Operations Manager (Wastewater Treatment) - Gauteng (Site-based) - Salary: R35 000 CTC + Medical Aid + Fuel Card

SUMMARY:
This role ensures reliable plant performance, regulatory compliance, operator development, and operational excellence across all sites.

POSITION INFO:

Operations Manager (Wastewater Treatment) - Gauteng (Site-based) - Salary: R35 000 CTC + Medical Aid + Fuel Card

About the Role

An exciting opportunity has arisen for a results-driven Operations Manager to oversee the day-to-day performance, safety, and compliance of multiple wastewater treatment plants. This role ensures reliable plant performance, regulatory compliance, operator development, and operational excellence across all sites. You will lead a team of seven operators, providing technical guidance, performance management, and operational leadership.

Key Responsibilities

• Operational Oversight: Manage the daily operations of multiple plants to ensure optimal performance, uptime, and compliance with design parameters. Monitor plant KPIs, effluent quality, chemical usage, and process stability.
• Team Leadership & Development: Lead, mentor, and supervise a team of seven operators. Conduct performance reviews, skills assessments, and training plans to foster a culture of accountability and safety.
• Compliance & Quality Assurance: Ensure all plants operate in full compliance with national water quality regulations and environmental standards. Coordinate sampling, laboratory testing, and maintain accurate operational logs.
• Technical Support & Troubleshooting: Provide hands-on technical guidance for process optimization, troubleshooting, and corrective actions. Collaborate with engineering teams on upgrades and support commissioning activities.
• Financial & Budgetary Control: Prepare, manage, and monitor the monthly chemicals and consumables budget. Forecast monthly requirements, monitor actual usage vs. budget, and identify cost-saving opportunities through process optimization.
• Health & Safety (HSE): Enforce strict adherence to HSE protocols across all sites, conducting routine safety audits and risk assessments.

Monthly Measurable Deliverables (KPIs)

• Plant Performance: Achieve plant uptime across all sites and maintain plant capacity on volumes.
• Incident Management: Ensure zero unresolved critical alarms older than 48 hours.
• Workforce Development: Log a minimum of 2 hours of training per operator per month and conduct monthly performance check-ins.
• Safety Excellence: Maintain zero lost-time incidents (LTIs) per month.
• Resource Management: Ensure zero occurrences of chemical and consumable stockouts and keep chemical usage variance against the monthly budget.

Requirements & Qualifications

• Proven experience in managing the daily operations, technical troubleshooting, and optimization of wastewater treatment plants.
• Demonstrated leadership capability with experience managing, training, and mentoring a team of operators.
• Deep understanding of national water quality regulations, environmental standards, and site safety management.
• Strong financial acumen with experience managing operational budgets and inventory forecasting.
• Willingness to perform site-based work across regional locations.