Chief Operating Officer

About the business

Pinata Farms is a long-established Australian, family-run horticulture business with roots going back to the 1960s, when founder Geoff Scurr began growing pineapples. Headquartered in Wamuran on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast, the company operates across several regions of Australia, including the Northern Territory, southern Queensland’s high country, and southern Tasmania. Its portfolio includes premium pineapples, Honey Gold® mangoes, strawberries, and specialty berries, grown in locations with different climate conditions that support fruit quality.

Role overview

The business is looking for an experienced and commercially focused Chief Operating Officer to bring together and strengthen operations across multiple sites. This leader will be responsible for making sure the operating model works effectively across farms, packhouse operations, labour use, maintenance, operating systems, productivity, efficiency, and site leadership.

The position sits at the centre of converting business strategy into reliable day-to-day execution in a complex fresh produce environment spanning several locations.

The successful candidate will guide operational leaders and site managers to create consistency, accountability, and strong performance while also balancing production results, labour efficiency, quality standards, customer commitments, and commercial priorities.

Career growth

This role offers a pathway into broader executive leadership, with potential advancement to Chief Executive Officer reporting to the Board.

Key responsibilities

• Oversee and connect operational performance across all production sites.
• Set and maintain consistent standards across farms and packhouses.
• Strengthen labour productivity, operational efficiency, and cost discipline.
• Develop capability and accountability within operational leadership teams.
• Align production activity, packhouse throughput, and customer needs.
• Lead continuous improvement efforts and ensure strong execution.
• Put in place effective KPI routines, reporting practices, and operational governance.
• Spot underperforming locations or operational risks early and take corrective action.
• Partner with Commercial, QA, Finance, and People & Culture teams to keep operations aligned.
• Support scalable systems and long-term sustainable business growth.

What success looks like

• Greater consistency across sites through standardised processes and systems.
• Improved performance in lower-performing areas.
• Stronger leadership capability across operations.
• Better labour efficiency and workforce utilisation.
• More disciplined execution and follow-through.
• Clearer operational visibility through dependable systems and reporting.
• Well-balanced decisions that consider both operations and commercial outcomes.
• Higher trust and accountability across operational teams.

Candidate profile

The ideal applicant will be a practical, commercially astute operations leader with substantial experience in multi-site fresh produce, agriculture, horticulture, food production, or another similarly complex operating environment.

Because the work is labour-intensive, the business is looking for someone who has led large operational workforces and can demonstrate strong capability in people leadership, workforce productivity, engagement, performance, and efficiency. Success will depend on the ability to balance commercial goals with effective workforce management so that labour, productivity, and operations are optimised across both seasonal and year-round activity.

Additional information

This is a full-time position based in Wamuran, Queensland, Australia, with a remote work arrangement indicated in the source information.

No salary or stipend details were provided.

No vacancy count, start date, application deadline, or employment duration were specified.

The source included a request to apply through an external job site and a confidential contact number, which have been omitted here.