Chief Bakery Engineer

Join to apply for the Chief Bakery Engineer role at Franz Family Bakery

Franz Family Bakery was founded in 1906 in the Pacific Northwest and has become one of the country’s most successful bakeries. We produce a variety of baked products, marketed under a wide range of premium labels, all made with quality ingredients and a superior baking process. We employ over 4,000 employees and distribute our products in Alaska, Idaho, California, Utah, Montana, Oregon, and Washington.

Take your career to the next level and join our exciting team. Franz offers employees excellent benefits including:

• Competitive Wages - $125,000–$128,000 DOE
• Generous Holiday and Vacation
• Comprehensive Healthcare – Full medical, dental and vision with 100% premiums paid for employee, spouse and children
• Up to 15% toward Retirement Plan (Company contributes 12% to Profit Sharing Plan and 3% toward 401(k))

We are seeking a Chief Engineer to join our hard‑working and fast‑paced team. The Chief Engineer is responsible for overall budgeting, managing a team, safety, and managing business process within the Franz Bakery organization. This position will require interaction with all internal departments, 3rd‑party vendors, and customers to whom engineering and manufacturing equipment maintenance services are provided.

• Inspires, motivates, and develops the engineering team.
• Creates a culture of continuous improvement, safety, and collaboration.
• Demonstrates decisiveness under pressure and sets clear direction aligned with company goals.
• Holds self and team to high standards of reliability and performance.
• Proactively identifies issues and implements corrective actions.
• Demonstrates persistence and resilience in the face of challenges.
• Demonstrates ownership, leadership, decision‑making, project execution and effective communication skills.
• Plans, directs, and leads maintenance team in preventative, corrective, and predictive equipment maintenance activities.
• Provides technical support to maintenance team members and performs equipment inspections to ensure standards are maintained.
• Leads people and business processes to meet business objectives.
• Champions safety throughout the facility.
• Manages and justifies budget and resource allocation decisions to senior management.
• Identifies and schedules project deliverables and required tasks.
• Communicates clearly across departments (production, maintenance, management).
• Consults with staff to ensure routines and controls keep the organization operating safely and effectively.
• Sets department goals and objectives.
• Confronts issues openly, professionally, and timely.
• Attends and conducts regularly scheduled meetings with staff and management.
• Manages capital projects, including handling vendors and contractors, installation, and commissioning.
• Excellent conflict management skills and ability to partner with other departments and organizations to be successful and resolve issues.
• High school graduate or GED required; BS/BA degree preferred.
• Minimum of 5+ years’ experience in managing maintenance teams in a large manufacturing facility.
• Intermediate computer skills using Microsoft Office and experience in CMMS and CAD is a plus.
• Hands on electrical and mechanical troubleshooting experience is preferred.
• Experience or training in leading continuous improvement is a plus.
• Proven ability to manage multiple project plans, with solid project and time‑management skills.
• Experience working both independently and, in a team‑oriented, collaborative environment.
• Strong employee relationship, coaching and training skills.
• Excellent problem solving and analytical skills.
• Occasional evening and weekend work to meet deadlines or as needed.

Director

Full‑time

Management and Manufacturing

Food and Beverage Manufacturing