Role Description
As a Team Leader you will be given the responsibility of running a shift on a production line at one of our factories. You will be in charge of all things relating to the production of our famous products from the equipment to the people, ensuring that orders are met on time and in full. A Team Leader’s primary role is to motivate your team of operators and maintenance technicians to achieve the best possible product quality in a safe and environmentally friendly way. Costs are also an important factor of the job as you will have to manage labour effectively so to limit waste and to reach the production targets.
This role will develop your people managing skills but you will need to show strong leadership and an ability to deal with the different needs of your team. You will need to interact with a wide range of people outside of your immediate team which will develop your communication skills. Things happen quickly in this area so a team leader will have to show excellent judgement and have the drive to get issues dealt with effectively and quickly to minimise disruption to production.
Profile: Team Leader (Mini Eggs) – Ben Wiseman
The friendliness and openness of my colleagues was one of my first impressions when I arrived. There are always people who are willing to answer questions and, in fact, you're encouraged to ask them! "If I had to sum up my job here at Cadbury in three words, I'd say demanding, satisfying and delicious! I'm working as a shift manager on the Mini Eggs plant in our Somerdale factory and I sometimes wonder how I ever got here. My degree was in Classics, so it's a little surprising that I spend my day wearing a hairnet and worrying about valves, flanges and motors. It's a long way from Virgil's Aeneid!
"I work twelve-hour shifts on rotating days and nights, which means that my day starts with a handover either 6.30 in the morning or evening. The first hour is spent assessing what we need to produce, how many staff I have in and any issues that have cropped up. I brief my team at 7.45 and during the week, I chair the morning meeting with other managers and engineers in the department, where we review plant performance and discussing upcoming developments. I then spend the shift making decisions, resolving problems and making sure that everyone in the team knows what is expected. Every shift is different and you have to balance the daily operational tasks with the challenges of managing a large team. Twelve hours may sound like a long time, but it usually goes by very quickly.
"This job has developed my knowledge and day-to-day management skills and the company has supported me in operating outside my accustomed comfort zone. I'd never worked in a factory before joining the business and I was struck by the high level of support offered by others around me. The friendliness and openness of my colleagues was one of my first impressions when I arrived. There are always people who are willing to answer questions and, in fact, you're encouraged to ask them. Furthermore, when you join the graduate scheme, you are expected to make contacts at all levels of the business - from other graduates through to directors."
Click here to read the experiences of a team leader working on one of our Moulded production lines.