Ready to lead a leading manufacturing operation and take an established betaine product to the next level at our Naantali site and join us as our new Plant Manager?
Bring your business acumen, growth mindset and strategic perspective to a site with diverse product streams – where you’ll set the standard, elevate our Naantali site to the next level and shape our upcoming trajectory. IFF is a global leader in flavors, fragrances, food ingredients and health & biosciences. We deliver sustainable innovations that elevate everyday products. The role is based in Naantali, Southwest Finland. Be part of a curious, ambitious, impact‑driven team where together we can achieve greatness and make a real impact. Your potential is our inspiration!
Where You’ll Make a Difference
- Own end‑to‑end plant operations (production, materials, quality control and manufacturing engineering) to meet shipping requirements and sales commitments in the most cost‑effective way
- Lead a semi‑continuous process environment with multiple incoming product streams, ensuring stable throughput, high yield and predictable service levels
- Shape the next five years; build the capability roadmap, staffing trajectory and improvement portfolio that takes Naantali from solid performance to “next level”
- Elevate the Naantali site and clarify what we own, what we influence, and how we interface with other Finnish locations while keeping our site’s identity and autonomy.
- Drive business outcomes and own budget, unit costs, and inventory health; turn data into decisions that protect margin and increase competitiveness
- Champion quality and EHS; maintain robust quality systems and safe operations in a mature product context with zero‑compromise standards
- Coach and develop the site team and create clarity, capability, and accountability; ensure everyone understands the “why” behind the standard
- Collaborate cross‑functionally with Supply Chain, Commercial, Finance, Engineering and other sites to improve reliability and customer satisfaction
- Strengthen site agency and competitiveness by navigating external constraints with clarity and by unlocking improvement opportunities that exist within Naantali’s own control
- See beyond imposed limits and build a roadmap that positions Naantali to lead in a mature product environment
What Makes You the Right Fit
- Growth mindset; you’re ready to learn, build, and scale this operation over the upcoming years
- Strong business acumen; you connect shop‑floor realities with P&L, cost/ton, and working capital decisions
- Fast learner in betaine; willing and able to master a standalone, mature product and its specific process needs
- Full working proficiency in Finnish and English to effortlessly convey messages to both local and global stakeholders in your everyday work
- Helicopter view with the ability to also dive into details; comfortable moving from strategy to line‑side problem‑solving
- Proven experience in semi‑continuous or batch process manufacturing (food/ingredients/chemicals or similar)
- People leadership; clear communication, coaching, and performance routines that build team understanding
- You thrive in mature operations where improvement requires insight, influence, and system level thinking rather than just high-speed change
- You challenge perceived constraints with facts and clarity, helping teams discover what they can own and influence
- Familiarity with quality systems and EHS compliance in a regulated manufacturing environment
- ERP/data fluency (e.g., SAP or similar); you use data to steer and to simplify
How Would You Stand Out?
- You’ve scaled capacity or reliability in a standalone product line and matured the operation without over‑engineering
- Demonstrated OEE/yield/cost improvements using lean/continuous improvement toolkits
- Comfortable partnering with Finance; translating operational levers into financial outcomes and vice versa
Why Choose Us?
- Own a critical site with autonomy to shape the standard and even grow the scope of Naantali
- Impact that matters with a direct line from your decisions to customer service, cost, and growth
- Global colleagues, local pride; collaborate across IFF while preserving Naantali’s distinct identity
- Learn and grow with an access to training, development, and cross‑functional projects
- Purpose and performance; join a company committed to safety, quality, and sustainable innovation
Interested? We encourage you to submit your application as soon as possible, but at the latest by February 8, 2026. We go through applications on an ongoing basis, and may proceed to interviews with the most potential candidates already during the application period.
Kindly note that, in compliance with GDPR regulations and our commitment to ensuring equal opportunity for all applicants, we are unable to accept applications via email. Please ensure that your application is submitted exclusively through Workday.
We are a global leader in taste, scent, and nutrition, offering our customers a broader range of natural solutions and accelerating our growth strategy. At IFF, we believe that your uniqueness unleashes our potential. We value the diverse mosaic of the ethnicity, national origin, race, age, sex, or veteran status. We strive for an inclusive workplace that allows each of our colleagues to bring their authentic self to work regardless of their religion, gender identity & expression, sexual orientation, or disability.
Visit IFF.com/careers/workplace-diversity-and-inclusion to learn more