The Pilot Plant Supervisor has management responsibilities over Pilot Plant Technicians and provides on the floor leadership and expertise in several targeted areas including but not limited to Operations, Automation, Quality, Continuous Improvement, Troubleshooting and Safety.  The Supervisor will also be adept to working as an active part of the production team when called upon and assists in all team-oriented tasks and training processes.  The mission of the role is to support the ongoing development and improvement of products, packaging and processes for Danone R&I, by applying significant technical knowledge and logic to running small scale experimentation in a pilot plant setting.  This position reports directly to the Pilot Plant Manager.  The supervisor will work in direct conjunction with the Pilot Manager, Process and Technical project leaders to drive increased scalability from Pilot to Industrial                    

Main Responsibilities & Activities

• Leads a team of pilot plant technicians including supporting/providing development opportunities. This includes administrative activities like FTO, timesheets, expense reports, objectives and development plans.
• Owns planning and coordination of the Pilot Plant trial schedule/calendar.  Creates People schedule for Pilot Operations team.
• Responsible for communicating facts and sharing information with the Team.  Uses DFMEA model for root cause investigations into machine failures, losses, delays and quality issues. 
• Owns Automation processes in coordination with global Danone guidelines and develops internal data trends for reporting of process and trial information.
• Quality program and processes leader following FDA and Danone FSQ requirements.  Position will lead HAACP, Environmental Monitoring, Master Sanitation, Allergen and Wastewater plans.

• Communicates in a timely manner with Pilot Plant Manager regarding safety, performance and corrective measures to ensure safe and efficient operations.
• Maintains a safe and clean working environment for all employees and visitors. Ensures all safety rules, pilot plant WOW’s, GMPs and code of ethics are always followed.
• Tracks pilot metrics (%OE, Downtime, Success Rate, Compliance, Throughput)

• Lead and coordinate cross-training of operators to acceptable competencies on high volume pilot lines
• Prepares content for and conducts regularly scheduled team meetings (weekly, shutdown)
• Hosts regularly scheduled pilot coordination meetings with R&I technical teams (pre-trial and weekly coordination meetings)
• Assists developers in preparation, execution, and review of experiments
• Leads and drives processing activities to ensure efficient and timely completion of processing schedule
• Works with maintenance team to promptly schedule preventative maintenance activities around an evolving production schedule.
• Assists operations during critical situations (breakdowns, quality issues, other incidents)
• Work in any position to replace teammates when needed.
• Owns/Supports creation and validation of accurate and up to date Standard Operating Procedures and certifications.
• Co-develops pilot plant WOW and Continuous Improvement efforts with Pilot Plant Manager.  Constantly looking for improvements to elevate efficiencies.
• Supports R&I Product Developer led scalability and commercialization efforts of new products and ingredients.

• The individual must exemplify the ability to work with minimal supervision.
• Must be adaptable to a changing work environment, competing demands and is able to deal with frequent changes, delays or unexpected events.

• Responsible for being a role model for Acceptable Behavior ("Acceptable" defined as: positive attitude, team leadership, knowledge of and adherence to policies and procedures, and ensuring that team skill sets are maintained).

• Other duties as assigned by management

Building Team

• Remain approachable by behaving in a professional and courteous manner and by treating everyone in the workplace with dignity and respect.
• Actively seek out and engage other operators and developers to gain additional knowledge about the operation.
• Establish a reputation for being open and responsive to production questions and plant needs

• Work as a team and make suggestions regarding continuous improvement ideas for maintenance, production, communication, quality and safety systems.

The salary range for this position is $82,000-118,000 USD. The exact salary offered will depend on several factors, including the candidate’s relevant experience, geographic location, internal equity, and market conditions.  Danone North America additionally offers a performance-based bonus and has a strong benefits package including Medical, Dental, Vision, Prescription Drug Coverage, 401k Plan, Wellness Program, Life Insurance, Tuition Reimbursement, Flexible Time Off, and Paid Parental Bonding Leave, among other benefit plan options. To give our employees flexibility, Danone is a hybrid work environment.

This role is considered a “hybrid” position that allows for flexible work, meaning it is a role where collaboration with key stakeholders in Danone Hubs occurs. While you may have the option to work from home on a schedule as agreed to with your supervisor, you are also expected to regularly report to your assigned office location at least 3 days per week.

Bachelor’s Degree in Food Science, Engineering or related field and minimum 5 years of related manufacturing experience and/or training; or equivalent combination of education and experience. 

Skills and Abilities

• Advanced understanding of formulation and process in beverage and fermented products
• Mechanically inclined and competent operating and troubleshooting Pilot/lab equipment
• Advanced knowledge in PLC/HMI and automation principles
• Data analysis and experimental design
• Computer skills including but not limited to all internal Danone systems (Ignition. Asana, Onebuy, Thin Client, Excel, Sharepoint)

Additional Qualifications   

• A good Attendance record and no disciplinary actions that might cause elimination from position.
• The ability to be self-directed and show good individual judgment and decision-making ability in a business setting. 
• Must be detail oriented and show good problem-solving skills. 
• Must demonstrate team-oriented behaviors and attitudes and be able and willing to train and cross train other operators. 
• Prior leadership experience or leadership training is a plus.  Work experience in scheduling and organizing tasks is preferred.                                 

Life at Danone

With approximately 5,000 employees and 13 production locations across the U.S., our vibrant culture and endless growth opportunities are just a couple of the reasons our employees call themselves “Proud Danoners.” 

Learn more about Life at Danone

Our Brands

When you join us, you’ll work with some of the best-known food and beverage brands in the world, including Activia®, DanActive®, Danimals®, Dannon®, evian®, Follow Your Heart®, Happy Family® Organics, International Delight®, Light + Fit®, Nutricia ®, Oikos®, Silk®, So Delicious® Dairy Free, STōK® Cold Brew Coffee ®, Too Good & Co™, and YoCrunch®.

Our Purpose

We’re committed to making a positive impact on our world. Rooted in our mission to bring health through food to as many people as possible, we’re proud to be the world’s largest B Corp.

Learn more about our mission.

Our Benefits

Our commitment to making the world healthier starts with our employees. 

• Physical Wellbeing: We pay for the majority of your medical benefits – which include medical, dental and vision – with our competitive 80%/20% cost-sharing model.
• Mental Wellbeing: Danoners receive fitness discounts, unlimited flexible time off and hybrid work schedules. We also have a range of programs that support mental health and substance abuse.  
• Financial Support: We offer a performance-based bonus, a 401(k) plan, tuition reimbursement, employee discount programs and voluntary perks.
• Family Care: We offer caretaker benefits, 18 weeks of parental bonding, fertility, surrogacy, adoption benefits and pet insurance.

Learn more about our benefits.

Equal Opportunity Employer
Danone North America is proud to be an Equal Opportunity employer. It is our policy to give equal employment opportunities to all qualified persons without regard to legally protected characteristics, or any other consideration made unlawful by applicable federal, state/provincial and/or local law. For our EEO policy statement and your EEO rights under law click here.

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