Continuous Improvement Manager

About This Role

This role manages the plant's continuous improvement (CI) efforts, championing, developing, and sustaining a culture of CI throughout the plant. The CI Manager acts as a practitioner of CI methodologies and a coach and trainer for the plant leadership team, supervision, and all employees. Effective CI results in improved safety, quality, productivity, cost, and employee morale.

Responsibilities

• Own the annual CI plan, working with plant leadership to develop, publish, track progress, and update it as required
• Facilitate the plant CI Steering Committee to manage and improve the plant CI program
• Understand the Knauf CI Framework, assess plant CI maturity, identify gaps, and plan for improvement
• Facilitate improvement programs, publish results, sustain improvements, correct as necessary, and celebrate successes
• Lead regular improvement workshops, coordinating with plant leadership to identify areas for improvement, facilitate workshops, involve everyone, improve systems, and effectively sustain gains
• Lead CI training, establish, publish, maintain, and update a plant CI training plan
• Facilitate teaching in both classroom and shop floor environments, serving as a role model for excellent instructional training and development of these capabilities in others
• Understand, cultivate, and improve the plant CI culture
• Using a process focus, facilitate the leadership team to establish/improve leader standard work, visual controls, and standard accountability processes
• Ensure innovation programs are effective and improve team problem solving, involving everyone
• Facilitate the use of advanced methodologies and tools, including root cause analysis, team problem solving, lean six sigma, A3 problem solving, and other applicable tools
• Help the plant become more process and data driven
• Visually track and publicize results
• Be an advocate for and set an example of KI Values and Behaviors in all actions and duties
• Other duties as assigned

Requirements

• Bachelor’s Degree in Engineering, Technology or related field
• Minimum of five (5) years’ leadership or engineering experience in an industrial manufacturing environment
• Minimum two (2) years’ Continuous Improvement/Lean Six Sigma experience
• Knowledge of process/continuous improvement tools, methodologies and practices
• Knowledge of 5S activities and audits
• Knowledge of root cause analysis
• Knowledge of statistical data
• Technical knowledge of mechanics

Nice to have:

• Black or Green Belt Lean Six Sigma Certification
• Working knowledge of SAP