Who We Are and What We Do 

Farmer Focus’s mission is to promote and protect generational family farms by shifting farm-level decision-making and chicken ownership back to farmers and empowering them to farm the way they know is best. We are committed to consistently producing 100% organic and humanely raised chicken that is better for people, the planet, and animals.  Our culture is rooted in servant leadership, and we live by our Farmer Focus CARES values: Community, Accountability, Respect, Excellence, and Stewardship 

How this role will be impactful 

Farmer Focus has an opportunity for an experienced Maintenance Manager to provide hands-on leadership to our production facilities in Harrisonburg, VA. The successful candidate must have a "safety-first" and hands-on mindset, be a self-motivated partner supporting all operations for the production of the Farmer Focus premium organic chicken. This role will also be responsible for managing reliability improvement initiatives and projects to achieve established performance metrics. Primary responsibilities include overseeing maintenance teams and ensuring successful completion of machine maintenance, troubleshooting, repair and improvement of food processing and ancillary equipment.  

• Facilitate implementation of preventive maintenance programs. Ensure all production machines are running at maximum efficiency. 

• Initiating corrective/preventive and continuous improvement opportunities and actively participate in developing, implementing, and verifying corrective/improvement actions. 

• Provide a safe working environment for all employees to ensure an acceptable incident rate. 

• Seek, develop, implement, and facilitate training programs for all Maintenance personnel. 

• Interact with Plant Managers to develop, implement and facilitate training programs for Maintenance Group Leads, Manufacturing Technicians, and Maintenance Technicians. 

• Interact directly with Complex Manager to ensure effective preventive maintenance and a reduction of downtime. 

• Maintain an open channel of communication to ensure positive customer relations. 

• Control R&M spending 

• Ensure timely orders of materials and parts for the plant. 

• Responsible for plant systems and support equipment. 

• Responsible for the plant's R&M, and Operating Supplies. 

• Manage Capital Projects. 

• Audit production equipment. 

• Facilitate the Lock-out Tag-out, Hot Work Permit, Confined Space Entry, Work Place Inspections, OSHA Inspections, Safety Bulletin, General Safety, and Respiratory Protection Safety Programs. 

• Ability to plan, select, and develop a team is crucial 

• All other related duties as assigned by Management. 

What you bring to this role 

• Bachelor's Degree in Mechanical or Agricultural Engineering or related discipline preferred. 

• 5 years of experience in maintenance management.  

• Experience working in food or beverage operation highly preferred. 

• Demonstrated knowledge and understanding of advanced equipment maintenance tracking software applications, safety standards programs, and formal building maintenance programs. 

• Ability and proficiency with cost/benefit analysis and capital expenditure justification 

• Thorough understanding of TPM and/or Reliability Work Process 

• Demonstrated expertise in facility maintenance management, staff supervision, budgeting, and maintenance training 

• Significant leadership skills in managing other maintenance workers in problem solving, communication, time management and multi-tasking 

• Must have experience in leading improvement efforts in Maintenance Reliability, Predictive and Preventive Maintenance 

• Must be able and willing to work safely, including wearing and using appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) 

• Must have working knowledge and experience with Microsoft Word and Excel, and ability to learn various PC-based production and operations applications. 

WORK ENVIRONMENT:  

May be exposed to temperatures of 28 degrees to 100 degrees Fahrenheit with both ambient and 100% humidity. May handle product 25 degrees to 50 degrees Fahrenheit. May be exposed to noise ranges from 50 db to 110db. May be exposed to chemicals used in poultry, food processing facilities. Must be able to tolerate the varying heat, wet and chill of the plant. Hearing and eye-protective equipment required in the production area. Required to wear hair and beard nets in the production area.