OUR CLIENT Our client is a leading Australian food manufacturing company with a strong portfolio of household-favourite brands across categories such as baked goods, snacks, cereals, and pantry staples. With a national footprint of modern manufacturing sites and distribution capabilities, the company is committed to delivering high-quality, locally made products. Combining innovation with tradition, the business focuses on sustainable practices, strong customer relationships, and continuous improvement. Backed by a passionate team and robust leadership, the organisation plays a key role in Australia’s fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) sector. ABOUT THE POSITION This role is responsible for leading high-performing, accountable, values-based, and empowered production line teams to meet established objectives across HSE, Quality, Cost, Performance, and People. Reporting to the Manufacturing Manager, this position is a critical part of the leadership team. It is responsible for fostering and enhancing a high-performance culture within the production team. In this role, you will proactively identify opportunities for improvement, take accountability for your KPIs and targets, deliver best practices, and embrace new ideas, approaches, and opportunities as the business evolves and grows. The successful candidate will be assigned to one of the Melbourne sites, with various shifts available. Responsibilities Health, Safety, Environment, and Quality (HSEQ) Actively lead the site’s "Never Walk By" practice, ensuring compliance with HSEQ standards and rules. Ensure injuries, incidents, hazards, and illnesses are reported and acted on immediately to create a safe, healthy, and sustainable workplace. Ensure that all products manufactured meet quality specifications. Undertake necessary investigations for quality issues and collaborate with the QAT – Manufacturing & Quality team to implement corrective actions and drive continuous improvement. Deliver the site’s operational HSEQ agenda. Leadership and People Management Lead and build a high-performing, accountable, dynamic, and values-driven team focused on achieving targets and delivering on the company’s purpose, vision, and strategy. Oversee workforce planning, workload distribution, and performance management. Ensure consistent communication and coaching to uphold standards and policies. Set performance plans, goals, and targets. Conduct regular one-on-ones to review KPIs, safety, and quality adherence. Support development of team members through training plans and performance monitoring. Plan and forecast shift labour requirements while keeping labour and overtime costs within budget. Foster a culture of problem-solving using daily management systems, timely response to issues, and continuous improvement tools such as PDCA. Drive high performance across processes, systems, recruitment, and capability development. Cost, Efficiency, and Sustainability Manage cost/profit centres in line with budget expectations. Take accountability for manufacturing-related costs and seek opportunities to reduce waste and improve sustainable practices. Operational Excellence Focus Lead improvement initiatives using daily management system principles, including identifying abnormalities, bottlenecks, and waste. Establish standardised work and control systems to support operational efficiency. Ensure effective roll-out and ongoing application of Operational Excellence strategies Essential Criteria: Tertiary level qualifications in Management, Science, Engineering, or a related discipline. Additional training in Continuous Improvement Systems (e.g. Lean, Six Sigma) is advantageous. Experience in Food, FMCG or high-speed packaging environments is highly desirable. Strong knowledge of GMP, HACCP, relevant regulations, HSE requirements, and auditing standards. 2–3 years of proven experience managing medium to large production teams in an FMCG setting. 3–5 years in a management role in an FMCG manufacturing environment, preferably in the food industry. Demonstrated success in delivering results through an engaged and motivated team. Excellent leadership and people management skills with the ability to effectively lead, engage, and coach production teams. Solid manufacturing process knowledge, stakeholder engagement, and strong communication, facilitation, and computer skills (SAP preferred). Strong team player who lives the company values and leads with purpose. Compensation Excellent remuneration commensurate to relevant skills and experience. How to Apply Please email your application letter with your resume to recruit@konnecting.com. 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