Senior Director of Operational Excellence

At the heart of our company is a deep passion for creating fresh, healthy, and artisan-quality food that brings people together. We honor the craft of artisan cooking, using scratch-made stocks, hand-chopped herbs, and only the highest-quality ingredients, complemented by cutting-edge technology. This allows us to deliver consistently safe, exceptional products on a large scale.

But it’s not just about the food. Our culture is built on principles that shape how we grow, both as individuals and as a team. One of our core values, Honoring Development, guides us to actively seek out, celebrate, and nurture one another’s talents, strengths, and interests. By fostering each other’s growth, we strengthen our relationships and capabilities, driving both personal and professional success.

We also believe in Honoring Each Other. We surround ourselves with passionate people who share our love for great food. Through mutual respect and collaboration, we create an environment where employees are empowered to thrive, building trusting, and rewarding relationships with our clients, partners, and one another.

If you’re looking for a place where your skills, passion, and ideas can flourish, we invite you to explore the opportunities available within our dynamic and supportive team.

Reports to: Chief Operating Officer

Location: Virtual

Travel: 50%

The Opportunity

Kettle Cuisine is seeking a transformational Senior
Director of Operational Excellence to elevate manufacturing performance, strengthen operational discipline, and build a culture of continuous improvement across our U.S. manufacturing network.

Reporting directly to the Chief Operating Officer, this highly visible leadership role will shape and execute our Operational Culture, leadership and plant capabilities, Operational Excellence strategy, establish a scalable manufacturing operating system, and deliver measurable improvements in productivity, efficiency, cost, and profitability.

The ideal leader combines strategic vision with hands‑on manufacturing expertise, a proven ability to influence across multiple facilities, and a relentless focus on execution. Success requires more than implementing continuous improvement methodologies—it requires developing leaders, creating ownership at every level, and translating operational opportunities into sustainable business results.

What You'll Lead

Operational Excellence Strategy & Transformation

Develop and execute a network-wide Operational Excellence strategy aligned with business growth and manufacturing priorities.

Design and deploy a standardized manufacturing operating system that strengthens performance visibility, accountability, and operational consistency.

Partner with plant leadership to establish improvement roadmaps, performance expectations, and disciplined execution practices.

Identify and scale best practices across manufacturing locations to accelerate organizational performance.

Manufacturing Performance & Financial Impact

Lead strategic initiatives that improve Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE), throughput, labor productivity, asset utilization, and manufacturing capacity.

Drive sustainable cost reduction through waste elimination, improved material yields, equipment reliability, and manufacturing efficiency.

Partner with Finance and Operations to quantify opportunities, validate savings, and deliver measurable EBITDA improvements.

Establish meaningful performance metrics and management routines that reinforce ownership, accelerate problem‑solving, and sustain results.

Continuous Improvement & Operational Discipline

Advance the adoption of our KCOP Continuous Improvement program, and structured problem‑solving methodologies.

Strengthen operational consistency through standard work, visual…