THE ORGANIZATION

Our client, Kicking Horse Coffee Co. Ltd., has been named one of the Best Workplaces in Canada by Great Place to Work for multiple years. Founded and nestled in the beautiful Canadian Rocky Mountains, the scenic valley of Invermere, British Columbia, Kicking Horse Coffee prides themselves in being a fast-growing company, with a kick-ass culture that currently employs over 110 people in a 66,000-square foot roasting and packing facility.  Their question to the world is, “How will you wake up and kick ass with us?”

As Canada’s #1 leader in selling whole bean organic coffee for over 25 years; they are experiencing gains in premium and natural markets keeping their brand sophisticated and versatile, yet accessible and approachable. All their coffee is 100% Organic and Fairtrade, roasted right in the Canadian Rocky Mountains, smack dab in the middle of nowhere. Kicking Horse Coffee is now partially owned by Lavazza, an Italian global coffee manufacturer operated by third and fourth generations of the Lavazza family.

With a reputation renowned for their superior, consistent taste Kicking Horse Coffee is respected for their relentless commitment to good and sustainable practices; for example their Kick Ass blend was named Canada’s Fairtrade Product of the Year in 2016.  Kicking Horse Coffee customers are loyal, fervent and demand goodness in every cup for it’s all deep, dark, and delicious, roasted coffee products.

Employees of Kicking Horse Coffee live the core values, referred to as Spirit, in every aspect of their operation.  Their values are their roadmap for decision making and their guidebook for behaviour. They are their mantra; its how they wake up and kick ass everyday.

SPIRIT

Awake: Stay curious, learn, learn, learn. Know that the world impacts our story, and that our story impacts the world. To be awake is to consider everyone in our story.

Courageous: Be bold. Speak up. Have confidence to be the best. Never settle for less. Contribute to a culture of inquiry. Ask questions. To be courageous is to lead with the heart, to the core.

Intentional: Everything with a plan. Keep thinking, improving. Anticipate next steps and actions. Examine and curate every part of experience. Make thoughtful decisions: that’s how we get good – even great. Our story is the product of a thousand small gestures. Do every little thing with good intention.

Sophisticated: Refined, yet welcoming. Dignity strengthened with humbleness. Distinguished yet approachable. Strength, with grace. Seek simplicity. Scorn mediocrity. Source the best. Intention with sophistication creates outstanding experiences.

Love: Passion beyond ourselves. Seeking connection. A whole-hearted presence. A celebration of life.

Living in Invermere, British Columbia – The Columbia Valley

Known as “The Valley of a Thousand Peaks”, the Columbia Valley is located between the Rocky Mountains and the Purcell Mountain Range in British Columbia’s Kootenay-Rockies region and is on Mountain Time

Regional Information:

• Population of over 9,000 permanent and 20,000 seasonal residents.
• Canadian Rockies International Airport within 1.5-hour drive (140 km).

Lifestyle & Recreation:

• Natural and recreational attractions including Kootenay National Park, Lakes Windermere and Columbia, the Purcell and Rocky Mountain ranges, the mighty Columbia River, and the largest continuous wetlands in North America.
• Unlimited year-round outdoor recreation including Nordic and downhill skiing, hiking, mountain biking, kayaking, canoeing, hunting, fishing, wildlife viewing, mountaineering, white-water rafting, snowmobiling, and bird watching.
• Lake Windermere Whiteway – a 35 km groomed track that is a paradise for skaters and skiers and creates a recreation area used by anglers, curling bonspiels, hockey tournaments and more.
• Championship golfing with 15 courses located within the region.
• Check out these links for a peek at summer and winter activities:
• Glacier: The Hiker’s National Park – Ultimate Guide – YouTube: Ultimate Guide By Steve Salis
• World’s Longest Ice Skating Trail – The Whiteway – Take Me – Bing video: Take me There

Education & Health Care:

Post-secondary education is available through College of the Rockies; excellent pre-schools and public schools serve all communities.  Accessible health care with Invermere & District Hospital serving the Columbia Valley and family doctors available for new residents.

For more information visit:

• Columbia Valley, BC – Imagine Kootenay – Imagine Kootenay
• Visit Kicking Horse Coffee – kickinghorsecoffee.com

THE OPPORTUNITY

As the Vice President, Operations you will report to the CEO and will be a key member of the Senior Leadership team. The successful candidate will take an unconventional approach to unlocking Kicking Horse Coffee’s growth potential. Your mission is to drive operational excellence while ensuring Kicking Horse Coffee remains one of the Best Workplaces™ in Canada!

You are the lover of a good puzzle; you have an uncanny ability to see how all the pieces fit together. You care deeply. About people. About process. And about coffee. You understand the connection between empowering a team and exceptional business performance. You’ve perfected the blend of strategic thinking, operational planning and helping your teams thrive. Passionate, energetic and focussed, you get ‘er done while having fun!

Kicking Horse Coffee has set the stage for exceptional growth, and you’ll map the route to get them there! You will enable an environment that fosters a remarkable work culture that drives business results. You’ll expand their operational effectiveness and efficiencies though collaboration with your leaders, leveraging Kaizen principles and tools.

