Chief Metallurgist

Job Description

Chief Metallurgist
Location: Western U.S.

About the Opportunity
Our client is preparing for a potential restart of a significant precious metals operation, and metallurgy sits at the center of that work. As Chief Metallurgist, you'll provide the technical leadership and strategic oversight that shapes how this site processes ore, recovers metal, and builds toward stable, optimized operations.

You'll partner closely with site leadership, operations, and technical teams, driving continuous improvement in process performance while building the robust metallurgical practices, accurate metal accounting, and troubleshooting capability a successful restart depends on. This is a chance to put your fingerprints on an operation from the ground up.

What You'll Do
Technical Leadership

• Provide leadership and technical direction for all metallurgical and processing activities across the site.
• Define, monitor, and communicate process performance targets and technical limits to support stable and optimized operations.
• Lead metallurgical troubleshooting efforts to resolve process inefficiencies, bottlenecks, and recovery challenges.
• Oversee metallurgical testing programs, including design, execution, and interpretation of results to support process optimization.

Metal Accounting & Data Integrity

• Lead and maintain accurate metallurgical accounting systems, including daily, monthly, and annual production reporting.
• Provide technical oversight of sampling systems, on-stream analyzers, and laboratory services to ensure data accuracy and reliability.

Collaboration & Improvement

• Collaborate with Operations, Maintenance, and Geology teams to align processing strategies with ore characteristics and production objectives.
• Lead and support process improvement initiatives, including evaluation and implementation of new technologies and methods.
• Oversee metallurgical and process-related projects, including scoping, budgeting, forecasting, execution, and performance tracking.
• Support budgeting, forecasting, and cost management activities related to processing performance.

People & Culture

• Champion a strong safety culture by promoting safe work practices and ensuring compliance with environmental and regulatory requirements.
• Manage team performance by aligning individual goals with organizational objectives, delivering regular feedback, and supporting development through training and career progression.
• Mentor, coach, and develop metallurgical and operations personnel to strengthen technical capability and promote best practices.
• Foster a culture of continuous improvement, innovation, and data-driven decision-making across the processing team.

What You Bring
Education

• Bachelor of Science in Metallurgy, Chemical Engineering, or a related process discipline, or equivalent experience.

Experience

• 7-12+ years in metallurgical or process engineering roles within a processing plant environment, preferably in precious metals or similar operations.
• Demonstrated experience leading metallurgical functions, including process optimization, troubleshooting, and metal accounting.
• Experience managing metallurgical testing programs and interpreting technical data to drive operational improvements.
• Experience with production reporting, budgeting, and forecasting related to processing performance.
• Experience evaluating and implementing new technologies or process improvements is considered an asset.

Key Skills

• Strong understanding of mineral processing principles, including flotation, recovery optimization, and process control.
• Proven ability to lead and influence cross-functional teams, including operations and maintenance.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to translate complex technical data into actionable insights.
• Effective communication skills, with the ability to engage both technical and non-technical stakeholders.
• Demonstrated commitment to safety, environmental stewardship, and continuous improvement.

A Note on Fit
We understand no candidate will meet every single desired qualification. If your experience looks a little different from what we've identified and you think you can bring value to the role, we'd love to learn more about you!

Contact
Heather Simoens
970-209-2890
Heather@MRCrecruiting.com