Principal, Operational Excellence; OpEx — Enterprise Transformation & AI Enablement

Title: Principal, Operational Excellence (OpEx) — Enterprise Transformation & AI Enablement

Location: On‑site primary office;
Johnston, RI - flexibility to work from nearby satellite offices as needed

Reporting to: Head of Operational Excellence

Team Size: 10-11 (Principals, Analysts, Senior Analysts)

Employment Type: Contract‑to‑Permanent (C2P)

The organization is undertaking a major multi‑year enterprise transformation program with several work streams designed to modernize operations, drive efficiency, and enhance digital capabilities. As a Principal within the Operational Excellence (OpEx) team, you will lead complex, cross‑functional transformation initiatives spanning diagnostics, discovery, design, and implementation. You will work closely with technology, automation, and data partners to drive measurable improvements and identify AI‑enabled opportunities that support strategic goals.

This is a hands‑on leadership role focused on business outcomes, operational impact, and influencing senior stakeholders.

• Enterprise Diagnostics & Strategic Problem Solving
  • Lead current‑state assessments across operations and select enterprise functions to identify performance, cost, control, and customer experience gaps.
  • Build data‑driven business cases and transformation roadmaps.
  • Conduct portfolio prioritization, sequencing initiatives based on value, feasibility, and risk.
• Transformation Delivery
  • Facilitate and manage cross‑functional improvement initiatives using Lean, Six Sigma, and structured problem‑solving approaches.
  • Drive solution implementation in collaboration with internal technology, automation, and analytics partners.
  • Ensure sustainable results tied to clearly defined KPIs.
• AI, Automation & Digital Enablement
  • Identify, assess, and scope AI and automation opportunities, including:
    • Intelligent document processing (OCR/NLP)
    • RPA and workflow automation
    • Process mining insights
    • Decision‑support tools and analytics
  • Build pilot use cases, business cases, and evaluation criteria.
  • Partner with technology, data, and risk teams on AI governance, scalability, and operational readiness.
  • Educate teams on practical and ethical AI adoption; hands‑on technical build is not expected.
• Stakeholder Engagement & Influence
  • Serve as a trusted advisor to senior leaders (SVP level and transformation leads).
  • Facilitate alignment, challenge assumptions, and guide decision‑making using clear, data‑backed insights.
  • Work effectively across matrixed environments, navigating operations, HR, marketing, analytics, and technology groups.
• Governance, Reporting & Sustainability
  • Establish and run lightweight governance that enables timely cross‑functional decisions.
  • Create executive‑ready reporting, KPI dashboards, and benefits‑tracking mechanisms.
  • Build standards, frameworks, and playbooks to raise continuous‑improvement maturity across the organization.

• Demonstrated success leading business transformation or enterprise operational‑excellence programs.
• Strong experience in Lean, Six Sigma, Kaizen, or structured problem solving (methodology‑agnostic).
• Excellent executive presence, communication, and facilitation skills.
• Ability to influence upwards and downwards, managing complex stakeholder landscapes.
• Experience identifying process‑improvement, automation, and AI‑enabled opportunities.
• Comfort working in a matrixed, enterprise‑wide environment.
• Background in financial services, regulated industries, or back‑office operations preferred.
• Exposure to digital transformation and online‑focused business models is a plus.
• Not a technical build role—focus is on leadership, orchestration, and delivery.

• Lean/Six Sigma Black Belt or Master Black Belt preferred.
• Consulting or enterprise transformation office experience.
• Experience developing CI/OpEx toolkits, standards, and maturity models.
• Familiarity with AI, automation, process mining, and governance considerations.

• Primary work location is the main corporate headquarters.
• Flexibility to work from regional offices as needed.
• Preference for frequent on‑site presence due to cross‑functional collaboration.

We champion equality and inclusivity, proudly supporting an Equal Opportunity Employer policy. We welcome applicants regardless of Race, Color, Religion, Sex, Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity, National Origin, Age, Genetic Information, Disability, Protected Veteran Status, or any other status protected by law.