Chief Operating Officer
5 days ago
Lyon
About Us Verley is a 30+ FTE biotechnology company headquartered in Lyon, France, developing next-generation dairy proteins using precision fermentation. Our mission is to create sustainable, high-quality alternatives to animal-based ingredients, contributing to the transformation of food systems worldwide. We bring together a passionate team of scientists and engineers to turn cutting-edge technologies into real-world solutions for the food industry. Context Verley is entering a decisive phase, evolving from a solely R&D company into a fully integrated industrial group. To support this transformation, the company is establishing a strong operations organization that will become the backbone of its future growth. The challenge ahead is to scale up production in order to meet the fast-growing demand for Verley’s innovative ingredients. Today, manufacturing is outsourced to leading CMOs. In this context, Verley is recruiting a Chief Operating Officer to build and lead this new operations organization. As a key member of Verley’s executive committee team, the COO reports to the CEO and will play a central role in driving this evolution and ensuring that Verley delivers on its mission to become a global industrial leader. Your Missions Industrial Strategy & Execution • Define and implement Verley’s global industrial roadmap, delivering commercial volumes on time at the expected quality and at targeted cost in line with sales demand and business plan objectives., • Lead the scale-up and production at outsourced CMOs, and anticipate in-house manufacturing : size and structure the required industrial investment, including plant design, construction oversight, and successful commissioning., • Establish robust performance monitoring systems (KPIs, risk mapping, human resources, etc.) to drive industrial efficiency and productivity. Operations & Supply Chain Management • Build and lead the global operations organization, covering engineering, manufacturing, end-to-end supply chain, quality, full commercial readiness and regulatory compliance., • Manage procurement and governance relationships with CMOs in Europe and North America., • Ensure supply chain continuity, operational reliability, and compliance with international quality and regulatory standards within several jurisdictions., • Challenge and drive efforts to implement technical process optimizations from R&D to large scale production levels., • Own the COGS (cost of goods sold) with support from the finance team to deliver continuous optimization towards a cost reduction curve. Leadership & Cross-Functional Collaboration • Act as the orchestrator between R&D, Industrialization and Commercial teams to turn innovation into reliable large-scale production and ultimately revenues and margins., • Lead a group of high-performing engineers across multiple geographies encompassing all aspects of scalability, process robustness and reproducibility., • Champion and promote a culture of operational excellence, lean manufacturing, and ownership., • Ability to establish strategic partnerships and joint ventures with leading industry players to accelerate growth and market access. Requirements • 15+ years in senior operational leadership roles in process industries (food ingredient, biotech, or related sectors) in top tier industry companies., • Proven hands-on experience in fermentation production, either leading a production unit (industry/CMO) or driving a plant start-up (engineering company background)., • Demonstrated hands-on experience in operational management, actively solving production-floor challenges and supporting process implementation., • Proven track record in industrial strategy, scale-up, and global operations management., • Successfully implemented operational excellence frameworks (lean manufacturing, KPIs/OKRs) ensuring end-to-end delivery to clients., • Strong background in quality and regulatory compliance for food or biotech . Soft Skills • Strategic thinker with an entrepreneurial mindset, combining entrepreneurial vision with pragmatic execution and a strong ownership mentality., • Leadership and team-building skills across international, cross-functional teams., • Excellent problem-solving, resilience, and adaptability in a fast-evolving environment., • Meticulous attention to detail, combining thorough preparation with flexibility to adapt to unexpected challenges., • Strong communication and stakeholder management skills, capable of bridging R&D, operations, and commercial functions. What we offer • An innovative environment, where scientific excellence and curiosity drive cutting-edge developments in food science., • An entrepreneurial culture, where each team member has the opportunity to make a real difference and directly contribute to the company’s growth., • A global mindset, with a diverse team of experts from around the world, combining unique perspectives to tackle complex challenges., • A shared commitment, where we all share Verley’s success and growth through our employee stock option plan (BSPCE). At Verley, we celebrate diversity and inclusivity and are proud to welcome applicants of all backgrounds in our mission to revolutionize the future of food and biotechnology.
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