Plant Manager - Poultry

The Poultry Plant Manager is responsible for providing overall leadership, strategic direction, and operational oversight for a poultry processing facility. This role ensures that all production, fabrication, packaging, warehousing, sanitation, and maintenance activities are executed safely, efficiently, and in alignment with organizational goals. The Plant Manager drives continuous improvement, ensures regulatory compliance, and cultivates a strong culture of teamwork, accountability, and employee engagement to support the facility's long-term success.

Key Responsibilities:

• Lead all plant operations, ensuring safety, product quality, production efficiency, and cost control across all departments.

• Oversee daily production schedules, workforce planning, and operational performance to meet volume, yield, and service targets.

• Ensure compliance with USDA regulations, HACCP, SSOP, GMPs, animal welfare standards, and all food-safety requirements.

• Develop and execute short- and long-term operational strategies to support growth, profitability, and production reliability.

• Build, coach, and mentor a strong management team and frontline workforce, promoting engagement, accountability, and continuous development.

• Collaborate with quality assurance, engineering, maintenance, live operations, HR, and logistics to support efficient, integrated plant operations.

• Analyze operational data, identify improvement opportunities, and implement solutions that enhance throughput, reduce waste, and improve cost structure.

• Drive a culture of safety through active leadership, risk mitigation, training, and incident prevention programs.

• Support capital planning, budgeting, and resource allocation to maintain facility performance and readiness for future growth.

• Strengthen relationships with internal teams, regulatory agencies, and key customers to support business goals and compliance.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in Business Administration, Operations Management, Agriculture, or a related field (or equivalent experience).

• 8+ years of progressive management experience in poultry or food manufacturing, with strong knowledge of production operations and regulatory standards.

• Deep understanding of USDA regulations, HACCP, SSOP, GMPs, food-safety systems, and animal welfare guidelines.

• Demonstrated leadership ability with experience managing large teams in a high-volume, fast-paced environment.

• Strong financial acumen, including budgeting, cost analysis, and performance measurement.

• Excellent communication, interpersonal, and organizational skills.

• Proficiency with production systems, ERP platforms, and core business software.

• Proven track record of driving operational improvements and achieving performance targets.