Manufacturing Site Leader

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We are seeking an experienced and strategic Manufacturing Site Leader to oversee our Bellshill site’s Manufacturing operations. This is a pivotal leadership role responsible for driving operational excellence, ensuring compliance with safety and quality standards, and delivering outstanding performance across all key metrics. You will lead a high-performing team, foster a culture of continuous improvement, and collaborate cross-functionally to support business growth and transformation.

To lead and engage the Manufacturing teams at the site to deliver daily customer service targets with effective resource planning, whilst managing HSE, Quality, Food Safety and cost. To drive a Manufacturing Excellence continuous improvement culture to deliver sustained performance improvements. The role has full responsibility for the site facilities and services across both Manufacturing and Distribution functions.

Established in 1998, Bellshill is one of Warburtons’ most established and strategically important manufacturing sites. It operates two production plants and is the exclusive producer of our milk roll, delivering nearly one million units weekly. With over 150 full-time colleagues and a dedicated temporary workforce, the site plays a central role in our five-year growth strategy, which includes significant investment in automation, modernisation, and innovation to support increased capacity and future expansion.

Your Leadership in Action

As the Manufacturing Site Leader, you’ll take full ownership of site operations, leading a high-performing team to deliver on safety, quality, service, and efficiency.

You’ll embed a strong health and safety culture, ensuring compliance and proactive risk management. Food safety and product quality will be non-negotiable, with robust systems in place to meet internal and external standards.

Your leadership will drive operational performance, managing budgets, improving reliability, and collaborating across functions to meet customer expectations. You’ll champion continuous improvement, using lean principles to enhance processes and embed a culture of excellence.

People development will be central to your approach. You’ll coach, support, and grow talent, ensuring your team is engaged, accountable, and future ready.

This is a role for a strategic thinker and someone who can deliver results today while shaping the site for tomorrow.

• Knowledge and experience of management in an FMCG environment – in particular, knowledge and experience of Lean manufacturing tools & techniques.
• Knowledge of TPM philosophies desirable.
• Experience or knowledge of working within an ‘Enterprise Leadership’ culture or matrix organisation desirable.
• Knowledge and experience of bread or OWB making processes, plant & technology desirable.
• Knowledge of legislation relating to a manufacturing/distribution environment (including employment law).
• H&S/Food Safety/food hygiene systems & legislation knowledge e.g. COSHH, IOSH.
• Quality systems & knowledge of HACCP – able to ensure the factory’s output meet required quality standards.
• IT and PC knowledge – able to use widespread functions within relevant software (inc Office and SAP).
• Business & market knowledge – uses knowledge of customers/market to improve processes & products.
• Knowledge of auditing processes.
• Knowledge of procedures for dealing with emergencies.
• Communicating skills – articulate/develops effective, long-term relationships with key people.
• Coaching and mentoring skills – takes responsibility for the training and coaching of others.
• Influencing & negotiating skills – maintains attention when speaking to groups of people/negotiates successful deals and purchases/develops persuasive arguments/demonstrates flexibility in influencing style.
• Analysing and problem-solving skills – anticipates problems before they occur and takes steps to deal with them/correctly & swiftly identifies the underlying problem & finds appropriate solutions.
• Time & project management skills – uses project management techniques to create effective plans with milestones/identifies areas of risk &…