Environmental, Health & Safety Manager - Confidential Search

Industry: Regulated Manufacturing | Location: Midwest Region | Travel: Approximately 15%

The Opportunity

Our client, an established manufacturer within the food and beverage industry, is seeking an experienced Environmental, Health & Safety (EHS) Manager to lead the EHS function for a large manufacturing operation.

This is a highly visible leadership position with responsibility for developing and executing programs that protect employees, strengthen regulatory compliance, reduce operational risk, and continuously improve safety performance.

The EHS Manager will work closely with plant leadership, operations, engineering, quality, maintenance, and other functional teams to ensure that environmental, health, and safety considerations are incorporated into day-to-day operations and longer-term business decisions.

The successful candidate will be equally comfortable developing EHS strategy and being visible on the manufacturing floor. This role requires a hands-on leader who can identify risk, influence behavior, develop employees, and build accountability for safety throughout the organization.

Key Responsibilities

• Provide leadership and direction for environmental, health, and safety programs across the manufacturing operation.
• Develop and execute site EHS objectives, priorities, and improvement initiatives.
• Ensure compliance with applicable OSHA, EPA, state, and local environmental and workplace safety requirements.
• Maintain and continuously improve EHS policies, procedures, training programs, documentation, and management systems.
• Partner with operations and other functional leaders to incorporate EHS requirements into routine manufacturing activities.
• Establish effective methods for identifying hazards, assessing risk, investigating incidents, and tracking corrective actions.
• Analyze safety and environmental performance data to identify trends and opportunities for improvement.
• Lead investigations involving injuries, incidents, near misses, and other EHS events and ensure appropriate corrective and preventive actions are completed.
• Maintain required regulatory records and reporting, including OSHA injury and illness documentation.
• Lead site safety and environmental audits and coordinate the resolution of identified deficiencies.
• Manage programs involving lockout/tagout, hazard communication, chemical safety, emergency preparedness, and other critical EHS processes.
• Oversee the review, approval, storage, handling, and use of chemicals within the facility.
• Evaluate new equipment, processes, and facility changes to identify potential EHS risks and ensure appropriate safeguards are incorporated.
• Partner with engineering and operations on capital projects involving safety, environmental, or regulatory requirements.
• Develop and coordinate emergency preparedness programs, drills, response procedures, and employee response teams.
• Manage workers' compensation activities and support effective return-to-work programs.
• Develop and deliver training designed to strengthen EHS knowledge, regulatory compliance, hazard awareness, and employee ownership of safety.
• Promote proactive reporting of hazards, near misses, and safety concerns while building an environment of accountability and open communication.
• Support continuous improvement and operational excellence initiatives, including participation in TPM-related activities.
• Manage EHS projects, outside resources, and departmental spending within established budgets.
• Provide leadership and development to EHS team members and establish clear expectations for performance.
• Share EHS knowledge and effective practices with other operations as appropriate.
• Serve as a trusted EHS advisor to plant leadership and contribute to broader operational planning and decision-making.
• Maintain a strong presence across the operation and build effective working relationships with employees at all organizational levels.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Safety, Environmental Science, Engineering, Occupational Health, or a related discipline required.
• 10+ years of progressive EHS experience within a manufacturing environment, including significant leadership responsibility.
• EHS experience within food and beverage, consumer products, chemical processing, or another regulated manufacturing environment is highly desirable.
• Professional safety certification or equivalent advanced safety credential required.
• Strong working knowledge of OSHA, EPA, and other applicable federal and state EHS regulations.
• Demonstrated experience developing, implementing, and sustaining manufacturing safety programs, including LOTO, hazard communication, chemical safety, and emergency response.
• Experience with hazard identification and risk assessment techniques such as workplace safety observations, Gemba walks, HAZOP, near-miss reporting, and behavioral safety programs.
• Demonstrated ability to investigate incidents, determine root causes, identify trends, and implement sustainable corrective actions.
• Track record of improving safety performance and influencing safety culture within a manufacturing organization.
• Experience supporting environmental compliance programs and regulatory reporting.
• Strong analytical skills with the ability to interpret EHS data and translate findings into practical improvement initiatives.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Excel and other standard business applications.
• Strong written, verbal, presentation, and interpersonal communication skills.
• Ability to influence employees and leaders across multiple functions and organizational levels.
• Strong organizational and project-management capabilities with the ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced manufacturing environment.
• Experience in a union manufacturing environment is preferred.
• Experience supporting a continuous, multi-shift manufacturing operation is strongly preferred.
• Ability to work across shifts as needed to support employees and operations.

Leadership Profile

We are looking for an EHS leader who combines technical expertise with strong interpersonal and operational leadership. The successful candidate will be:

• Highly visible and engaged on the manufacturing floor.
• Proactive in identifying risk rather than relying solely on lagging safety indicators.
• Comfortable challenging existing practices when employee safety or regulatory compliance is at risk.
• Able to build credibility with hourly employees, supervisors, technical professionals, and senior leadership.
• Skilled at translating regulatory requirements into practical manufacturing processes.
• Effective at leading change and gaining employee commitment to new programs and expectations.
• Data-driven, organized, and disciplined in following corrective actions through completion.
• Committed to creating an environment where employees are comfortable raising concerns, reporting hazards, and taking personal ownership of safety.

Why Consider This Opportunity?

This position offers the opportunity to take a leadership role in the continued development of EHS performance within a substantial manufacturing operation. The EHS Manager will have significant visibility, direct interaction with plant leadership, and the ability to influence both immediate safety performance and the site's longer-term EHS strategy.

The role is well suited for an experienced manufacturing EHS professional who enjoys combining strategic leadership with hands-on involvement in plant operations.