Process Manager

We are Fonterra, one of the world's largest dairy nutrition companies. Here in Australia, we collect milk from Aussie Farmers across Victoria and Tasmania, and our manufacturing sites turn this into the dairy foods you know and love in our supermarkets, including Perfect Italiano, Mainland, Western Star, and Bega. We also sell dairy ingredients to many of the world's leading food companies and partner with food services businesses across the country to get dairy foods into chefs' hands.

As a Co-operative created and owned by New Zealand dairy farmers, our collaboration, innovation, and passion have enabled us to share the goodness of our dairy with the world. We're committed to caring for the land, our animals, and every drop of milk, producing nutritious food with safe, quality ingredients loved here in Australia and around the world.

As part of the Fonterra Co-op, you'll be solving for a better future alongside a team connected by solid values as we strive to be a leader in dairy sustainability, dairy innovation and science, with a focus on New Zealand milk.

When you join Fonterra, you'll open yourself to a career of opportunities where you can grow with us by developing your skills, sharing your knowledge, and exploring diverse career paths that ignite your passions.

About us

In Australia, we take the milk we collect from our farmers, and our eight manufacturing sites across Victoria and Tasmania turn this into dairy foods that generations of Australians have grown up with and love, including Perfect Italiano, Mainland, Western Star, and Bega. We also sell dairy ingredients to many of the world's leading food companies and partner with foodservices business across the country to get dairy foods into chef's hands.

This role will be based at our Northern Tasmania site in Wynyard, but we are open to supporting an interstate relocation for the right candidate. Our Wynyard site makes cheese and a range of powders for food companies. We take Tasmanian farmers' milk and turn this into world-class dairy foods for both the domestic and export market.

About the opportunity

We are seeking a highly skilled and motivated Process/Technical Manager to join our team. In this role, you will focus on continuous and process improvement, capital projects, manufacturing technical support, and the implementation of loss elimination tools. You will play a key role in root cause analysis, breakdown elimination, and promoting lean manufacturing practices across our operations.

While this is a technically focused leadership role, we're open to shaping the opportunity to suit the right candidate. Whether you're bringing deep industry experience or looking to grow into a technical leadership position, we're committed to supporting your development within a collaborative and innovative environment.

Key Responsibilities:

* Lead and supervise a team of 4 process leads, providing guidance, support, and coaching to ensure optimal performance and adherence to standards

* Train and develop team members and production employees, conducting performance evaluations, providing feedback, and fostering a positive and motivating work environment

* Drive continuous improvement initiatives to enhance manufacturing processes and operational efficiency

* Provide technical support for manufacturing processes, ensuring optimal performance and quality

* Utilize loss elimination tools to identify and address inefficiencies and waste

* Conduct root cause analysis to troubleshoot and resolve technical issues

* Implement and promote lean manufacturing principles and practices

* Collaborate with cross-functional teams to develop and execute process improvement strategies

* Support the implementation of new technologies and innovations to enhance production capabilities

* Maintain up-to-date technical documentation and reports to ensure compliance and accuracy

About You

We are open to a broad range of experience levels for this role and can tailor the responsibilities to suit the right candidate. This includes individuals with strong technical backgrounds in food manufacturing—particularly in process improvement and capital project work—as well as recent graduates in engineering or food science. We also welcome applications from Year 12 school leavers who are looking to begin their tertiary studies in these fields.

We are committed to supporting the development of the right candidate and encourage individuals with a passion for food production, engineering, or related disciplines to apply—whether you're just starting out or bringing prior experience to the role.

You can also demonstrate:

* Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Food Science, or a related field

* Proven experience in a process/technical role within the food manufacturing industry, preferably in the dairy industry

* Strong knowledge of continuous improvement methodologies and lean manufacturing principles

* Demonstrated experience in continuous improvement project management

* Proficiency in root cause analysis and breakdown elimination techniques

* Excellent problem-solving skills with a strong focus on process optimization

* Ability to work collaboratively with cross-functional teams and stakeholders

* Strong communication and interpersonal skills

* Proficiency in technical documentation and reporting

Are you excited about this opportunity but may only meet some requirements?

At Fonterra, we are committed to building a diverse workplace and, therefore, open to looking at applicants with excellent transferable skills. If that's you, we encourage you to apply as you may be the right candidate for this role or one of our other opportunities.

[1] Or join our Talent Community by clicking here, to be notified about new and relevant job opportunities.

The benefits of life at Fonterra

Our people and what they bring to our Co-op shape our success. We have a collaborative culture, inspiring leaders, and passionate people, making Fonterra a great place to work. We also offer competitive remuneration and a range of benefits, regardless of your role or location.

Fonterra is a place where everyone can be themselves, feel empowered to do their best, and are empowered to create goodness for generations.

Sound good to you? Come and join us, and let's solve for better, together. You, me, us together

References

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