Director of Maintenance & Reliability - Food Manufacturing

Director of Maintenance & Reliability – Food Production

Position: Director of Maintenance & Reliability
Location: Stoughton, WI
Salary: $130K Base Salary + UP - plus company bonuses!
Benefits: Full Benefits, Health, Vacation time & more.
Contact:

This is a FULL TIME permanent position.

Overview

Our client, a premier consumer packaged goods company with products sold nationwide, is seeking a high-impact Industrial Director of Maintenance & Reliability to lead maintenance operations at a state‑of‑the‑art, rapidly expanding food manufacturing facility.

This role is critical to plant success and requires a proven maintenance leader from a regulated manufacturing environment (food, pharma, medical device, or similar GMP‑driven industry) who can drive equipment reliability, compliance, team performance, and capital execution in a 24/7 high‑speed manufacturing operation.

You will play a key leadership role in scaling maintenance operations, leading capital and automation initiatives, and building a high‑accountability, performance‑driven culture aligned with aggressive plant growth.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead and develop a multi‑shift maintenance organization supporting high‑speed production
• Drive equipment reliability, uptime, and maintenance excellence (PM/PdM programs)
• Own and optimize CMMS strategy, data integrity, and KPI reporting (MTBF, MTTR, backlog)
• Lead capital projects from concept through commissioning and startup
• Champion automation, modernization, and continuous improvement initiatives
• Ensure compliance with GMP, SQF, OSHA, LOTO, and safety standards
• Build and execute technical training and workforce development programs
• Develop a high‑performance, accountable team culture
• Partner cross‑functionally with Operations, Engineering, Quality, and Leadership
• Manage maintenance budgets, MRO strategy, and vendor relationships
• Lead root cause analysis (RCA, 5‑Why, A3) and implement sustainable solutions

Qualifications

• 7+ years in industrial maintenance within food manufacturing or similar regulated industry
• 3+ years of leadership experience managing teams and/or supervisors in a 24/7 environment
• Engineering degree or strong technical education preferred
• Strong hands‑on experience with:
  • CMMS ownership and optimization
  • Preventive & Predictive Maintenance (PM/PdM) leadership
  • Capital project execution
• Working knowledge of:
  • Mechanical, electrical, hydraulics, pneumatics, HVAC systems
  • PLC/HMI/SCADA environments
• Proven success improving:
  • Reliability metrics (MTBF, MTTR)
  • Maintenance planning & scheduling
• Strong understanding of:
  • GMP / SQF / food safety standards
  • OSHA, LOTO, and electrical safety (NFPA/NEC)

MUST HAVES –

• 1. Maintenance Leadership in Regulated Manufacturing
  • Proven leadership experience in food manufacturing OR highly regulated environments (GMP, pharma, medical device, etc.)
  • Demonstrated ownership of maintenance execution, equipment reliability, and regulatory compliance
  • Experience that directly translates to a food manufacturing setting
  • Previous role as Maintenance Manager strongly preferred (Supervisor considered only with significant scope)
• 2. Leadership Scope & Readiness
  • Proven ability to lead maintenance teams with full accountability for results
  • Experience setting expectations, driving performance, and holding teams accountable
  • Demonstrated readiness to operate at a Maintenance Manager / Director level
  • Experience leading salaried direct reports and multi‑level teams
• 3. Stability & Career Progression
  • Demonstrated career stability (preference for ~5+ years per role)
  • Track record of progressive responsibility and leadership growth
• 4. Full Ownership of Role Scope
  • Must be comfortable operating in a high‑accountability leadership role, including:
  • 24/7 manufacturing environment
  • On‑call responsibility
  • Leading cross‑functional meetings and plant initiatives
  • Driving capital projects and plant reliability improvements
  • Managing high‑pressure operational challenges

What Success Looks Like

• Improved equipment uptime and plant reliability
• Strong team accountability and performance culture
• Successful execution of capital and automation projects
• Scalable maintenance processes supporting plant expansion

Why This Role

This is a high‑visibility leadership opportunity to build and lead maintenance operations in a growing, technology‑driven food manufacturing facility. You’ll have the autonomy, resources, and leadership support to make a direct and measurable impact.

If you are interested, please send a MS Word version of your resume to me or if you know of someone that would be a great match, please have them contact John Marino at Or simply apply now by hitting the "APPLY NOW" link.

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