- Lead a high performing site as volume doubles

- Newly elevated role with real autonomy and P&L;

- Clear pathway to multi-site leadership

About the opportunity

Our client is a national, ASX-listed leader in essential environmental and industrial services, and supports industry, business and communities across Australia. This newly elevated role gives you full ownership of a busy, strategically important materials handling and processing site in Melbourne’s southeast. The site runs mobile plant, a weighbridge and a high daily throughput, with a steady flow of commercial and retail customers.

It already performs well, with a close-knit team, excellent customer feedback and strong safety results. You’re not there to fix it. You’re there to lead it through its next chapter as volume and capacity double over the next 12 months.

You’ll own the site end to end across a seven-day operation. That covers safety, compliance, logistics, plant, customers, people and the P&L.; You’ll lead a team of around 10 plant operators, ground crew and weighbridge staff, and you’ll have specialist HSE, finance, logistics and commercial partners to support you.

- First 90 days: You’ll get to know the team, the customers and the operating rhythm. You’ll take back full ownership of scheduling, equipment and site audits, and get under the skin of the site’s financials.

- By 6 months: Your traffic management and mobile plant safety systems are embedded. Outsourced logistics costs are tracking to budget, and your capacity plan for growth (resourcing, plant, traffic flow and layout) is agreed.

- At 12 months: You’re running the site on your own and KPIs are consistently green. The growth has been absorbed without losing service or culture, and you’ve developed your team into its next leaders.

About you

You’re the leader people want to work for. You may already be an Operations Manager,



or a strong Site Supervisor ready to step up. Either way, you’ve led blue-collar, site-based teams, and you can point to the time you took one from good to great: what you did and what the result was.

You think in systems, not quick fixes. You’re comfortable with volumes, costs and a site P&L;, and you lead safety from the front, ideally including traffic management and plant–people interaction. You stay calm with customers, you get the best from contractors, and you know outstanding culture is something you protect, not reset.

Leaders from quarrying, construction materials, logistics, distribution, warehousing, manufacturing or waste will all thrive here. Experience with loaders and excavators is a bonus. What’s on offer

You’ll have real autonomy to put your stamp on a growing site. Your manager sets a high bar and invests in your development, and there’s a clear path to multi-site responsibility from year two. You’ll be joining a large ASX-listed organisation with national career pathways, recognition and wellbeing support. Benefits include novated leasing, salary packaging and discounted health insurance. Core hours are Monday to Friday, with leadership oversight of the reduced-hours weekend operation.

For further information please apply via the role advert or contact Sarah Layer or Scott Craig with any specific questions: @areteexecutive.com.au. You must have unrestricted working rights in Australia to apply. As part of the process, pre-employment checks will be conducted.

Arete Executive specialises in the Search & Recruitment of Leadership & Executive roles throughout Australia. We offer cost effective headhunting services from 10% with guaranteed results delivered in under 20 days. Candidate confidentiality is assured with all applications, with your privacy being our utmost priority. Partner with us for fast, reliable, and impactful recruitment solutions.

📌 Operations Manager (East Melbourne)
🏢 Arete Executive
📍 East Melbourne