P&L, balance sheets, ROC, financial planning and EBITDA
Understanding of engineering processes and standards
Knowledge of procedural agreements and union relationships
Strong understanding of supply chain processes
In-depth knowledge of GMP, Health & Safety and Environmental standards
Excellent presentation and report-writing skills
Ability to drive optimum performance across all functions
Personal Attributes
Results-driven with a strong commitment to success
Able to engage, influence and communicate with a diverse workforce
Demonstrable team builder and collaborative leader
Confident to challenge constructively and make balanced decisions
Flexible, logical and pragmatic in approach
High levels of integrity; fair, honest and objective
Passionate about food manufacturing
Strong analytical capability with sustained drive and enthusiasm
Self-motivated, organised and resilient
Creative and imaginative thinker, able to think outside the box
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