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Head of Technical

About the job

An exciting opportunity has come available, and we are looking for a dynamic, change orientated leader to be the driving force behind our technical and quality operation.

You will be an accomplished, inspirational leader who can also make difficult but necessary decisions. You will be the key link between all departments, responsible for empowering and guiding teams across all areas of the business to implement technical and quality strategies to deliver the company vision.

We are a modern family business with a long history of growing, packing, and processing onions. Our family values are key to our success to maximise our team’s potential.

Our vision is to always be the first choice for safe, high quality and affordable produce and we are looking for someone who can combine those values with a can-do attitude and the foresight to look forward to helping us lead the market in the world of onions and garlic.

The position

* Utilise and develop appropriate KPI’s to monitor, maintain and drive continuous improvement, and challenge departmental objectives and service quality standards, ensuring compliance with established policies and procedures in all functions

* Be a trusted company advisor for all food safety, quality, and technical teams to deliver organisational goals

* Ensure that training & assessment standards of the quality, technical and hygiene functions are supported, and skill sets are developed to ensure a high standard of competency and performance

* Directly manage the technical and quality departments, creating a future vision and technical strategy aligned to current and future business priorities

* Support the delivery of innovation by developing and delivering strategy based on new technologies and research

* Develop and maintain excellent customer relationships ensuring the technical function is seen as trusted, respected and helps to deliver business growth

* Work with the commercial functions to drive business growth by participating in tenders, new business proposals & product development

* Work with the senior management, commercial and procurement functions to develop a market leading R&D programme

* Support key retailers with R&D projects including but not limited to climate resilience projects

* Be the technical expert for all external and internal audits while being the main point of contact for technical with the retail customers

* Ensure systems and processes are in place to minimise the environmental impact of the operations.

* Identify opportunities to streamline business processes and systems, and to use company resources more efficiently

* Being present and visible in the manufacturing facility to ensure that a team ethos is created

* Undertake any other duties as requested by your manager to meet the needs of the business

The perfect candidate should have

* A proactive, dynamic, change orientated leader with excellent interpersonal skills, able to persuade and influence cross departments

* Highly developed understanding of risk and decision making to provide fact based guidance

* Technically and commercially astute with the ability to identify business opportunities

* Demonstrable motivational and ethic management; able to lead, develop and mentor a team

* Strong communication skills with the ability to concisely communicate cross-functionally

* Previous significant experience in a senior technical role with experience of multiple retailer essential (Significant food manufacturing experience as a Site Technical Manager or Head of Technical.)

* Educated to degree level or equivalent in an Agricultural, Plant Science or Food Science related discipline

* Ability to respond to changing demands and prioritises accordingly

* Confident in presentation, communication, and negotiation to executive level

* Experienced user of Microsoft Office, customer specification systems and confident in other types of software platforms

* Level 3 HACCP and Food Safety qualifications appropriate to food manufacturing, packing and exporting products

* Ability to travel globally as and when required (minimal travel)

This is more than just a job; it's a chance to make an impact at a company that values innovation, quality, and its people. We offer a competitive compensation package and benefits