Shift Manager

Teesside Permanent Excellent + benefits Ref: 419210

The company

A successful and well-established food manufacturer with a strong commitment to operational excellence, responsible business practices and continuous improvement.

Its culture is built around taking ownership, doing what is right, seeking better ways of working and succeeding together. Employees are encouraged to contribute ideas, challenge

The role

Take ownership of a fast-paced manufacturing shift where your leadership will directly influence safety, quality, performance and team development. This is an excellent opportunity for an experienced production leader who enjoys being visible on the factory floor, solving problems and delivering meaningful improvements.

As Shift Manager, you will lead the safe, efficient and consistent delivery of the production plan. You will coordinate people, materials and equipment while ensuring the highest standards of safety, food quality, service, cost and productivity.

Providing visible leadership across the factory floor, you will:

Lead, coach and develop Team Leaders and production colleagues
Deliver production targets safely, on time and to the required quality standards
Allocate labour and resources effectively, responding quickly to operational challenges
Monitor output, efficiency, waste, downtime and overall equipment effectiveness
Lead shift briefings, handovers and daily communication routines
Promote excellent health and safety, food safety, hygiene and quality standards
Work closely with Engineering to improve equipment reliability and minimise downtime
Manage attendance, conduct, performance, training and wellbeing matters
Control labour, overtime, materials and consumable costs
Lead practical continuous improvement and problem-solving initiatives
Maintain accurate production records and support audits and compliance activity
Collaborate with Production, Engineering, Technical, Warehouse, Planning and Supply Chain teams

This is a hands-on leadership role offering genuine scope to improve shift performance, build team capability and influence the wider operation.

The candidate

You will be an experienced operational leader who can combine strong people management with a clear focus on safety, quality and results.

Ideally, you will bring:

Experience supervising or managing teams within production, manufacturing or food manufacturing
A sound understanding of production planning, resource deployment and shift handovers
Knowledge of health and safety, food safety, quality, hygiene and compliance standards
Confidence interpreting production data and identifying the causes of underperformance
Experience leading corrective actions and continuous improvement initiatives
Strong coaching, communication and decision-making skills
The ability to remain calm, organised and solutions-focused under pressure
Confidence managing performance, attendance and employee development
Familiarity with production, ERP or reporting systems, or the ability to learn quickly
A flexible approach to shift working and changing operational priorities

You will be a collaborative, accountable leader who follows issues through to completion, makes balanced decisions and treats people fairly and respectfully. If you are motivated by building capable teams and creating measurable operational improvement, this role offers an exciting next step.

Apply now to take ownership of a key manufacturing shift and make a visible impact on people, performance and improvement.