Director Operational Excellence & Transformation

Director Operational Excellence & Transformation Strategic Program Management Kaizen & Lean Operations Systems & Automation

Director, Operational Excellence & Transformation Department Operational Excellence Office (PMO) Reports To Vice President, Operational Excellence & Transformation Direct Reports Program Managers, Process Improvement Leads, and Business Systems Analysts, as assigned

Classification Full-Time, Exempt

• Translate VP priorities into initiative charters, integrated plans, milestones, resource needs, risks, and decisions.
• Manage portfolio reviews, stage gates, executive reporting, and escalation processes; recommend sequencing based on value, capacity, and execution risk.
• Lead program managers as we build up the team, and workstream owners to resolve dependencies and deliver commitments across functions.

• Lead redesign and simplification of priority processes, including cross-functional handoffs, controls, and ownership.
• Deploy Lean, Kaizen, standard work, visual management, structured problem solving, and value stream improvements across selected Operations areas.
• Partner with site and functional leaders to standardize practices while accommodating justified local needs and acquired businesses.

• Set up and manage Operations Excellence portal for methodologies, documents, and training videos.
• Partner with IT and process owners to define business requirements and integrate process redesign with enterprise systems, analytics, workflow automation, and appropriate AI-enabled solutions.
• Drive adoption and effective use of Oracle and other enterprise platforms; reduce manual and spreadsheet-driven work where practical.
• Establish consistent measures and reporting for the initiatives in the assigned portfolio.

• Build baselines, benefit cases, milestones, and measurement plans with Finance and business owners.
• Track Finance-validated impact on productivity, cost, margin, working capital, cash flow, and service; intervene when delivery or adoption falls short.
• Develop a pipeline of improvement opportunities and ensure business owners sustain results after implementation.

• Work individually while building a team. Manage and coach assigned program managers, improvement leads, and analysts; strengthen project management and problem-solving capability.
• Build stakeholder alignment, communicate changes, and coordinate training and adoption plans.
• Promote accountability, collaboration, respect for people, and data-driven decisions.

• A minimum of 12 years of experience leading complex, cross-functional transformation or operational improvement programs in manufacturing, industrial technology, energy, or engineered products.
• Demonstrated people leadership and ability to influence functional and site leaders without direct authority.
• Practical knowledge of Lean, Kaizen, Six Sigma, A3, PDCA, or comparable methods.
• Experience with enterprise systems implementation, process automation, performance metrics, and change management.
• Strong financial acumen and experience quantifying and tracking operational benefits with Finance.
• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Operations, Business, Finance, or a related discipline;
  Master’s degree preferred.

• A governed portfolio of priority initiatives has clear owners, plans, milestones, risks, and a regular review cadence.
• Initial initiatives deliver Finance-validated improvements in service, productivity, margin, or working capital.
• Priority processes have documented standards and measurable adoption of Lean, Kaizen, systems, or automation…