At Lely, we believe in a sustainable, profitable, and enjoyable future for farming. Our mission is to make farmers’ work easier while ensuring animal welfare and improved productivity. Lely is an international family-owned business that operates through a strong international structure. From our headquarters in Maassluis, the Netherlands, we manage nine regional clusters, each responsible for coordinating activities across a group of countries.
Within these clusters, we collaborate with more than 200 Lely Centers around the world. These Lely Centers are Lely´s route to the market. Some are independently run franchise partners, others—like Lely Center Waikato—are fully owned by Lely. The Lely-owned Centers reflect our long-term commitment to the region and our belief in developing scalable, high-quality operations in-house. With a team of 11 dedicated professionals Lely Center Waikato plays an important role in transforming New Zealand’s dairy farms into a more resilient and technology-driven industry.
Job Description
As Service Manager at Lely Center Waikato, you hold strategic and operational responsibility for all technical service activities within New Zealand. You are a key driver in delivering an exceptional customer experience and play a vital role in building a service organization that supports our farmers with knowledge, reliability, and efficiency. Your focus is not only on optimizing daily service operations but also on developing a sustainable service strategy that aligns with Lely’s vision of the farm of the future.
You will lead a multidisciplinary team that includes Product Specialists, Service Technicians, and Installation professionals. Your leadership ensures that the team is well-equipped and motivated to deliver proactive support and high-quality technical service to our customers. In doing so, you actively contribute to Lely’s ambition to increase the use of automation and robotics in dairy farming.
Together with the Lely Center Management Team, you define the direction of the organization and contribute to the continuous development of the Center as a reliable, long-term partner for dairy farmers. You collaborate closely with other departments such as Sales, Project Coordination, Business Support, and Cluster TSS (Technical Service Support) to deliver integrated customer solutions and maintain operational excellence.
You will:
- Translate the Lely Service Management vision into a local strategy and implement it within the Lely Center.
- Lead, coach, and develop the Service team to ensure the delivery of optimal service quality and technical excellence.
- Monitor and improve customer satisfaction by setting and achieving KPIs, addressing service feedback, and ensuring structured follow-up of complaints.
- Analyze service data and performance to initiate improvements and increase profitability in the aftermarket.
- Safeguard the quality and consistency of service processes, conduct audits, and ensure compliance with health, safety, and environmental standards.
- Manage the service budget and monthly reporting, and take responsibility for achieving EBIT targets.
Are you a strong people leader with technical expertise and a passion for agriculture and innovation? Then we invite you to be part of our mission to shape the future of dairy farming.
Qualifications
We are looking for someone that brings technical expertise and a people-focused mindset. You are driven by results and passionate about improving service performance and customer experience.
You bring the following:
- Demonstrated leadership experience in managing technical service teams.
- Proven knowledge of Service Management and project coordination.
- High-level technical insight and the ability to translate data into strategic actions.
- Strong interpersonal and coaching skills, with a talent for engaging and motivating teams.
- Conflict management capabilities and the ability to stay composed under pressure.
- A basic understanding of legal frameworks related to service operations.
Additional Information
Aside from a challenging opportunity in an area with more cows than people, we also offer the following compensation and benefits:
- An international working environment with opportunities for own initiative and entrepreneurship.
- A competitive salary in which we like to see opportunities for growth from your starting salary towards the future