Technical Manager

Job Title: Technical Manager – Tilmanstone, Kent

Salary: £70,000 to £80,000

Benefits: £8,400 Car Allowance
20% Bonus Scheme
Private Healthcare (Including family)
25 days holiday
Access to MyRewards (Discount Website)
Group Pension (including employer contributions)

We are the leading provider of fresh prepared food in the UK, with an international presence in the US and China. Our 19,000 employees operate from 39 locations, developing and producing innovative food for a wide variety of occasions and budgets. In the UK, we work with leading grocery retailers, focusing on their own label brands.

The Role:

An opportunity has arisen for a Technical Manager to join our team at Tilmanstone Salads, based near Dover in Kent. Our site employs around 850 people and each year it produces millions of bags of leafy salads and prepared vegetables for a dedicated customer. Reporting into the General Manager you will be responsible for defining the technical strategy at site alongside managing a team. This role will sit on the SLT and will have a direct input into site operations.

You will be a self-motivated and organised individual with previous experience in a chilled food environment. This role will ensure that relationships are developed with suppliers, retailers and internally. You will be integral in developing the Food Safety & Quality systems ensuring they are compliant with retailer’s codes of practice & 3rd party standards.

Duties will include.

• Ensure relevant standards, HACCP based as appropriate, are communicated, understood, and applied to meet Food Safety, Quality and Legality, and customer specified requirements. The standards must be documented and maintained within a recognised system.
• To lead and fully understand the site HACCP and be involved in the evaluation of risk and defining controls, prior to the introduction of a new process, product, or raw material. To ensure that the requirements of HACCP are implemented, maintained, and achieved.
• Provides leadership and ownership for the quality management systems associated with the production of food to the agreed safety, legal and quality standards.
• Leads the business with management of technical audits, hosting audits as appropriate. Drives a culture of “fit to manufacture every day” readiness through the daily operational teams. Manages response & close out of non-conformance reports from audits as required.
• Effectively manages communication on all technical matters with customers, both internal and external, and suppliers to develop relationships and ensure that Bakkavor Technical opinion is considered and respected.
• Lead, motivate and inspire the technical team in line with Bakkavor Values to achieve personal development and continuous improvement.
• Develop and implement effective KPIs that measure, trend and identify issues to be communicated both internally and with customers. Develop and agree action plans using root cause analysis to deliver continuous improvement.
• Provides practical support and drive to promote a Quality Assurance culture in the Business. Provides specialist technical knowledge to enable the Business Unit to exploit manufacturing, NPD and commercial advantage whilst ensuring the required standards of Food Safety, Quality and Legality are met. As part of the site leadership team, ensures operational team promotion of a Quality Assurance culture within the factory environment.
• To take the lead in defining and implementing the customer technical agenda across site, management of customer technical expectation and delivery of relevant KPI and improvement plans where required through the effective use of positive relationships.
• To support the site in the delivery and launch of new and existing product development and operational improvement. To play an active part in the NPD process, utilising technical expertise to deliver the technical standards expected.
• Ensures that a safe working environment exists for all employees within the technical function, and that as a minimum, the standards set out in the site processes for Health and Safety.

Requires Skills & Experience:

• Experience working with food retailers
• Demonstrates strong people management skills
• Previous experience within a similar Technical Management role in a FMCG environment
• Extensive practical experience of HACCP, BRC & retailers code of practice
• Food Science degree would be desirable
• Computer Literate in all Microsoft packages
• Understanding of Good Hygiene working practises