Job Description

Technical Controller

Salary: Competitive salary

Benefits: Up to 10% bonus p/a, £5,500 p/a car allowance, Private Healthcare

Location: Tilmanstone, Kent

Ways of Working: Site based

Hours of work: Monday - Friday, 08.30-17.00 (Flexible based on business needs)

Contract Type: Permanent

Why Greencore?

Following the combination with Bakkavor in January 2026, we are one of the UK’s leading creators of convenience food, driven by a simple purpose: to make every day taste better. As a vibrant and fast-moving business, we are proud to employ over 28,000 talented colleagues across 36 manufacturing sites and 21 distribution depots in the UK and the US. Together, we bring delicious food to life. Our products cover every meal occasion from breakfast through to dinner and dessert, with lunch and snacking in between. In FY25, our shared passion helped us achieve combined revenues of approximately £4bn.

Our extensive direct to store (DTS) network, with 17 depots across the UK, allows us to deliver fresh and frozen food both our own and from trusted partners to thousands of stores every day, ensuring consumers enjoy the very best, whenever and wherever they shop.

Our site in Tilmanstone, near Dover, Kent, employs around 850 people and produces millions of bags of leafy salads and prepared vegetables for a dedicated customer. The site operates at a fast-paced, high-volume level.

What you will be doing:

Reporting to the General Manager, the Technical Controller is the senior technical leader at the Tilmanstone site, with 2 direct reports: the Factory Technical Manager and Technical Services Manager.

The role leads a wider technical function of approximately 25–30 people, maintaining the site’s strong technical, food safety, and quality standards while driving continuous improvement and managing customer relationships.

Role Accountabilities:

• As Technical Controller you will head up the site technical function and lead multi-disciplinary teams ensuring that the manufacturing unit operates within the required technical and hygiene process standards by adhering to customer, business and legal standards.
• Provide leadership and direction to ensure that across the functions colleagues are engaged, focused, developed and delivering their potential.
• Contribute to the site leadership team to ensure that food safety and quality systems complement the operational model.
• Provide a senior interface with customers on joint business planning activities to deliver exceptional standards of customer service and adherence to customer policies and requirements.
• Ensure technical governance across a multi-disciplinary team to deliver audit compliance with respect to internal, external, legal and customer requirements.
• Create and deliver an integrated business plan to ensure that technical and hygiene processes are resourced and directed to deliver manufacturing, customer and legal business objectives.
• Identify and promote technical business improvement practices to deliver legal compliance and competitive advantage whilst driving functional improvements.
• Devise and implement a Quality Management Systems (QMS), ensuring that management information and statutory information is available for audit and MU Executive decision making.
• Ensure that the technical team has the appropriate capability to comply with food safety and quality compliance.
• Ensure that a safe working environment exists for all colleagues and that as a minimum the department meets the standards set out in the Health, Safety and Environment Policy.

What we are looking for:

• Extensive experience in chilled food manufacturing.
• Senior technical leadership experience within large, complex food manufacturing businesses.
• Proven own-label retail experience and a strong understanding of retailer standards and expectations.
• Excellent customer relationship management skills, with experience leading customer audits and building strong retail partnerships.
• Strong leadership and people development skills, with the ability to build, coach and motivate high-performing teams.
• Experience working collaboratively with Operations, Engineering, Supply Chain and other cross-functional teams.
• Strong problem-solving and decision-making skills, with a focus on continuous improvement.
• Proven experience leading technical and business improvement projects and delivering measurable KPI improvements.
• Experience developing and implementing internal audit programmes and maintaining robust food safety and quality management systems.
• A sound understanding of UK food legislation, BRCGS standards and food safety compliance.
• Level 4 HACCP or equivalent
• A degree in Food Science or a related discipline (desirable).

If this sounds like you, join us and grow with Greencore, and be a part of driving our future success.

What you’ll get in return

• Competitive salary and job-related benefits
• £5,500 car allowance per annum
• Up to 10% bonus per annum (depending on company performance)
• Private Medical Cover
• 25 Days Annual Leave + 8 Bank Holidays
• Competitive matched pension contributions
• Life insurance up to 4x salary
• Company share save scheme
• Greencore Qualifications
• Exclusive Greencore employee discount platform
• Access to a full Wellbeing Centre platform
• Enhanced parental leave and menopause policies

Throughout your time at Greencore, you will be supported with on-the-job training and development opportunities to further your career.

We reserve the right to close this advertisement before the stated closing date.

Greencore and its recruitment partners never charge candidates any fees at any stage of the hiring process. Any request for payment relating to a job opportunity should be considered fraudulent.

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