Why Talent Shortages are More Damaging Than Supply Chain Issues
In the Food and Drink manufacturing industry, we're no strangers to disruption.
From Brexit to Covid, global conflicts to raw material shortages, supply chains have taken a beating over the last few years. And while those headlines have dominated, there's a quieter, more dangerous challenge threatening the industry's long term stability: the talent shortage.
Yes, a late shipment can throw off your production line. But a missing team leader, technical manager, or site director? That can derail your entire operation.
Why Talent Shortages are More Damaging Than Supply Chain Issues
Supply chain issues are temporary (usually!)
You can find a new supplier. You can build buffer stock. But what happens when the person who holds all the knowledge walks out the door?
The industry is losing experienced candidates faster than it can replace them. Retirements are increasing, and attracting new blood into the sector is harder than ever. This isn’t a short term disruption though. It’s a long term risk to capability, quality and growth.
Great people solve supply chain problems.
Resilience doesn’t happen by chance. It happens because someone brilliant planned contingencies, built strong supplier relationships, and managed the crisis calmly when it hit.
People are the problem solvers. The innovators. The ones who keep the wheels turning when chaos hits. If you don’t have the right experience in the business, even the best recovery plans fall flat.
Your people are your competitive edge.
Two factories can have the same equipment, same suppliers, same processes. But only one will consistently deliver exceptional results. Why? Because of the people running it all.
Your team is your edge. They drive efficiency, innovation, quality, and culture. Lose key players, and you lose momentum. And in an industry as fast paced and margin sensitive as Food and Drink manufacturing, you can’t afford to slow down.
You can’t stockpile talent.
When a key hire leaves, or you’re short on leadership, you feel it immediately. Delays, quality slips, missed retailer deadlines… it snowballs fast. Unlike raw materials, you can’t stockpile great people for a rainy day. Finding the right fit under pressure is even tougher in a fast moving, chilled environment.
That’s why having the right recruitment partner isn’t a ‘nice to have’. It’s essential.
What’s the Solution?
Businesses that treat hiring as a strategic priority, not a last minute panic, are the ones that come out on top.
Build robust succession plans.
Invest in leadership development.
Engage with recruiters who understand your niche.
Create environments people want to stay in.
Act fast when the right people come onto the market.
How can we Help?
At True North Talent, we speak with candidates every day who make a difference. People who can lead change, fix problems and help you sleep better at night.
Supply chains are unpredictable, your people are your safest investment. We can help ensure you stay on track.
Reach out to us.
Get in touch with us.
Use this form to send us a message, and we'll get back to you shortly.
Amy Griffith
Managing Director
Amy Griffith is Managing Director of True North Talent and a leading specialist in Food and Drink Manufacturing recruitment, with 8 years’ experience in permanent and interim hiring, executive search and talent strategy, supporting organisations and senior leaders across the UK food, drink and manufacturing sectors.
Latest Insights
Explore our latest market insights on all things food and drink manufacturing.
How specialist recruiters reduce downtime across critical site leads and technical roles
Your Engineering Manager resigns on a Friday afternoon. By Monday you've briefed three agencies. By Wednesday you're looking at twenty-two CVs, and eighteen of them have never set foot in a food environment. You've now lost most of a week and you're no closer to filling the role. The line is still running, the planned maintenance schedule is already slipping, and your Operations Manager has picked up a second job on top of their own. This is the point where the difference between a generalist agency and a specialist recruiter stops being a procurement preference and starts costing you output.
The true cost of a bad hire and why Food Manufacturers are struggling to hire middle-management roles
A new Shift Manager starts in March. By June the pattern is clear. Changeovers are taking longer than they used to, the paperwork lands late more often than not, and two of your stronger line leaders have started asking about roles at the site down the road. Nobody has done anything obviously wrong. The operation is just running worse than it was. That's what a bad hire in middle management usually looks like. It rarely announces itself, and it almost never shows up as a single event you can point at. It gets worse over time, and by the time you've named the problem you've lost six months.
When to Hire Permanent vs. Interim in Food Manufacturing
Your Technical Manager hands in their notice on a Monday morning. There's a BRCGS audit eight weeks out, a customer visit before that, and a quality management system only one person on site properly understands. By Monday afternoon, you're already behind. Production has its own version. A shift manager goes off sick with no return date. A supervisor steps up to cover, and three weeks later that supervisor is taking calls from an agency, because the extra responsibility arrived without the extra money. Both situations force the same decision. Do you run a permanent search and live with the gap, bring in an interim, or do both at once?
How specialist recruiters reduce downtime across critical site leads and technical roles
Your Engineering Manager resigns on a Friday afternoon. By Monday you've briefed three agencies. By Wednesday you're looking at twenty-two CVs, and eighteen of them have never set foot in a food environment. You've now lost most of a week and you're no closer to filling the role. The line is still running, the planned maintenance schedule is already slipping, and your Operations Manager has picked up a second job on top of their own. This is the point where the difference between a generalist agency and a specialist recruiter stops being a procurement preference and starts costing you output.
The true cost of a bad hire and why Food Manufacturers are struggling to hire middle-management roles
A new Shift Manager starts in March. By June the pattern is clear. Changeovers are taking longer than they used to, the paperwork lands late more often than not, and two of your stronger line leaders have started asking about roles at the site down the road. Nobody has done anything obviously wrong. The operation is just running worse than it was. That's what a bad hire in middle management usually looks like. It rarely announces itself, and it almost never shows up as a single event you can point at. It gets worse over time, and by the time you've named the problem you've lost six months.
When to Hire Permanent vs. Interim in Food Manufacturing
Your Technical Manager hands in their notice on a Monday morning. There's a BRCGS audit eight weeks out, a customer visit before that, and a quality management system only one person on site properly understands. By Monday afternoon, you're already behind. Production has its own version. A shift manager goes off sick with no return date. A supervisor steps up to cover, and three weeks later that supervisor is taking calls from an agency, because the extra responsibility arrived without the extra money. Both situations force the same decision. Do you run a permanent search and live with the gap, bring in an interim, or do both at once?
info@truenorthtalent.co.uk
0161 399 1575
100 Embankment,
Cathedral Approach,
Manchester,
M3 7FB
Company Registration: 14987603
VAT Number: 449301888
