Factory General Manager

Factory General Manager Food Manufacturing Northamptonshire

An exceptional opportunity has arisen for an experienced General Manager to take operational leadership of the largest and most complex manufacturing site within a successful, cash rich food business. This appointment is a clear commitment from the CEO to transform and future prove a critical site. With significant investment planned, this role has been created to provide dedicated, hands on leadership at site level and to unlock the full potential of the operation.

The Opportunity

The site is a high volume food manufacturing facility with the capability to reach significantly higher levels of production as investment and performance improvements are delivered. With CAPEX projects underway in these areas:

• Newly installed and upcoming major processing equipment
• Additional production lines to increase capacity
• A planned new NPD facility
• Wider capital investment to modernise machinery and reduce downtime

The business operates with no debt, strong EBITDA growth, and a leadership team fully aligned behind improving standards, performance, and culture.

Your Role

As Factory General Manager, you will have full responsibility for site performance, leading a large workforce. You will have direct support by a solid and experienced middle management team across functions including: Production, Engineering, Technical & Warehouse. This role requires a balance of strategic leadership and visible, shop floor presence. You will be expected to lead the site forward operationally, culturally, and technically, while ensuring a strong return on investment from ongoing and future capital projects.

Key responsibilities include:

• Delivering sustained improvements in output, efficiency, and downtime reduction
• Leading major CAPEX projects, from justification through to delivery and benefit realisation
• Increasing utilisation to consistently achieve higher weekly production volumes
• Modernising ways of working while operating within a legacy footprint
• Driving a people centric culture, improving engagement, capability, and retention
• Holding the management team accountable for performance and behaviours
• Leading cultural change in a site with a mix of long serving and newer colleagues
• Ensuring food safety, quality, environmental, and sustainability standards are upheld

About You

This role will suit a credible, inspiring manufacturing leader who thrives in complex environments and enjoys building something better. You are likely to bring:

• Senior leadership experience within food or FMCG manufacturing, ideally in added value food environments (e.g. bakery, ready meals, protein, extrusion)
• Exposure to high volume, high complexity sites with multiple technologies
• Strong CAPEX and change leadership experienceA practical, people focused leadership style, such as being visible, honest, and accountable
• A track record of developing teams, nurturing cultures and implementing succession planning across the site
• This is not a role for someone who needs everything to be perfect on day one it is for someone who sees potential, not problems.

If this sounds like a great fit for you then please click below to apply or reach out to me directly at for more information on the position.