Regional Continuous Improvement Manager

Our people are the heart of our business. As the world’s largest provider of thermal processing services, Bodycote employs thousands of highly skilled staff around the globe, some of the best engineers, scientists, and technicians in the industry. Come join our team!

Due to the nature of our business and a heavy industrial market, Bodycote deems this position to be safety-sensitive.

The Regional Continuous Improvement Manager serves as champion and will drive operational excellence by leading initiatives that enhance productivity, quality, and efficiency across manufacturing operations under the direction of the Hebron, Kentucky General Manager by applying structured methodologies such as Lean, Six Sigma, and root cause analysis, the Continuous Improvement Manager ensures sustainable gains in performance, cost reduction, the elimination of waste and customer satisfaction, fueling long‑term growth and operational strength.

The primary duties consist of, but are not limited to the following.

• Schedule, lead, facilitate, and manage Continuous Improvement projects including Kaizen events and aligned with the company’s strategic targets
• Lead the site/function’s Lean transformation with a focus on improvements to safety, quality, delivery and cost
• Train and coach managers and employees in the daily use and implementation of Lean principles
• Partner with function heads to build and maintain a culture of continuous operational improvement that permeates targeted areas of the company.
• Coach/develop site functional leaders and their staffs to identify, understand and implement lean manufacturing and growth best practices and achieve continuously improving levels of safety, quality, delivery, inventory, cost, innovation, and growth.
• Audit, monitor and sustain the health of the CI Lean culture by establishing and utilizing scoring systems, gap analysis, and Problem Solving to assess implemented processes and evaluate where further refinements are needed
• Partner with the corporate CI Lead and the facility or functional leader to develop and execute a kaizen roadmap and identify key metrics (KPIs) and lead projects to achieve goals in targeted areas
• Senior in Cultural Transformation
• Partner with the site management team and CI Lead to drive Strategy execution
• Ensure consistent application of CI practices, tools and templates (i.e.:
  Standard Work, Job Instruction, Daily Management, Value Stream Mapping, Kaizen Road Map, SMED, TPM, Time Studies, etc.)
• Assist organization-wide kaizen efforts as needed.
• Perform regular Gemba walks including leadership and area personnel to evaluate improvement & development opportunities
• Evaluate current business practices, looking for ways to improve productivity, reduce costs, and make the best use of the business's resources.
• Performs other tasks as assigned or dictated by position
• This position is responsible for the care and treatment of our customer’s inventory and as such will perform duties in a safe and responsible manner to prevent customer loss or damage

• This position must satisfy ITAR compliance requirements, therefore candidates must be U.S. Citizens or Permanent Resident Card Holders.
• Bachelor’s degree (B.S./B.A.) or equivalent from a college or university in Engineering, Business Management or a comparable field
• Minimum 2‑4 years related Lean experience and/or training; or equivalent combination of education and experience with an emphasis in Lean or operational excellence
• Six Sigma and/or Lean experience or certification preferred
• Knowledge of Lean Manufacturing/Operational Excellence Principles, Problem Solving, 5 Why, Daily Management, 5S, SMED, TPM, Standard Work, Poke Yoke, etc. required
• Demonstrated lean management experience and results required
• Demonstrated ability to teach, mentor, and coach required
• Strong leadership and change agent skills required
• Excellent team facilitation skills required
• Excellent experience and skills using Microsoft Office
• Must demonstrate the ability to read, write and communicate the English language

• Able to travel regularly to multiple sites in…