Team Leader, Food Production - Irca Group

Company Overview:

 IRCA is a leading international provider of semi-finished ingredients for the bakery, pastry and gelato markets, serving independent producers as well as large food manufacturers (e.g., CPG). Core products include chocolate, chocolate decorations, creams, pastry mixes, gelato ingredients, and other bakery / pastry ingredients.

 The Company, headquartered in Italy, was acquired by Advent International, the global Private Equity firm, in July 2022, and has a strong track record of growth over the last decade. IRCA has made 2 bolt-on acquisitions in the areas of candied fruits (Cesarin) and pistachio ingredients (Anastasi) in 2022, and recently entered exclusive negotiations to acquire a leading manufacturer of sweet and cereal products in Europe and the US. The target’s business focuses on high value add specialty ingredients for the Food Manufacturers segment, with a portfolio that incorporates a range of products including sweet particulates, chocolate confections, baked inclusions, variegates and fruit purées.

We are seeking Production Team Leads for all shifts. 1st (3am-1:30pm); 2nd (1pm-11:30pm)

Descriptions & Responsibilities:

   Monitors and leads workers in their daily activities producing products. Directs team members towards achieving the highest level of efficient production, identifying existing or future bottlenecks and product loss.

·         Train team members in the different areas of responsibility within the production line.

·         Receives packaging specs and work orders to decide product to be produced and ensure that all packaging material and labels are correct. Uses basic math skills, including fractions, to calculate quantities of ingredients needed for partial batches.

·         Ensures all safety rules are adhered to; communicating issues or concerns that cannot be resolved by team member to supervisors. 

·         Ability to operate a handheld scanner to manage manufacturing software to record all manufacturing transactions and maintain inventory accuracy.   Duties include Issuing ingredients to Manufacturing order (IP), Reporting production of items (RM), Printing labels, Inventory inquiries, product location transfer and other related activities. Reconciling department staging area using MAPICS RF tools.

·         Ability to use a computer to run basic automated reports and print Must enter Work Order request.

·         Schedules and monitors lunch and breaks of crew members during lunches and breaks.

·         Operates production equipment, follows safety guidelines, and ensures crew members follow safety policies.

·         Performs and assigns general housekeeping and sanitation responsibilities of the line daily according to GMP’s, communicating specific sanitation duties to all crew members.

·         Monitors all product quality and product safety documentation to ensure proper procedures are followed. Reports production data as specified. Ensures all HACCP and CQP documentation and checks are performed in applicable procedures.

·         Ensures all employees adhere to allergen procedures and policies. Communicates to employees the importance of changing outer garments after working with allergens before transferring to other departments.

·         Update KPI/Communication board daily and conduct one on one shift change meetings with incoming lead.

·         Performs and assigns all QC testing needed in the department during the shift.

·         Performs all other related duties as needed.

Qualifications Requirements:

·         HS Certificate or GED Equivalent a plus. One-year related experience and/or training; or equivalent combination of training and experience in a food manufacture a preferred.  

·         Ability to read and interpret documents such as safety rules, operating and maintenance instructions, procedure manuals, MOs, and other related documents. Ability to write routine reports and correspondence. 

·         Ability to add, subtract, multiply, and divide in all units of measure using whole numbers, common fractions, and decimals.  Ability to compute rate, ratio, and percent, and ability to draw and interpret bar graphs.

·         Ability to apply common sense understanding to carry out instructions given in written, oral, or diagram form. Ability to deal with problems involving several concrete variables in standardized situations. Has the ability to recognize issue and escalate to proper person.

·         While performing the duties of this job, the employee must regularly walk; use hands to finger, handle or feel objects, tools or controls; and reach with hands and arms.  The employee frequently is required to stand, talk, hear, taste, or smell.

·         The employee must regularly maneuver and/or move up to 150 to 300 pounds and frequently lift and/or move up to 50 pounds.  Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and the ability to adjust focus.

·         While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly exposed to extreme heat.  The employee frequently works near moving mechanical parts. The employee is occasionally exposed to fumes or airborne particles.  The noise level in the work environment is usually loud.

The above cited duties and responsibilities describe the general nature and level of work being performed by people assigned to the job. It is not intended to be an exhaustive list of all the duties and responsibilities that an incumbent may be expected to perform.