Production Lead Baltimore, MD

Founded in 2013, Home Chef is the leading meal solutions company with both a retail and online presence. Available online  and in retail at more than 2,100 Kroger grocery stores, Home Chef is committed to inspiring and enabling more people to cook simple, delicious meals, no matter how busy they are.

In 2023, Home Chef introduced a new brand, Tempo ! Tempo features a rotating selection of ready-to-heat meals delivered directly to your door. These meals are better-for-you versions of familiar favorites, designed to save you time and reduce stress while maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Our Tempo menu includes options that are protein-packed, fiber-rich, calorie and carb conscious, keto-friendly, and dietitian-approved.

Similar to our recipes, we recognize that variety is the spice of life, and therefore, our employees also bring their uniqueness and color to our fantastic team. We’re eager to work with humble team players and pragmatic next-level thinkers to innovate on Home Chef’s offerings.

Production Lead schedules are identified below. Production Leads are hired into one (1) of the schedules.

We are hiring primarily for Night shift at this time!

Options Shift Days Off Start Time End Time

1 Day Wednesday, Thursday, Friday 6:30 AM 5:30 PM

2 Day Sunday, Monday, Tuesday 6:30 AM 5:30 PM

3 Night Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday 5:30 PM 4:30 AM

Actual schedules available may vary based on site needs at the time.

A Production Lead is responsible for guiding a line or table of production associates during portioning, meal bagging/kitting, and shipping. They will lead, direct, guide and train assigned production employees.

Detailed Responsibilities

A Production Lead is scheduled to begin their shift prior to the start of production and is responsible for obtaining their production plan and targets for the day from the supervisor and setting up the portioning tables, meal bagging tables, and/or shipping line

Production Targets

• Collaborates with the Supervisor to get the production plans and targets for the day
• Follows production schedules to ensure order completion during allotted time frames
• Effectively communicates the targets and production expectations to the production associates as well as their performance against the target
• Ensures associates are following HC policies/procedures and escalates any concerns to the Production Supervisor

Coordination with Warehouse

• Prioritizes and plans for potential product shortages during production and shipping and effectively communicates exact product and quantity needs to the warehouse runners to avoid any unnecessary downtime while waiting on replenishment.
• Conducts checks on ingredients for quality, accuracy, and shelf life before starting the line and while the line is running.

SOPs

• Has a working knowledge of all Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for portioning, meal bagging/kitting, and shipping
• Sets up portioning tables, meal bagging tables, and shipping lines according to the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs)
• Gives consideration to the production targets and the established production plan when setting up portioning tables and based on number of production associates needed to run a line
• Shares recommendations for improvements to the SOPs with supervisor
• Ensures the table/pods has the labels, packaging, and product needed to get started at the beginning of the shift and start of new activity
• Communicates the production targets and expected rates per hour to the production associates

Managing waste

• Ensures line does not overproduce portions or meal bags and therefore cause food waste and yield issues (i.e. only producing what is required)
• Oversees associates to ensure they are not creating unnecessary waste of food or packaging (i.e. bags, bottles, jars) while portioning and meal bagging and escalates concerns with production quality to FSQA and a supervisor.

Portioning and Meal Bagging/Kitting

The Production Lead is responsible for overseeing all portioning and meal bagging/kitting for their assigned table/pod. This includes:

• Identifies and completes all sections listed on the production sheet
• Works with FSQA to verify all ingredients on the meal bagging/kitting line and complete the meal bag sign off on the production sheet prior to starting the line
• Works with FSQA to ensure meal bag checks are conducted every hour to minimize errors
• Packaging and Labels
  • Retrieves more labels from the label office when needed
  • Conducts hourly checks to ensure packaging and labels are correct for the ingredients being portioned or meal bagged
  • Communicates shortages of labeled packaging to supervisor
• Portion and Meal Bag Quality
  • Conducts an hourly check of the portions and meal bags to reduce the potential for errors
• SOPs and Targets
  • Ensures the SOPs for portioning and meal bagging are being followed throughout the shift
  • Monitors the pace of the portioning and meal bagging line and ensures the team is on track to meet the target. If targets are not being met, the lead makes appropriate adjustments to the line.

Shipping

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