Continuous Improvement Manager

The Continuous Improvement (CI) Manager is responsible for driving a step change in business performance through the deployment of operational excellence principles, systems, and tools. This role serves as a key business partner to site leadership, leading the strategy and execution of continuous improvement initiatives across the facility.

Key Responsibilities

• Business Partnership & Strategy
• • Act as a strategic business partner to site leadership to identify opportunities for operational and financial performance improvement.
  • Analyze current processes, workflows, and systems to identify inefficiencies and develop improvement strategies that drive measurable results.
• Operational Excellence & VITAL Ownership
• • Lead the deployment, sustainment, and continuous evolution of the VITAL Operating System at the site.
  • Ensure alignment with enterprise CI standards, tools, and methodologies through close collaboration with the Director of Continuous Improvement.
• Project Leadership & Execution
• • Identify, prioritize, and lead high-impact CI projects and initiatives that deliver quality, operational, financial, and customer satisfaction improvements.
  • Drive successful execution of projects from concept through implementation and sustainment.
• Frameworks & Capability Building
• • Establish and deploy structured CI frameworks, governance, and standard work across the organization.
  • Build organizational capability by training, coaching, developing and mentoring employees at all levels in CI methodologies and tools.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration
• • Partner with operations, engineering, quality, supply chain, finance, safety and other functions to enhance productivity and drive cross-functional improvements.
  • Facilitate workshops, kaizen events, training and problem-solving sessions.
• Performance & Analytics
• • Utilize data-driven methodologies to identify root causes, track performance, and validate improvement outcomes.
  • Develop and maintain key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure CI effectiveness.
• Continuous Learning & Best Practices
• • Stay current with industry trends, tools, and best practices in continuous improvement and operational excellence.
  • Drive standardization and sharing of best practices across the organization.

Qualifications

• Minimum of 5+ years of experience delivering measurable, step-change improvements in business or operational performance.
• Proven hands-on experience with continuous improvement tools and methodologies (e.g., Lean, Theory of Constraints, Kaizen), with relevant certifications preferred.
• Demonstrated ability to lead and influence across multiple levels of the organization.
• Strong understanding of operational excellence principles across manufacturing or industrial environments.
• Analytical, data-driven approach to problem solving with strong attention to detail.
• Excellent communication, facilitation, and interpersonal skills.
• Strong numerical and analytical capability.
• Project Management certification preferred, but not required, or a strong project management background.
• Six Sigma certification (Green Belt or Black Belt) is a plus.

Education Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, Engineering, Operations, Supply Chain, or a related technical discipline preferred.