Operations Director

Central Garden & Pet Company (NASDAQ:CENT), is a leading innovator, marketer and producer of quality branded products for the pet, lawn and garden supplies markets. Breeder’s Choice, a division of Central Garden & Pet, which has been manufacturing pet foods for 60 years, is searching for an Operations Director.

The Operations Director is part of an executive team reporting to the President of Breeder’s Choice, and is responsible for meeting customer demands and controlling costs by overseeing the execution of schedules and projects within the Operations team.  The Director develops the strategy and tactics needed in operations (in alignment with the business strategies) to understand, detail, analyze and reduce costs; which includes management of inventory levels.  As part of the executive team, the individual contributes to the growth and success of the business by utilizing experience, knowledge and team skills to help form the business operational strategies and tactics.

Key Responsibilities
•    Baking, extrusion and bag filling
•    Facilities maintenance
•    Filling equipment, silo storage, material movement maintenance
•    Material balance and material loss control
•    Labor standard setting, time and motion studies
•    Capital equipment procurement
•    Manufacturing supervision
•    Distribution organization
•    Carrier rate negotiation and selection
•    Purchasing experience or management of purchasing; negotiation tactics
•    Co-packer validation, selection, management
•    Inventory control
•    Operational and continuous improvement
•    Cost control

Experiences/Skills/Education
•    A minimum of 7 years of experience in Operations and Plant Management
•    Bachelors degree in Engineering or a related degree a plus
•    Experience building an organization from the ground up
•    Proven record of applying principles of Safe practices and lead improvement: JSA’s, incident investigation, safety team use
•    Knowledge and compliance with key regulatory Safety procedures: LOTO, HCP, PPE, Confined space
•    Spreadsheet analysis
•    Proven manager leadership and motivation; delegation and accountability
•    Application and use of lean manufacturing tools
•    Ability to create and implement systems to measure and improve performance at all levels
•    Use of large company MRP, MPS system
•    Proven development of scheduling techniques, communications and execution
•    Experience in animal products a plus
•    Exposure to food processing and quality standards for that industry
•    Proven ability to personally grow in their experience and knowledge
•    Ability to be a collaborator and team contributor
•    Ability to lead peers

Working Conditions
•    Manufacturing and office environment with frequent use of PC, phone, and office equipment
•    Shift work as needed
•    10% travel as needed by business requirements