Continuous Improvement Manager

What you’ll do:

As a Continuous Improvement (CI) Manager, you will lead our lean manufacturing journey as we create transformational change. You will develop solutions for process improvement to optimize material flow, minimize waste, and implement accountability and escalation systems. You will provide education and mentoring to employees on Lean principles and techniques. The responsibilities include facilitating and leading the continuous improvement process by identifying training needs and leading trainings following the Learn-Do-Teach model in problem solving methodologies, lead Kaizen events, and be a champion of 5S. You will drive the team to understand waste through Value Stream Mapping, create a succinct vision for future state, and facilitate transformation review cadences to clearly communicate and monitor progress across the organization with clear milestone and KPI tracking.

As a key member of the Leadership Team, you will promote a plant culture of Continuous Improvement, Lean and Quality to drive change. This includes supporting the creation and implementation of Eaton Lean Six Sigma strategies, which will lead to improvements in areas such as employee safety, quality performance, factory margins, product delivery performance and reductions in product/process variation. You will engage your peers in lean tool application as you speak clearly and persuasively in challenging situations. Furthermore, the role encompasses managing the Eaton OpA (Operational Excellence Program), facilitating leading and lagging indicators, and deploying goals and objectives to drive accountability through the tier system to build organizational problem-solving abilities. This role will provide day-to-day operational support and work with our corporate CI leader.

Essential Functions Include:

• Drive the Operational Excellence (OPEX) strategic vision and roadmaps for the Reno, NV facility.
• Provide expertise for Eaton Business System (EBS) tools and training including Strategy Deployment, Eaton Operational Assessment (OpA), EBS Assessment, and other tools.
• Lead and facilitate Business Operation System (BOS) meetings and agenda to drive continuous improvement.
• Drive Cost-Out accountability for the site in alignment with the site’s annual Profit Plan objectives
• Provide support & guidance to the Reno leadership team with Kaizens, problem solving, and ensuring EBS adherence.
• Lead the Eaton Continuous Improvement Framework (CIF) deployment (visual controls, process standardization, leader standard work, Gemba walks, manning strategy, daily accountability, process checks and CI for everyone)
• Build Eaton Lean Six Sigma (ELSS) organizational capability and develop local ELSS/CI Tool Champions by providing training and consulting support.
• Lead the development and implementation of a plant-wide training plan.
• Ensure a safe work environment for all employees, in collaboration with the EHS Manager; Drive and support behavioral based zero incident safety culture.
• Utilize change management techniques such as ADKAR to effectively drive and sustain process improvements.
  

Qualifications:

What will make you successful?
An ideal candidate succeeds by leverages strong communication and interpersonal skills to influence stakeholders, lead cross-functional teams, and effectively present improvement initiatives. You have a proven track record of driving sustainable continuous improvement in manufacturing and distribution environments through the application of Lean principles and methodologies. Experienced in leading Kaizen events and utilizing tools such as Standard Work, TPM, VSM, and 5S, you deliver measurable operational results while fostering employee engagement. Your ability to negotiate and build alignment across all levels of the organization enables successful implementation of process improvements and long-term business impact.

Required (Basic) Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution
• Minimum 3 years of hands-on experience applying Lean tools (5S, Standard Work, Set Up Reduction, VSM, TPM, Lean Material Flow) in a manufacturing environment
• Direct or indirect leadership experience in a manufacturing setting.
• Experience leading and organizing medium to large scale Kaizen events utilizing principles of the Toyota Production System (TPS).

Preferred Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering and MS or MBA degree
• 2+ years of leadership / supervisory experience
• Formal training/certification in Lean based on Toyota Production System principles with at least 5 years of related experience.
• Project management knowledge and experience
• Bilingual in Spanish and English