Head of Engineering
DorsetUp to £80,000 + Car Allowance + Bonus
Are you an experienced Engineering Manager looking for a role where you can lead, influence and make a real impact? Do you want the freedom to shape engineering strategy, elevate reliability and drive performance across a high‑volume manufacturing site?
A market‑leading FMCG manufacturer is exclusively working with Yolk Recruitment to appoint a high‑calibre Head of Engineering who will take full ownership of engineering performance at a major production facility in Dorset.
Reporting directly to the Site Director, this is a key senior leadership position where you’ll shape the future of the site, build a high‑performing engineering culture and drive long‑term improvements to reliability and operational excellence.
Why This Role?
- Strategic leadership role reporting into the Site Director
- Influence long‑term asset care, engineering strategy and site performance
- Lead, develop and strengthen an established engineering team
- Ownership of reliability, continuous improvement, maintenance excellence and capital investment
- A genuine opportunity to make lasting, measurable change across the site
The Role
As Head of Engineering, you will be responsible for engineering performance, reliability and compliance across a large‑scale FMCG manufacturing operation. Working closely with Operations and Senior Leadership, you’ll set engineering direction, build a robust maintenance strategy and enhance overall site reliability.
Key responsibilities include:
- Leading, coaching and developing the engineering team, driving a culture of safety, ownership and performance
- Improving maintenance strategy, asset care and plant reliability
- Ensuring compliance with HSE, environmental and engineering standards
- Managing engineering budgets, maintenance expenditure and contractor performance
- Delivering capital projects and wider site improvement initiatives
- Driving continuous improvement using structured problem solving and RCA
- Ensuring effective use of CMMS and maintenance planning processesWorking closely with Production to maximise uptime, OEE and operational efficiency
The Person
- Strong leadership experience within a manufacturing engineering environment
- Background as an Engineering Manager, Head of Engineering or senior engineering leader
- Experience within FMCG or other fast‑paced, high‑volume industries
- Expertise in maintenance strategy, asset reliability and engineering performance improvement
- Experience managing teams, budgets, contractors and engineering KPIs
- Solid understanding of CMMS and metrics such as OEE, MTBF, MTTR
- Engineering qualifications (Apprenticeship, HNC, HND or Degree in electrical/mechanical discipline)
You’ll be a confident, influential engineering leader who can inspire teams and elevate site performance.
Package
- Up to £80,000 salary
- Generous car allowance paid on top of salary
- Generous annual bonus also paid on top of salary
- 33 days holiday
- Private healthcare & life assurance
- Pension scheme
- Ongoing professional development and long‑term career opportunities
You’ll be joining a successful, well‑invested manufacturing organisation with strong financial performance and a long‑term growth strategy.
Ready for your next challenge?
This role is being exclusively managed by Yolk Recruitment, with engineering specialist Liam Reid leading the process. For a Private & Confidential discussion, please apply with an up‑to‑date CV – and feel free to include a cover letter detailing your suitability.
We also operate a referral scheme – if you know someone ideal for this role, please get in touch.
Due to high application volumes, if you have not been contacted within 7 days, please assume you have been unsuccessful on this occasion. Please check our website for future opportunities.
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