About the position
A well-established edible oil manufacturing business is looking for a commercially astute and operationally driven Deputy Chief Operating Officer to join their leadership team. This is a newly created, high-impact executive role with significant scope to shape how the business runs — from factory floor to boardroom.
About the Opportunity
This is not a maintenance role — it's a transformation one. You'll be stepping into a newly created position within a growing manufacturing operation, with the mandate to audit, improve, automate, and optimise across every key function of the business. The role spans production, supply chain, SHEQ, commercial, sales, and logistics, and requires someone who is equally comfortable interrogating a P&L as they are walking a plant floor.
The responsibilities will evolve as you bed down and conduct a thorough SWOT analysis of the operation — making this an ideal opportunity for a senior operator who wants genuine ownership and the freedom to make their mark.
What You'll Be Doing
Operational Excellence
- Auditing current processes to identify streamlining opportunities, enabling live stock reporting dashboards and ensuring proper division of duties for risk management
- Measuring and improving OEE across key plant assets including centrifuges, packing plant, ETP, and candle plant
- Applying ABC costing across manufacturing segments and replicating pockets of excellence across the business
- Driving automation initiatives including packaging-on-hand tracking, crush margin calculations, and live stock dashboards
Supply Chain & Procurement
- Overseeing end-to-end supply chain including procurement, inventory management, warehousing, and distribution
- Supporting demand planning and warehouse packing efficiencies
- Optimising inventory levels and implementing controls to manage costs and meet customer demands
- Managing procurement functionality in SAGE — minimum order quantities, safety stock, and procure-to-pay processes
Financial & Commercial Oversight
- Splitting and analysing P&L by site (Mobeni and Johannesburg)
- Managing customer P&L — margin by SKU, by customer, by rep, and by geography
- Performing detailed weekly commodity and currency market research and reporting
- Evaluating project ROI across capital and operational investments
- Overseeing rebate registers across all sites
SHEQ & Compliance
- Establishing and enforcing a uniform SHEQ framework across the group
- Conducting safety audits, inspections, and risk assessments
- Promoting a culture of safety and ensuring compliance with all applicable HSE regulations
- Ensuring quality control standards and regulatory requirements are met across edible oil manufacturing
Strategy & Leadership
- Understanding, aligning, and documenting the business plan by department with strategic KPI configuration
- Monitoring KPIs to identify areas for improvement and implementing corrective actions
- Driving New Product Development projects through cross-functional team collaboration
- Understanding the finished goods market to support margin optimisation
- Managing key internal and external stakeholder relationships
What You'll Need
- Bachelor's degree in Business Management, Finance, or Engineering — essential
- Minimum 12 years' experience in an FMCG manufacturing environment
- Strong knowledge of production planning, manufacturing processes, quality control, and supply chain management
- Demonstrated experience optimising production operations and implementing lean manufacturing principles
- Strong analytical capability — comfortable using data, KPIs, and financial modelling to drive decisions
- Knowledge of HSE regulations and SHEQ frameworks
- Experience with ERP systems — SAGE experience advantageous
- Excellent leadership, communication, and negotiation skills
- Able to operate at all levels of the organisation, from shop floor to executive team
- Detail-oriented, deadline-driven, and able to manage multiple priorities simultaneously
Please note only shortlisted candidates will be contacted
Desired Skills:
