Controls Engineer

Guided Search Partners (GSP)

Guided Search Partners is an Executive Search firm built on Trust, Transparency, Specialization, and Long-term Relationships. We connect high-performing professionals with organizations that value people, performance, and growth—helping leaders find roles where they can make an impact and build meaningful careers.

We’re partnering with a highly invested, fast-moving food manufacturing site that’s in the middle of a meaningful turnaround and build-forward moment. The facility is smaller but runs 24/7, which means the pace is real and the work is visible.

This Controls Engineer role is open because the last Maintenance & Engineering leader wasn’t the right fit—specifically around delegation and building the right operating rhythm. Now the team is looking for a hands-on controls specialist who can be a steady, safety-minded presence on the floor and help create the frameworks that let a growing site run smoother every month.

Think of it as a “roll up your sleeves, make it better, teach others, repeat” kind of environment—startup energy, but with serious investment behind it.

• Be the plant’s go-to controls subject matter expert and supporting plant operating systems.
• Work side-by-side with maintenance technicians, operators, supervisors, and managers to troubleshoot automation issues and keep production moving.
• Lead with curiosity: jump into root cause analysis even when the data isn’t perfect—and teach others how to do the same.
• Develop and improve plant documentation and SOPs that support the department’s growth and reliability strategy.
• Champion best practices aligned to maintenance and reliability strategies and help drive continuous improvement across the site.
• Support equipment and process across a pasta operation.
• Bring ideas forward, use data to influence decisions, and help improve operational efficiency and cost performance in controls/automation.
• Stay practical: this role focuses on editing/optimizing controls logic when needed (not full-time PLC programming).

You’re the person who doesn’t just “fix the problem”, you figure out why it happened, make it harder to repeat, and bring the team along with you. You’re mechanically inclined, safety-oriented, and you like being where the action is on the floor, not stuck behind a desk.

You’re also a change agent in a grounded way: steady presence, clear communicator, coach-like approach, and results-driven without being chaotic. When things get loud, complex, or messy, you get calmer—not quieter.

• BA/BS in Engineering or related discipline (BSEE preferred), or
• 10+ years related experience in lieu of a degree, or
• 5+ years related experience plus a technical degree/certification.
• Experience with control panel design and layout for new production equipment.
• Strong troubleshooting instincts, organizational discipline, and the ability to coach others through technical work.

This site is building momentum. With significant investment and a team that wants the right structure, this Controls Engineer will help turn “tribal knowledge” into repeatable best practices—safer starts, fewer stops, stronger handoffs, and better reliability.

You’ll have influence without needing a big title: your floor presence, problem-solving, and ability to develop others will directly shape performance across a 24/7 operation. If you like work you feel—where improvements show up in real time—this is it.