Interim Plant Manager

Our client, based in East Flanders, is an industrial manufacturing company currently undergoing a significant restructuring of its operations. To ensure stability and continuity during this transition, the company is looking for an experienced Interim Plant Manager to take operational leadership of the site for an initial period of four months. The Interim Plant Manager will have full responsibility for the day-to-day performance of the plant and will act as a strong operational leader for the organisation during this period of change. The key objective of the assignment is to stabilise the plant, secure business continuity and customer deliveries, and reorganise the operations to create a safer, more efficient and sustainable operating model.

The Interim Manager’s key responsibilities will include

• Take overall responsibility for the day-to-day management and operational performance of the plant, ensuring continuity throughout the restructuring period.
• Ensure that Health & Safety remains the absolute priority, maintaining compliance with applicable standards and driving corrective actions where required.
• Secure product quality and customer satisfaction, ensuring that quality standards are consistently respected and that issues are rapidly addressed.
• Ensure the plant delivers customer orders on time and in accordance with agreed specifications, identifying and removing operational bottlenecks.
• Assess the current organisation, processes, production flows and resources, identifying the main operational weaknesses and improvement opportunities.
• Reorganise the plant operations, including production organisation, workforce allocation, responsibilities, processes and management routines where required.
• Establish clear priorities, performance indicators and management routines to improve productivity, efficiency, service level and operational discipline.
• Lead and motivate the management team and workforce through the restructuring, providing clear direction, communication and hands-on leadership.
• Work closely with HR and senior management on the organisational changes, workforce planning and implementation of the new operating model.
• Report regularly to senior management on plant performance, risks, priorities, restructuring progress and required decisions.

The ideal Interim Manager’s experience and profile

The ideal candidate is an experienced Plant Manager / Operations Director with a strong track record in managing industrial manufacturing sites, preferably in a context of restructuring, turnaround, transformation or operational reorganisation.

The candidate should bring:

• Significant experience as a Plant Manager with overall responsibility for production, quality, safety, delivery and operational performance.
• Proven experience in reorganising manufacturing operations, redesigning organisational structures, improving processes and implementing new ways of working.
• Demonstrated ability to take control of a plant in a challenging or unstable situation, quickly establish priorities and restore operational discipline.
• Strong leadership skills and the ability to manage and engage employees during a period of change and uncertainty.
• A hands-on, pragmatic and results-oriented approach, with the ability to move quickly
• Excellent stakeholder management skills, with the maturity to work effectively with employees, management, unions/works councils where applicable, customers and other stakeholders.
• Fluent in Dutch and English;

If you are a freelance Interim Manager eager to take on this interesting assignment as Plant Manager, send us your resume today. If you are not interested or available, do feel free to refer someone from your network.

Robert Walters Belgium is acting as an Employment Business in relation to this vacancy.