SUMMARY

Leads team to achieve department goals through planning and delegation of daily work tasks. Responds and takes action for safety, quality, production and people opportunities within their department. Coordinates training efforts for new employees and continuously coaches and develops employees within team. Ability to work at both the 391 AND 395 manufacturing facilities in Bloomingdale in Packaging AND Processing.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES include the following. Other duties may be assigned.

• Monitors shift’s performance and efficiency throughout the day and corrects or escalates issues to meet daily department goals. Recommends changes related to equipment use and staff to increase efficiency. Keeps supervisor informed of problem areas.
• Works with other leads, supervisors or support teams to solve common issues. Recommends and implements measures to improve safety, product quality, production methods, and equipment performance. Makes employee work duty adjustments and product run decisions.
• Communicates with team with dignity and respect, using servant leadership principles. Remains ethical and professional in difficult and confidential situations.
• Trains and orients production employees new to the department, acquainting them with details and functions of their new jobs, and how these responsibilities relate to functionality of company as a whole. Responds to and answers any questions employees may have during their scheduled shift hours.
• Develops and/or assists in writing of Standard Operating Procedures, Work Instructions, and One Point Lessons for all tasks within department, based on direction and review of supervisor or manager.
• Maintains ability to operate production machinery in a proficient manner.
• Under direction of Production Supervisor, assigns jobs and tasks and monitors the production process.
• Reviews and verifies all of employees' paperwork before turning into Quality Control Department for approval. Closes production record reports and informs inventory control personnel of any raw material discrepancies. Inspects products to verify conformance to specifications and makes deviation decisions when products are out of specification.
• Interprets company policies, specifications and job orders to employees. Directs setup and adjustments of machines. Responds to and answers any questions employees may have during scheduled shift hours.
• Communicates with other departments to requisition supplies, products and equipment necessary to meet production schedules.
• Truthfully and legibly completes required paperwork, written and electronic reports (i.e. Excel, Word, Oracle, etc.).
• Actively participates in root cause analysis and other plant continuous improvement initiatives. Recommends and assists with implementing continuous improvement ideas.
• Complies with OSHA guidelines, safety policies, food safety and cGMP guidelines. Ensures through monitoring and coaching that the Production team is following all guidelines and policies.

SAFETY RESPONSIBILITY STATEMENT

Supports a culture of safe production and exhibits safe work practices. Actively participates in the safety program by engaging in safety activities. Effectively provides and accepts constructive peer-to-peer feedback on safety performance. Adheres to policies, procedures, SOP’s, safe work practices, and safety policies and procedures. Reports ALL workplace incidents to supervisor immediately. Communicates concerns to supervisor, reports hazards, and provides input on prevention. Properly uses, wears, and stores Personal Protective Equipment when required. Participates on safety teams and/or completes safety-related activities as part of regular job responsibilities.

QUALIFICATIONS

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations will be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

EDUCATION and/or EXPERIENCE

• High school diploma or general education degree (GED) and one year related experience and/or training or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Additional post-secondary education and prior team leadership experience strongly preferred.
• Prior experience operating blending/processing and packaging machines/equipment preferred.
• Experience in a manufacturing environment, preferably food or pharmaceuticals, required.
• Knowledge of Lean principles preferred.

PERFORMANCE ABILITY

Knowledge of all work centers within area of responsibility in order to make decisions on resource allocation and scheduling on a daily basis. Solid knowledge of Packaging and/or Processing machine capabilities, manufacturing process, and ability to troubleshoot machines. Collaborates with other departments on policy or procedure updates and validation, product dispositions, and hold and deviation investigations. Coaches and leads team members on correct processes and procedures through daily touch points and paperwork review. Investigates and escalates efficiency losses to identify areas of opportunity and growth. Demonstrated ability to consistently meet quality, safety and efficiency goals. Excellent problem-solving skills. Strong interpersonal, verbal and written communication skills to effectively relate to team members from various backgrounds and ability to effectively coach, mentor and train staff. Strong teambuilding skills; ability to motivate, lead, and give clear and concise directions to team members; ability to communicate effectively with others; excellent attention to detail skills; and demonstrated high quality of work. Strong time management skills; ability to prioritize and calmly handle multiple tasks simultaneously in a fast-paced environment; demonstrate a strong sense of urgency; and flexibility to change tasks frequently and work in different work centers and locations as business needs require. Leads by example and acts as a role model on the floor; models NOW’s core values, tenets and servant leadership; and assumes accountability for actions. Consistently follows all company policies and procedures, including all safety policies and procedures. Ability to work at both the 391 AND 395 manufacturing facilities in Bloomingdale in Packaging AND Processing.

LANGUAGE SKILLS

Ability to communicate professionally and effectively both verbally and in writing. Ability to read and comprehend instructions, correspondence, and memos such as safety rules, operating and maintenance instructions, and procedure manuals (S.O.P.). Ability to accurately complete sanitation/production paperwork. Ability to effectively present information in one-on-one and small group situations to other employees of the organization.

MATHEMATICAL SKILLS

Ability to add, subtract, multiply, and divide in all units of measure, using whole numbers, common fractions, and decimals to understand weights and measures and to use digital and balancing scales. Ability to compute rate, ratio, and percent.

REASONING ABILITY

Excellent problem-solving ability. Ability to apply commonsense understanding to carry out instructions furnished in written, oral, or diagram form.

OTHER SKILLS AND ABILITIES

• Ability to operate hand operated electronic lifting equipment (Interthor).
• Intermediate proficiency in Microsoft Word, and Excel required; Oracle proficiency preferred.
• Bi-lingual verbal and written skills in Spanish preferred.
• Ability to work a flexible schedule, including off shifts and weekends to support the business.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to stand on a prolonged basis and walk throughout the facility; enter information into a computer; ascend and descend stairs; use hands to finger, handle, and feel; reach with hands and arms; bend; squat, kneel and stand up; and talk and hear. The employee is occasionally required to sit at a desk and use the telephone. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, depth perception, and ability to adjust focus. Ability to operate hand operated electronic lifting equipment (Interthor).

The employee will regularly lift, move (in some cases drag items), slide, raise and/or place:

- Ascend and descend steps carrying up to 35 lbs. (i.e. carrying product up stairs)

- Lift up to 50 lbs. from floor to waist height. (i.e. load product)

- Lift up to 50 lbs. from waist to shoulder. (i.e. load product)

- Push and pull to generate force for 42 lbs. force at 36 inch height (i.e. move pallet jacks)

- Push and pull to generate force of 65 lbs. at 36 inch height (i.e. move pallet jacks)

- Grasp 60# force

WORK ENVIRONMENT

The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• While performing the duties of this job, the employee regularly works near moving mechanical parts.
• The employee is frequently exposed to herbal aromas, dust, and/or airborne particles, some classified as allergens or irritants.
• This position works in all areas of NOW’s manufacturing facilities with direct exposure to ingredients (powders and liquids), mixes (powders and liquids), equipment, and packaging.
• Frequently exposed to all the FDA designated major food allergens (Milk, Eggs, Fish, Crustacean shellfish (e.g., crab, lobster, shrimp), Tree nuts (e.g., almonds, walnuts, pecans) except for peanuts, Wheat and Soybeans, Sesame.
• The noise level in the work environment is usually moderately loud, and in some areas where louder hearing protection is required.

· This position requires working in designated areas that contain strong magnetic fields which may be a danger to life for wearers of pacemakers, prostheses or implants, such as defibrillators.