Plant Manager

IFF is a global creator and manufacturer of scent, taste, nutrition, and biosciences solutions that put the needs of our people, customers, and communities at the heart of what we do.

The IFF site in The Dalles, OR (POWDERPURE) seeks a Plant Manager to join our team! The IFF Health and Bioscience facility advances global nutrition through innovation in food ingredients. We are a preferred partner for companies seeking high levels of fruit and vegetable ingredients with unique special drying technology.

We begin with what nature provides us, apply our expertise and unique technology, and deliver innovation that improves our customers' products. POWDERPURE offers premium, clean-label food powders created through INFIDRI, our unique, gentle infrared dehydration process that targets water, guarantee food safety, and preserves the nutritional, color, and taste compounds of the original food.

Our solutions deliver a special combination of taste, nutritional, and economic benefits to our customers in the snacks, dairy, ready-to-eat drink, and sports nutrition markets.

Our workplace enables and stimulates employees to grow, develop, and innovate to compete at superior levels in our markets. Located on the shores of the Columbia River, The Dalles is the eastern gateway to the Columbia Gorge National Scenic Area with plenty of opportunities for hiking, biking, fishing, rock climbing, windsurfing, and paddling. The Dalles is surrounded by forests, orchards, vineyards, and high desert. Nearby Mt Hood provides great outdoor recreation in the winter as well.

Your Focus

The Plant Manager is responsible for operational activities in line with the global operations strategy to achieve objectives relating to safety, quality, cost efficiency, productivity, production output, product and process development, volume, and delivery feasibility.

The incumbent will manage all operations processes and production work for a ~ 40-employee plant with unique products. They will plan, direct, and coordinate the work activities and resources necessary for manufacturing products in accordance with safety, quality, and cost standards. They will monitor plant expenditures and budgets, evaluate subordinates, and provide direct management for the local production, quality, engineering, EH&S, and supply chain.

We expect you to be technically savvy as well as people, customer, and business-oriented. You lead by example and have a proven track record of demonstrating excellent leadership, collaboration, and communication skills.

As Plant Manager, you will be responsible for:

• Communication, promotion, and attainment of our vision, values, strategies & objectives

• Driving our performance to be best in class in Safety, Quality, Delivery, Inventory, Cost and People
• Compliance with regulations and company policies and processes
• Leading site safety and sustainability engagement, focus, and commitment to zero
• Creating a culture of employee engagement, trust, and people capability development
• Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Champion
• Acting as a change agent, challenging paradigms, and fostering a continuous improvement process and problem-solving culture at all levels
• Delivering high customer service through appropriate capacity maintenance, capacity improvement, adherence to manufacturing plans, and effective communication
• Driving high production capability through the utilization of improvement programs and maintenance best practices
• Achieving our financial goals (cost, cost productivity & inventory)
• Driving collaboration within the plant and across our global network, interacting effectively with business and functional leaders
• Assessing and advancing the competitiveness of the facility
• Setting the future vision for the organization and defining critical operating objectives for the site

Job requirements:

• University degree in related technical field (Advanced university degree preferred)
• 10 + years of industrial or chemical process experience and 5+ years of supervisory experience
• Ability to set priorities and provide direction to influence management and broader organization.
• Demonstrated leadership, collaboration, and communication skills.
• Demonstrated capability to quickly understand technology and drive / support change.
• Proven ability to lead cultural change and create winning teams.
• Data-driven, action-oriented, and works with a sense of urgency.
• Exceptional interpersonal and communication skills both written and verbal.
• Background in Lean Manufacturing Principals preferred.

We are a global leader in taste, scent, and nutrition, offering our customers a broader range of natural solutions and accelerating our growth strategy. At IFF, we believe that your uniqueness unleashes our potential. We value the diverse mosaic of the ethnicity, national origin, race, age, sex, or veteran status. We strive for an inclusive workplace that allows each of our colleagues to bring their authentic self to work regardless of their religion, gender identity & expression, sexual orientation, or disability.

Visit IFF.com/careers/workplace-diversity-and-inclusion to learn more