Director, Plant Operations

Founded in 2013, Home Chef is the leading meal solutions company with both a retail and online presence. Available online at homechef.com and in retail at more than 2,100 Kroger grocery stores, Home Chef is committed to inspiring and enabling more people to cook simple, delicious meals, no matter how busy they are.

In 2023, Home Chef introduced a new brand, Tempo! Tempo features a rotating selection of ready-to-heat meals delivered directly to your door. These meals are better-for-you versions of familiar favorites, designed to save you time and reduce stress while maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Our Tempo menu includes options that are protein-packed, fiber-rich, calorie and carb conscious, keto-friendly, and dietitian-approved.

Similar to our recipes, we recognize that variety is the spice of life, and therefore, our employees also bring their uniqueness and color to our fantastic team. We’re eager to work with humble team players and pragmatic next-level thinkers to innovate on Home Chef’s offerings.

 

The Director of Plant Operations owns end-to-end performance of the plant, including safety, quality, fulfillment, and cost. This role leads a cross-functional leadership team and drives operational excellence in a fast-paced, high-volume food manufacturing environment.

At Home Chef, this isn’t just about running a plant. You’ll play a key role in shaping how we operate, scale, and deliver for our customers every single day. From leading high-impact teams to solving complex operational challenges, this role sits at the center of our business and has a direct line to the customer experience.

You will be responsible for building strong teams, improving performance, and driving consistent execution across all plant functions, while fostering a culture rooted in accountability, collaboration, and continuous improvement.

What You’ll Do

Own Plant Performance & Strategy

• Set and execute the vision and strategy for on-time fulfillment of all production goals
• Lead and develop department leaders across production, warehouse, quality, maintenance, CI, and inventory
• Anticipate and proactively address operational challenges impacting performance
• Partner cross-functionally with corporate teams to remove barriers and drive results
• Ensure staffing plans align with production needs and operational goals

Lead, Develop & Inspire Teams

• Coach and develop leaders to build a high-performing, accountable organization
• Create a culture rooted in Home Chef’s “Customer First” mindset
• Drive employee engagement, retention, and a positive work environment
• Partner with HR to effectively manage employee relations, performance, and talent planning
• Lead regular communication cadences to align teams on performance, priorities, and goals

Drive KPIs & Financial Performance

• Own plant-level financial performance, including cost management and budget adherence
• Establish and drive accountability to key operational KPIs (safety, quality, delivery, cost)
• Develop and execute action plans to improve performance and achieve targets
• Maintain a strong understanding of cost drivers and operational efficiencies

Ensure Operational Excellence & Facility Standards

• Champion a “Safety First, Quality Always” culture across all levels of the organization
• Maintain a clean, organized, and audit-ready facility
• Ensure compliance with GMPs, food safety standards (SQF), and regulatory requirements
• Oversee inventory management practices and WMS implementation
• Drive adoption of tools, systems, and technologies that improve plant performance

Lead Continuous Improvement & Change

• Identify root causes of operational issues and implement sustainable solutions
• Partner with Continuous Improvement teams to deploy and scale initiatives
• Hold teams accountable to standard operating procedures while identifying opportunities to improve them
• Lead change management efforts across processes, systems, and teams

What Success Looks Like

• Consistently delivers on-time fulfillment and production targets
• Builds and develops a strong, accountable leadership team
• Improves key KPIs across safety, quality, cost, and efficiency
• Creates strong alignment between plant operations and corporate partners
• Establishes a culture of ownership, accountability, and continuous improvement

What You