General Manager - Munson Lakes Nutrition

Land O'Lakes

Howard Lake, MN

Estimated pay: Est. $23–$31/hr (market estimate, not employer-stated)

Shift: Full time

General Manager - Munson Lakes Nutrition Executive Summary Opportunity Overview Munson Lakes Nutrition (MLN) is a premier animal nutrition joint venture founded on a decades-long legacy of manufacturing excellence, cutting-edge formulation, and customer-first service across dairy, beef, and broader livestock sectors. Owned collaboratively by agricultural cooperative partners—including Land O’Lakes / Purina and regional member cooperatives Centra Sota, Crystal Valley and Federated COOPMLN delivers tailored feed solutions and dedicated on-farm consulting throughout the Upper Midwest. The General Manager / CEO will serve as the chief executive officer of the joint venture, holding full enterprise P L responsibility. This executive will lead strategic planning, sales, multi-site operations, commercial expansion, finance and human resources. The ideal leader combines visionary commercial and operational leadership with deep agribusiness acumen, adeptly steering a rapidly growing multi-mill business while nurturing vital stakeholder relationships with cooperative owners and producer-members. Core Strategic Mandate Expansion: Participate in and evaluate opportunities to expand the organization’s market presence. Ensure the successful integration of any merger including operational, cultural, and technological integration into MLN’s unified production, quality, and delivery platform. Revenue Growth: Architect, build, and motivate a high-performing commercial sales organization capable of driving market share, optimizing product mix, and elevating technical nutrition consulting across expanded territories. Operational Excellence Safety: Instill world-class safety, preventative maintenance, inventory management, and automated manufacturing standards across all facilities. JV Governance Stakeholder Alignment: Partner transparently with the Board of Directors and owner-cooperatives to align growth strategies, capital allocations, and value delivery back to member owners. Key Responsibilities Accountabilities A. Strategic Leadership Serve as principal advisor to the Board of Directors; participate in strategic planning, long-term capital forecasting, and enterprise risk management. Foster high-trust, collaborative relationships across owner entities ensuring business strategies harmonize with owner objectives. Establish annual business plans, operating budgets, and capital expenditure (CapEx) proposals; deliver transparent quarterly governance and performance reporting. Serve as the public face and executive ambassador of Munson Lakes Nutrition within the agricultural community, trade associations, and customer networks. B. Commercial Strategy Sales Expansion Lead the vision, structure, and execution for the expanded commercial sales organization, driving aggressive yet profitable volume and revenue growth. Partner with the sales leadership team to recruit, develop, and retain elite technical sales specialists, ruminant nutritionists, and key account managers. Expand market penetration in primary dairy and beef production belts across Minnesota, Wisconsin, and neighboring states. Refine value-added service offerings, including on-farm consulting, ration balancing, custom formulations, and digital agricultural decision tools. Establish clear sales performance metrics, incentive structures, and CRM-driven pipeline disciplines. C. Multi-Facility Operations Supply Chain Integration Maintain operational oversight across manufacturing locations, driving capacity utilization and throughput efficiency. Unify operating methodologies, automation platforms, standard operating procedures (SOPs), and quality assurance frameworks across all mill locations. Direct logistics and delivery operations—including MLN s dedicated bulk and bag delivery fleet—to optimize route density, dispatch efficiency, equipment reliability, and customer service standards. Lead strategic ingredient procurement, commodity risk management, and vendor relationships in close coordination with ownership purchasing networks. Prioritize an uncompromising workplace safety culture, targeting zero-incident operations across all manufacturing sites and transportation assets. D. Quality Assurance, Regulatory Biosecurity Safeguard MLN’s reputation for superior feed safety, ensuring strict adherence to FDA regulations, FSMA, CGMP, HACCP certifications, and advanced medicated feed licenses. Standardize testing, batch tracking, trace-back capabilities, and quality control protocols across all acquired and legacy plants. Maintain environmental, health, and safety (EHS) compliance across local, state, and federal jurisdictions. E. Financial Leadership Enterprise P L Hold full P L accountability, driving top-line revenue growth, gross margin expansion, operational efficiency, and EBITDA targets. Direct working capital management, accounts receivable, inventory turns, and credit policy adherence in partnership with the Controller. Develop thorough ROI business cases for capit