Production Manager

Utz Quality Foods is looking for an experienced and motivated Production Manager to join our team at the Kings Mountain, NC facility. This is a high-impact leadership role, ideal for someone ready to lead people, drive operational excellence, and support our plant's continued growth.

In this role, you'll oversee all production operations, working closely with shift leads and cross-functional partners to ensure safety, quality, and efficiency. You'll also play a key role in advancing our Integrated Work Systems journey, helping to build a culture of ownership, problem-solving, and continuous improvement.

Responsibilities:

• Lead day-to-day operations across multiple production lines to meet or exceed KPIs in safety, quality, cost, and throughput.
• Collaborate with the HR Generalist and broader HR team to support staffing, onboarding, performance management, and employee engagement efforts.
• Drive IWS initiatives across all shifts to strengthen daily management systems and enable team-based problem solving.
• Coach and develop shift supervisors and team leads, promoting accountability and leadership growth.
• Monitor equipment performance and product quality; collaborate with QA, Maintenance, and Sanitation to address issues and prevent downtime.
• Ensure compliance with GMP, USDA, FDA, FSMA, and SQF standards.
• Serve as point of contact for R&D and Project Management on new product trials and line adjustments.
• Utilize RedZone, Microsoft D365, and other MES tools to ensure accurate and actionable data across the floor.
• Support planning and scheduling by ensuring coverage across all shifts and coordinating with department leads.

Requirements:

• 
  

  Minimum of 5 years of production or operations management experience in a manufacturing environment, food production strongly preferred.

  
  
• 
  

  Bachelor's degree in a related field or equivalent experience.

  
  
• 
  

  Proven success leading teams, coaching supervisors, and driving accountability.

  
  
• 
  

  Familiarity with IWS, Lean, Six Sigma, or TPM principles.

  
  
• 
  

  Strong analytical, communication, and organizational skills.

  
  
• 
  

  Bilingual (English/Spanish) is a plus.

  
  
• 
  

  Proficiency in Microsoft Office and familiarity with ERP systems (e.g., Microsoft D365).

  
  

External Recruitment Process:

• Easy Application (5 mins): Introduce yourself and answer a few key questions to get started.

• Engaging Chat Interview (20-25 mins): Share your experiences in an online chat, highlighting how your values align with ours.

• Live Interview: Selected candidates will meet with the hiring manager to explore their alignment with the team and overall Utz company culture.

Continuously Pursuing Excellence!

Here at Utz, we have a passion for exciting and delighting consumers with delicious snack foods made from high quality ingredients. After over a century with a strong family heritage, our diverse portfolio of brands includes Utz, Zapp's, Boulder Canyon, and On the Border. Our associates are the reason for the success of this company, so it is important we provide a supportive, caring and inclusive environment that offers opportunities for career growth and advancement. We also help take care of our associates by providing benefits, resources, and programs that ensure they live their healthiest lives. Our full-time benefit package includes medical, dental, and vision plans, an employer match 401k, profit sharing plan, employee stock purchase plan and much more. Join our world class team and help us become the fastest growing pure-play U.S. snacking company of scale!

Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, or protected veteran status and will not be discriminated against on the basis of disability.

*