Director, Operations

Director of Operations (Production & Packaging)

Location: East Boston, MA (in the Boston Harbor Shipyard)

Schedule: Monday-Friday, Packaging and Production run 24/4 or 16/5 depending on business needs

As Downeast Cider’s Director of Operations, you will lead a team of 34 employees (2 department managers, 5 shift supervisors, 21 packaging operators and 6 cider makers). You will ensure the safe and efficient operation of the production cellars and packaging lines through strategic hiring, efficient staffing, cross training and process improvement. Your mission will be to develop the managers, supervisors and floor level operators to create an environment of relentless continuous improvement across all areas of production and packaging.

You will be part of a tight-knit, collaborative Operations management team with the opportunity to have impact across a variety of areas such as capacity modeling, fermentation changes/updates, data collection, fanuc robot upgrades, labor planning and many others as we continue to grow and scale. 

This is an excellent role for a strong Manager from a large company to step into a Director-level role, or a Director from a smaller brewery to manage larger volume and teams.

What you'll do:

- Effectively lead the operations team to consistently deliver on the supply plan

- Be a creative problem solver, starting from a point of how do we accomplish this rather than this is why it can’t be done

- Integrate a culture of data driven decision making and performance within the team, including setting and tracking KPIs

- Drive down COGs by ideating, delegating, and executing process improvement opportunities and CapEx projects

- Our people are our greatest asset - foster an environment focused on continuous training and development, implementation of training systems, including coaching, cross-training and supervisor development

- Lead by example to create and maintain a safe work environment that focuses on proactive remediation of problems, follows all OSHA and company safety policies, and investigating and correcting all safety incidents

- Successfully navigate your team through scheduling transitions based on business needs (between 24/4 and 16/5) with a permanent switch to 24 hour operations expected in 2024

- Work collaboratively and effectively with members of other departments as needed, such as Maintenance, Sales, Supply Chain and People

Who you are:

- 5+ years CPG manufacturing experience 

- 3+ years management experience in a liquid manufacturing environment 

- Strong analytical and Excel/Google Sheet skills

- Strong organization and communication skills

- Strong experience developing salaried employees

- Flexibility to have face time across all shifts and adapt to the ever-changing demands and schedule of a production facility

- High level of attention to detail to ensure quality and safety

- Ability to provide and receive open and regular feedback and adjust accordingly

Bonus points if you have…

- Beverage Manufacturing Experience

- Fermentation Experience

- Software experience (ERP)

- Engineering background

- Bilingual English/Spanish

Don’t check all the boxes? We know there’s no such thing as a perfect candidate, so if this is a role you feel passionate about we encourage you to apply with a one-page cover letter explaining why this post speaks to you. Drop the “to whom it may concern” and give it to us straight - why you?

What we offer:

- Unlimited paid time off

- Paid holidays

- 401k with company match

- Health & dental insurance

- Company provided short term disability

- Computer reimbursement

- Annual PPE stipend

- Cider allowance (how big is your fridge?)

About Downeast Cider

We aspire to build an enduring company with a world-class brand, known as an extraordinary place to work. It’s been 12 years since our first batches of unfiltered cider were fermented in the dorms of Bates College, Maine, and while we’ve gained 231 new teammates and 1.6 million cases of tasty drinks - with a growing assortment beyond cider - we remain 100% founder-owned. We’re a scrappy team that enjoys the hard work of creating a company because we get to work on fun things with people we like. We like to hire the way we like our cider, unfiltered. With the understanding that we can learn and grow from each other’s differences, we are proud to hire regardless of gender, race, nationality, religion, sexual orientation, disability, age, or anything else that makes us who we are.

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