Job Description - Head of Production

Position: Head - Production

Location: Dahej, Gujarat

Experience: 20+ Years

Industry: Agrochemicals / Pesticides / Specialty Chemicals

Reporting to: Plant Head / Unit Head / COO

Role Purpose:

Lead and manage the complete production function at the Dahej manufacturing facility, ensuring safe, efficient, cost-effective and timely manufacturing of agrochemical products while maintaining high standards of quality, EHS, regulatory compliance and operational excellence.

Key Responsibilities:

- Lead end-to-end production operations for agrochemical / pesticide manufacturing processes.

- Ensure achievement of production targets as per the annual operating plan and customer requirements.

- Optimize plant capacity utilization, batch cycle time, yields and productivity.

- Ensure adherence to approved manufacturing processes, SOPs, batch records and operating procedures.

- Monitor production performance and take corrective actions for deviations, delays and bottlenecks.

- Coordinate with Production Planning, QA / QC, Maintenance, Engineering, R&D and Supply Chain functions.

Process & Productivity Improvement:

- Drive initiatives for improving process yields, throughput, productivity and overall equipment effectiveness.

- Identify opportunities for reduction in raw-material consumption, solvent losses, energy consumption and manufacturing costs.

- Lead process optimization, debottlenecking and capacity-enhancement initiatives.

- Implement Lean Manufacturing, Kaizen, 5S and other operational excellence initiatives.

EHS & Process Safety:

- Ensure strict compliance with company EHS standards and statutory requirements.

- Provide strong leadership for process safety management, particularly for hazardous chemical operations.

- Ensure safe handling, storage and processing of hazardous chemicals, solvents and intermediates.

- Drive HAZOP recommendations, MOC, PSSR, risk assessments and process safety improvement initiatives.

- Ensure effective implementation of emergency response, fire safety and occupational safety systems.

- Develop a strong safety culture with zero tolerance for unsafe operating practices.

Quality & Compliance:

- Ensure production operations comply with quality standards and approved specifications.

- Work closely with QA / QC to minimize batch failures, deviations, reprocessing and customer complaints.

- Ensure proper documentation and traceability of manufacturing activities.

- Support regulatory, customer and statutory audits.

People & Team Leadership:

- Lead a large production team comprising Production Managers, Shift In-charges, Engineers, Officers, Operators and contract manpower.

- Build a performance-oriented culture with clear KPIs and accountability.

- Develop second-line leadership and succession plans.

- Identify training requirements and ensure technical, safety and operational competency development.

- Manage manpower productivity and optimize shift deployment.

Cost Management:

- Prepare and monitor the production budget.

- Drive manufacturing cost reduction without compromising safety or quality.

- Monitor key cost parameters including raw materials, utilities, solvents, consumables, manpower and reprocessing.

- Establish production KPIs and review performance against targets.

Maintenance & Reliability:

- Coordinate with Maintenance and Engineering teams to ensure maximum equipment availability.

- Support preventive and predictive maintenance programs.

- Identify recurring equipment / process-related issues and drive root-cause analysis.

- Participate in plant modification, expansion and new-project implementation.

New Product / Scale-up:

- Support technology transfer and scale-up of new agrochemical products / processes from R&D or pilot scale to commercial production.

- Work with R&D, Process Development and Engineering teams on commercialization.

- Ensure successful commissioning and stabilization of new processes and equipment.

Key Performance Indicators:

- Production volume and plan adherence

- Capacity utilization

- Batch cycle time

- Yield and productivity

- Manufacturing cost per MT

- OEE / equipment utilization

- Batch rejection and reprocessing

- Solvent / raw-material recovery

- Energy and utility consumption

- Safety incidents / process safety compliance

- Customer complaints related to manufacturing

- Manpower productivity

- Successful implementation of debottlenecking and cost-reduction projects

Candidate Profile:

Education:

- B.E. / B.Tech in Chemical Engineering preferred.

- M.Tech / MBA / PG qualification would be an added advantage.

Experience:

- 20+ years of relevant manufacturing experience, with substantial experience in a senior Production / Manufacturing leadership role.

- Mandatory experience in Agrochemicals / Pesticides / Crop Protection Chemicals.

- Experience in batch chemical manufacturing and hazardous chemical processes is essential.

- Should have handled a sizeable manufacturing plant and a large production workforce.

- Experience in plant expansion, capacity enhancement, commissioning and technology transfer would be preferred.

Technical Competencies:

- Agrochemical / pesticide manufacturing processes

- Batch process operations

- Process optimization and scale-up

- Process safety and HAZOP

- Manufacturing cost optimization

- Production planning and scheduling

- Root Cause Analysis / CAPA

- Lean Manufacturing / Operational Excellence

- EHS and statutory compliance

- ERP / SAP-based production systems

Leadership Competencies:

- Strong plant-floor leadership and decision-making ability

- Ability to manage production under pressure and meet delivery commitments

- Strong cross-functional coordination

- Data-driven approach to productivity and cost improvement

- Excellent people-management and communication skills

- Ability to develop and retain a strong second line

- Strong safety and compliance orientation

Ideal Candidate:

The ideal candidate should currently be working as Head / GM / VP - Production, Plant Head, or Senior Production Head in an established agrochemical, pesticide or crop-protection chemical manufacturing company, with 18 - 25+ years of experience and proven experience managing a complex chemical manufacturing operation.