General Manager

The General Manager (GM) leads day-to-day operations of the Vandalia controlled environment agriculture (CEA) facility. The GM owns site-level P&L, production performance, safety, people, and the operational execution required to deliver on offtake commitments. The GM reports to the executive leadership team and is the senior on-site leader at Vandalia.

This is a hands-on role for an operator who is comfortable moving between the greenhouse floor, the spreadsheet, and the boardroom. The right candidate has run a high-volume produce or CEA operation, has built and led teams, and has a track record of hitting yield, quality, and cost targets.

Key Responsibilities

Operations & Production

• Own all production operations at Vandalia, including grow programs, crop scheduling, harvest, packaging, and dispatch.
• Hit weekly and monthly targets for yield (kg/m²), quality grade, food safety, and on-time fulfillment to offtake partners.
• Partner with the grow technology provider (Mastronardi) on agronomy, plant material, inputs, and equipment readiness.
• Drive continuous improvement in cycle time, labor productivity, energy use, and crop loss.

Financial Performance

• Own site P&L. Manage revenue, COGS, and OPEX against budget; report monthly variances with corrective actions.
• Approve site-level purchase orders within delegated authority; control labor cost and overtime.
• Partner with finance on forecasting, capital requests, and working capital management.

People & Leadership

• Build, lead, and develop the Vandalia team across grow, harvest/pack, maintenance, food safety, and admin.
• Set the standard for safety culture. Own OSHA compliance, incident reporting, and corrective action.
• Recruit, onboard, and retain hourly and salaried staff; manage labor agreements and workforce planning.
• Conduct performance reviews and succession planning for direct reports.

Commercial & Customer

• Serve as primary site contact for the offtake partner; ensure delivery against contractual volumes and specifications.
• Maintain customer-facing quality and food safety certifications (e.g., GFSI - SQF or PrimusGFS, GAP).
• Support commercial leadership during offtake renewals and any expansion conversations.

Compliance, Safety & Quality

• Ensure compliance with all federal, state of West Virginia, and local regulations covering food safety, labor, environmental, and agricultural practices.
• Maintain audit readiness at all times - food safety, regulatory, customer, and financial.
• Own the facility’s integrated pest management (IPM) program and biosecurity protocols.

Reporting & Cadence

• Deliver a standardized weekly operating report covering yield, price, revenue, COGS, OPEX, labor, and key incidents.
• Participate in weekly executive operating reviews and a monthly business review.
• Maintain and update KPIs against the agreed reporting framework.

Required Qualifications

• 7+ years of progressive operations leadership experience in controlled environment agriculture, greenhouse produce, food manufacturing, or a comparable high-volume perishables operation.
• 3+ years in a plant manager, site lead, or general manager role with full P&L accountability.
• Demonstrated record of meeting or exceeding yield, quality, and cost targets in a multi-shift environment.
• Experience leading teams of 50+ employees, including hourly workforce management.
• Strong working knowledge of food safety standards (GFSI, FSMA) and OSHA compliance.
• Financial literacy: ability to read and act on P&L, build operating budgets, and manage to variance.
• Bachelor’s degree in agriculture, horticulture, food science, engineering, business, or a related field - or equivalent operating experience.

Preferred Qualifications

• Direct experience with high-tech greenhouse (hydroponic, glass, or poly) operations growing tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, berries, or leafy greens.
• Experience operating under an offtake or category-management agreement with a major grower-marketer (e.g., Mastronardi, NatureFresh, Windset, Pure Flavor).
• Start-up or commissioning experience - bringing a new facility from build-out to steady-state production.
• Experience working with private equity or institutional investors and reporting to a board.
• Lean / Six Sigma or equivalent continuous improvement training.

Personal Attributes

• Operator’s mindset - bias to action, comfortable on the floor, willing to do the work.
• Direct and clear communicator who builds trust with crews, customers, and investors.
• Data-driven decision maker who can also lead through ambiguity.
• High integrity and strong safety-first instincts.

Location & Travel

Based on-site at Vandalia, West Virginia. Periodic travel to corporate, customer, and supplier locations expected.

Compensation

Competitive base salary, performance-based annual incentive, and equity / long-term incentive participation. Full benefits package. Specific compensation to be discussed with qualified candidates.

Reporting Relationship

Reports to: Executive Leadership / Board
Direct reports: Head Grower, Operations / Pack-House Manager, Maintenance Lead, Food Safety & Quality Lead, Admin / HR Lead