Continuous Improvement Manager

POSITION PURPOSE The Continuous Improvement (CI) Manager is the plant leader responsible for building and sustaining a culture of continuous improvement and converting business needs into measurable operational results. The role partners with Operations and support functions while maintaining clear ownership for CI methodology, structured problem solving, the improvement pipeline, implementation discipline, and validation of results. The CI Manager is expected to be highly visible on the manufacturing floor, personally lead critical improvement efforts, develop problem-solving capability throughout the organization, and ensure improvements are standardized and sustained.

POSITION PURPOSE The Continuous Improvement (CI) Manager is the plant leader responsible for building and sustaining a culture of continuous improvement and converting business needs into measurable operational results. The role partners with Operations and support functions while maintaining clear ownership for CI methodology, structured problem solving, the improvement pipeline, implementation discipline, and validation of results. The CI Manager is expected to be highly visible on the manufacturing floor, personally lead critical improvement efforts, develop problem-solving capability throughout the organization, and ensure improvements are standardized and sustained.

PRINCIPAL

ACCOUNTABILITIES

• Own and deploy the plant continuous improvement strategy in alignment with site objectives, business priorities, and financial targets for safety, quality, delivery, productivity, labor efficiency, material utilization, inventory, and overhead.
• Partner with the Plant Manager and Operations leadership to identify the vital few constraints and losses limiting plant performance and translate those gaps into a prioritized CI roadmap with clear owners, timing, expected impact, and measurable results.
• Lead critical improvement initiatives from problem definition through sustainment, including fact gathering, capacity and constraint analysis, root-cause analysis, countermeasure development, testing, validation, standardization, and sustainment.
• Maintain a strong shop-floor presence by observing work at the point of execution, engaging operators and frontline leaders, validating actual versus standard conditions, identifying waste and flow interruptions, and coaching teams through structured problem solving.
• Use data and Lean operating principles to improve flow, throughput, labor productivity, quality, OEE, material movement, WIP, standard work, and overall value-stream performance.
• Establish and maintain visible daily management systems that connect takt, actual performance, constraints, abnormalities, countermeasures, owners, due dates, and results.
• Personally lead structured problem solving using appropriate methods such as A3/PDCA, DMAIC, 5 Why, Fishbone, Pareto analysis, Value Stream Mapping, Kaizen, 5S, Standard Work, SMED, error proofing, and other Lean/Six Sigma tools as appropriate.
• Build organizational problem-solving capability by coaching managers, engineers, frontline leaders, and employees. CI is expected to develop capability, not simply identify issues and assign actions to other functions.
• Lead and develop CI Engineers and Technicians through clear expectations, coaching, technical development, performance management, and meaningful project ownership.
• Ensure CI projects include clear baselines, measurable targets, owners, milestones, countermeasures, verification methods, and sustainment plans. Proactively elevate barriers or at-risk commitments.
• Provide timely, accurate communication on CI priorities, project status, barriers, risks, and results, with disciplined follow-through on commitments.
• Collaborate effectively with Operations, Engineering, Quality, Supply Chain, Maintenance, EHS, HR, and Finance while maintaining accountability for CI leadership and methodology.
• Identify, quantify, and validate savings and operational benefits from CI activity in partnership with Finance and functional owners.
• Participate in BAC-wide CI workshops, benchmarking, and learning activities and convert relevant learning into implemented improvements at the plant.
• As a member of the Dayton Leadership Team, model a high standard of ownership, responsiveness, judgment, communication, and follow-through consistent with BAC core values:
  Show Courage, Drive Innovation, Embrace Responsibility, and Earn Trust.

KEY PERFORMANCE EXPECTATIONS

• CI priorities are visibly connected to the…