Process Engineering Manager (64516)

Title: Process Engineering Manager

Department: Process Engineering

Reports To: Director of Process Engineering

Who We Are

Thistle makes it easy to eat well – without overthinking it. Thistle was founded in 2013 with a mission to help people get and stay healthy while improving the sustainability of our food system. Thistle delivers fully prepared, healthy-by-default meals, snacks, desserts, and organic cold-pressed juices. We believe the health of people starts with eating real, whole foods, in the right balance, without the friction. We’re building a future where nutritious, sustainable food is accessible, craveable, and part of everyday life.

About the Role

The Process Engineering Manager leads day-to-day process engineering and capacity planning at a single Thistle distribution center. This role translates standards used across distribution centers into site-specific work instructions, training, and continuous improvement projects. The Manager analyzes current capacity, forecasts demand, identifies potential bottlenecks, and plans for future labor, equipment, and space needs to support reliable operations and efficient resource use.

As a leader within the Supply Chain organization, this position manages and develops the site’s process engineering team. The Manager partners with site Operations Leadership, Engineering, Data Science, Procurement, Product, and Finance to improve workflows, evaluate scaling options, implement changes, and measure results. The role works closely with the Director, Process Engineering, who leads standardization across distribution centers, to ensure site practices align with broader standards and that lessons from the site inform future improvements.

How You'll Make a Difference

Site Process Engineering & Operational Excellence

• Translate standards used across distribution centers into site-specific work instructions, training materials, and production line setups.
• Evaluate production and manufacturing workflows to identify operational risks, bottlenecks, and opportunities to improve efficiency and quality.
• Lead site-level improvement projects focused on yield, labor productivity, and reducing rework and backfill.
• Partner with Production, Culinary, and Food Safety and Quality Assurance (FSQA) leaders on process changes, new product introductions, and root-cause analysis and corrective actions for nonconforming products or processes.

Capacity Planning & Performance Analytics

• Assess labor, equipment, line, and facility capacity against current production requirements and forecast demand.
• Build capacity models using historical performance, business trends, and planned product launches to identify future resource needs.
• Analyze utilization and throughput to identify constraints, evaluate options to increase capacity, and recommend cost-effective solutions.
• Track site process KPIs, including meals equivalent units (MEU) per hour, cost per MEU, and rework rate; report results and improvement plans in the weekly business review.

Process Standardization & Project Execution

• Implement process changes at the site, document results, and update work instructions and training to sustain improvements.
• Identify gaps in standards and opportunities that could benefit other distribution centers; escalate recommendations to the Senior Manager, Process Engineering.
• Coordinate with site leaders to plan and execute changes while minimizing disruption to production.

People Leadership & Collaboration

• Coach and develop the site’s process engineering team, including support for hiring, onboarding, and performance management.
• Work closely with Operations, Engineering, Data Science, Product, Procurement, and Finance to align process and capacity plans with business needs.
• Communicate technical findings and recommendations clearly to site leaders and other stakeholders.