CI Manager

Headquartered in Lakeville, Minn., Post Consumer Brands, a business unit of Post Holdings, Inc., is dedicated to providing people and their pets with delicious food choices for every taste and budget. The company’s portfolio includes beloved brands such as Honey Bunches of Oats®, PEBBLES®, Grape-Nuts® and Malt-O-Meal® cereal, and Peter Pan® peanut butter, as well as Nutrish®, Kibbles ‘n Bits® and 9Lives® dog and cat food. As a company committed to high standards of quality and to our values, we are driven by one idea: To make lives better by making delicious food accessible for all. For more information about our brands, visit www.postconsumerbrands.com and follow us on LinkedIn and Facebook for the latest news.

At Post Consumer Brands, we’ve spent generations showing up for families, starting with breakfast, the most important meal of the day. Our cereals have become a trusted part of daily routines, helping spark conversations, fuel busy mornings, and create everyday moments that bring families closer together, including their furry four-legged family members, who have recently become a part of our story. As families have evolved, so have we. What began at the breakfast table has expanded into snacks, peanut butter, and pet food, because caring for a family means feeding every part of it. With the addition of several iconic pet brands, we’ve extended our purpose: to make high-quality, accessible food for everyone under the same roof.

This phase is still new, and that’s what makes it exciting. As we continue to grow across grocery and pet, we’re looking for people who care about good food, thoughtful work, and the kind of impact that stretches from store shelves to kitchen tables, and food bowls, across the country.

Visalia, CA is home to 360,000 square feet of manufacturing, packaging, warehouse, and office space. Approximately 250 employees work here, utilizing the latest technologies and systems, capable of producing extensive, diverse, and innovative pet food products. Visalia is in California’s San Joaquin Valley and the gateway to Sequoia National Park, part of the Sierra Nevada mountain range. It also has a minor league baseball team, the Visalia California Oaks, and several colleges and universities.

OVERVIEW:   

The Corporate Continuous Improvement Manager plays a strategic role in executing the PCB CI vision throughout all areas of the corporation helping the organization achieve our financial objectives.  This role will be responsible for rolling out our CI system and culture in manufacturing, supply chain, procurement, and many other areas of the organization resulting in year-on-year continuous improvements.  This position will partner across all functions of the organization to help achieve focus, alignment, and synchronization and ensure we have the right systems, tools, and methods that deliver real time feedback and quantifiable metrics leading the business for best practices on all aspects of performance while ensuring process consistency across the company.  This role will also coach, mentor, and train members of PCB on lean methodology  

Responsibilities and Accountabilities: 

• Drives continuous improvement efforts companywide. Provides leadership and strategic thinking for implementing continuous improvement initiatives.  

• Leads the continuous improvement process (e.g. behaviors, attitude and culture), working with others to develop, implement and sustain a continuous improvement program based upon lean principles that supports meeting financial goals and objectives. 

• Lead the implementation of operating processes and systems that deliver consistent year over year continuous improvement opportunities.  

• Implement and sustain continuous improvement practices and a culture throughout the organization. 

• Leads, identifies and defines scope of continuous improvement planning and activities. 

• Easily identifies opportunities and works closely with technical resources to help drive efficiencies and best practices.   

• Teaches and models root cause analysis, problem solving, actions to prevent recurrence, standard work and follow-up. Viewed as an expert in these areas and speaks with authority and confidence when engaging others. 

• Be a change agent that challenges existing processes that create waste and non-value added work.   

• Coaches, guides and/or leads cross functional teams to achieve resolution of assigned projects. 

• Lead focused efforts aimed at breakthrough and incremental improvements in all areas of the organization. 

• Monitor data and metrics to identify areas of waste and prioritize the development and implementation of solutions.  

• Teaches and models tools and concepts of Lean Thinking and Six Sigma, facilitates kaizen events. 

• Provide appropriate documentation and project update communication to Operations leadership. Collaborates with all departments and individuals affected by CI projects. 

• Share best practices and build relationships with CI resources at all PCB facilities. 

Leadership Expectations: 

• Deep understanding of Lean Manufacturing/Continuous Improvement methodologies and ability to teach and model them. 

• Must have strong analytical and business judgment including demonstrated problem-solving and trouble-shooting skills. 

• Ability to influence, mentor and coach to get results through others. 

• Results driven for being the low cost producer and supporting company growth strategies.  

• Have strong bias for action, while proving the ability to inspire others. 

• Convey high level of optimism while setting aggressive targets to teams, finding ways to achieve them. 

• Communicates a compelling vision and inspired sense of purpose. Talks about the possibilities and is optimistic. Creates strong morale and spirit within team.    

• Solves highly complex problems and prioritizes actions in a timely manner.  Probes all sources for answers and can quickly sense what will help resolve issues. 

• Establish clear directions, sets stretching objectives.  Lays out work in a well-planned and organized manner and brings out the best in people through leveraging their strengths. 

• Speaks candidly and provides constructive feedback in a professional manner.  

• Organizes and manages projects; interacts, supports, facilitates and leads multi-functional work teams; leads teams to consensus; strong negotiation skills. 

• Able to build strong and diverse relationships across the business groups they partner with. Supports and fosters change. 

• Demonstrates a passion for safety. Able to develop and maintain a respectful and safe work environment. 

• Must be mobile and able to take on broader assignments for additional development opportunities.

EDUCATION: 

4-year degree in science, engineering, management or related field.   

MBA preferred  

EXPERIENCE: 

5-10 years combined related work experience in manufacturing/corporate environment including a minimum of 3-5 years of successful leadership in executing continuous improvement/Lean Six Sigma efforts and enabling efficiency, effectiveness and tangible financial benefit