You are an individual that cherishes a lifestyle of outdoor living and all that a mountain community can offer. You view this as your opportunity to bring your lifestyle together with your career where you are blessed to live in the Columbia Valley, BC – Kootenay region with breath-taking scenery and an amazing community. You are excited to enjoy outdoor year-round sporting and recreational activities and adventures; or possibly, a day of self relaxing where you look forward to mingling with other community members enjoying the local restaurants, such as the Kicking Horse Café, slated to re-open in mid 2022.

RESPONSIBILITIES

• As a member of the Senior Leadership Team, contribute to setting the strategic direction for the business.
• Aligned to strategic priorities, work to build short-term and long-term plans for infrastructure, facility, equipment, logistics and production capacity.
• Provide direction and leadership for your team by communicating a clear vision, enabling execution by providing the appropriate resources and removing any barriers that get in their way.
• Ensure all elements of the manufacturing process are aligned to best practices that consistently reach Kicking Horse Coffee product quality and food safety standards.
• Hold employee safety as a top priority, implementing solutions that continuously improve the work environment and conditions for your teams.
• Understand that sustainability is at the heart of Kicking Horse Coffee’s operations; continue to identify products, revise processes and leverage technologies that improve their impact on the environment throughout their manufacturing and logistics processes.
• Use Kaizen principles as a basis for execution, putting respect for people at the heart of continuous improvement efforts.
• Work closely with their partners at Lavazza; acting as a bridge in the organization and leveraging their expertise to accelerate growth plans.

FIRST YEAR – MEASURES OF SUCCESS

• Build solid, trusting, respectful relationships within the Sr. Leadership Team and among departments to align on attaining long term goals.
• Determine effective methods for process improvements and generate an action plan to facilitate the corporate vision and objectives.
• Build a cohesive team and lead out the industrial plan, gaining buy-in from all internal stakeholders, aligning people to the vision and processes to facilitate growth and expansion.
• Increase employee well being, ensuring alignment and motivating team members to optimal performance.

SECOND/THIRD YEAR – MEASURES OF SUCCESS

• Double Kicking Horse Coffee’s production volume and increase consumer loyalty through delivery of an exceptional coffee experience in terms of quality and consistency.
• Capitalizing on the strong relationship with Lavazza, improve efficiency by reducing costs while increasing production capacity.
• Improve workforce planning so that team members have a clear path, workloads are sustainable, and that employees have a voice which will improve satisfaction rates.

THE INDIVIDUAL

Given the pivotal role this individual will be expected to play in achieving the strategic objectives of the company and in supporting the success of the organization, it is essential that the successful candidate possess the following core competencies, experience, and attributes:

Education

• Post secondary education in business or operations related discipline is an asset.

Experience

• In this industry, you have 10+ years’ experience in manufacturing and/or operations management.
• Experience working in Food and/or Consumer Packaged Goods is an asset.
• An engineering or food technology background would be an asset.
• At this level, you bring at least 10 years’ experience managing, coaching, and developing highly functional leaders and teams.

Competencies and Knowledge

• You’ve taken organizations through significant growth and have built and executed industrial plans.
• You’ve led or participated in operational transformations through implementation of continuous improvement programs.
• You’re no stranger to ERP systems. Experience with SAP integrations considered an asset.
• You’ve got experience improving job quality through successful automation initiatives.

Personal Profile

• Driven self-starter with business acumen, presence, maturity, and professionalism to operate at all levels of the company.
• Change doesn’t scare you; you’ve got grit! Not only do you thrive, but you set the example for sound change management with your teams.
• You enjoy challenge, building systems and processes.
• You have a dream to be different, to create a world you want to see.
• You value farm to cup sustainability.
• Data driven with a high degree of financial and operational metrics acumen.
• Positive, passionate, authentic, personable, and empathetic; people like to work with you!
• Ability to effectively counsel, influence, prioritize, project-manage, problem solve and deliver results.
• Ability to maintain strict confidentiality, use discretion, diplomacy, and tact.
• Exceptional communication skills; verbal, written and presentation.
• Strong working knowledge of PC applications (MS Teams, MS Planner, Outlook, Excel, Word, and PowerPoint).
• Creative mindset with the ability to translate ideas into action.
• Annihilate mediocrity with strong attention to detail; high standards for quality; excellent time management.
• You’ve got experience improving job quality through successful automation initiatives.
• You enjoy a good challenge and can implement systems and processes to accomplish your goals.
• You have a dream to be different, and work to create the world you want to see.

COMPENSATION

An excellent compensation package awaits the successful candidate.

LOCATION

Invermere, British Columbia, Canada. The successful candidate must be willing to relocate to Invermere by summer 2022 or sooner.

HOW TO APPLY

For the opportunity to join Kicking Horse Coffee in the role of the Vice President, Operations please email your resume to DreamBig@profoundtalent.com referencing Position ID# AYCB-623070.

Should you have an inquiry regarding this position, please contact Stacey Laing at 587-200-0114 ext. 104.

For further information on ProFound Talent Inc. please visit:

Website: www.profoundtalent.com
YouTube: ProFound Talent Inc.

* We are grateful to everyone that takes the time to apply for this role. Those who will be advancing in the process will be contacted directly.*