Lead all day-to-day operations for the Troyer facility, including production, warehouse, maintenance, and distribution activities. Build trust and credibility through visible leadership, regular engagement with employees, and a strong presence throughout the operation. Foster a positive, respectful, and accountable work environment focused on teamwork, communication, and continuous improvement. Develop, coach, and empower leaders and team members while creating opportunities for growth and maintaining accountability for results. Build and develop a high-performing team by improving employee engagement, retention, leadership effectiveness, succession readiness, and workforce capability while creating opportunities for growth and development at all levels of the organization. Drive operational improvements focused on safety, quality, efficiency, service, and waste reduction. Maintain high standards for food safety, sanitation, SQF compliance, and audit readiness. Partner with Quality, Procurement, R&D, and Commercial teams to support product innovation, recipe development, sourcing initiatives, and business growth. Oversee production scheduling, labor planning, inventory management, and operational execution to meet customer expectations. Manage plant financial performance, including labor, productivity, inventory, capital improvements, and cost management initiatives. Utilize operational and financial metrics to drive performance, decision-making, and continuous improvement. Partner with senior leadership to support future growth opportunities, operational improvements, capital investments, and long-term planning initiatives. Serve as a strong advocate for the facility by communicating operational needs, challenges, and opportunities while helping connect plant operations with broader business priorities. Support Lipari Foods' continued growth in owned and specialty brands through operational excellence and strong cross-functional partnership. Leadership Profile The ideal candidate will be: A hands-on and approachable leader who builds trust through visibility, consistency, and follow-through. Relationship-driven with strong communication skills and the ability to connect with employees at all levels of the organization. Comfortable spending time on the production floor, listening to employees, understanding challenges firsthand, and supporting the team. Calm, steady, and decisive under pressure while maintaining respect and credibility. Focused on developing people, empowering leaders, and building strong teams rather than personally owning every decision. Able to balance operational discipline with humility, authenticity, and respect. Passionate about quality, food, and continuous improvement. Able to preserve the strengths, culture, and values that have contributed to the success of the Troyer operation while helping position the business for future growth. Comfortable serving as a bridge between plant operations and company leadership, ensuring strong communication and alignment in both directions. Qualifications 10 years of progressive leadership experience in food manufacturing, production, operations, or related environments. Demonstrated ability to build trust, develop teams, and lead through relationships, communication, and accountability. Proven success leading teams, improving processes, and driving operational performance. Strong understanding of food safety, quality systems, and manufacturing operations. Experience managing budgets, labor, productivity, inventory, and operational performance metrics. Ability to balance day-to-day operational leadership with long-term business and growth objectives. Strong problem-solving, communication, and organizational skills. Bachelors degree preferred or equivalent combination of education and operational leadership experience. About Lipari: Headquartered in Warren, Michigan, Lipari Foods is a leading independent distributor built around global and specialty foods. With a customer-first mindset, they serve customers through 67 depots across 32 states and growing. Lipari brings the worlds most craveable flavors to shelf with an end-to-end approach that combines exclusive and owned brands, retail services, innovative tools, and dependable delivery across 10 categories including deli, bakery, frozen/dairy, specialty grocery, international specialty, meat/seafood, packaging, confections, foodservice/prepared foods, and convenience.