Operational Excellence Manager (OpEx) - Country Pure Foods

Job Summary:

The Operational Excellence (OpEx) Manager is responsible for driving continuous improvement initiatives and fostering a culture of operational excellence throughout the organization. This role focuses on enhancing process efficiency, reducing waste, and optimizing performance across all departments. The OpEx Manager will lead cross-functional teams, implement best practices, and ensure that the company's operational processes align with strategic goals.

Supervisory Responsibilities:

• No Supervisory responsibility.

Duties & Responsibilities:

• Lead and facilitate process improvement efforts using both Lean and Six Sigma Methodologies along with other continuous improvement tools to improve plant operational efficiency and effectiveness.

• Identify, evaluate, prioritize, and execute cost savings, efficiency improvement, and waste reduction projects.

• Lead and drive Plant A3 master planning process to ensure alignment to corporate initiatives and goals for all departments.

• Act as the plant continuous improvement leader and expert and ensure alignment and cascading of corporate initiatives, for (TPM(AM ,PM, FI ), review and response, Lean, 5S, Line Owner, RCA, 5Why, Six Sigma).

• Act as the main point of contact for plant continuous improvement projects partnering with the corporate CI team making sure the plant meets all corporate requirements on time and on target in addition to plant specific initiatives.

• Lead the effort to identify and deliver plant productivity cost savings at or better than target.

• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to identify process bottlenecks, inefficiencies, and areas for cost reduction, proposing innovative solutions to address these issues and tracking efforts to completion.

• Design and execute training programs for staff at all levels on operational excellence principles, tools, and techniques to build an organizational culture of continuous improvement.

• Establish and monitor key performance indicators (KPIs) and metrics to track the progress and impact of operational excellence initiatives, adjusting strategies, as necessary to achieve goals.

• Be site leader for Redzone implementation, execution and maintenance of processes.

• Own the plant capital project tracking process and acting as the main point of contact for plant capital projects. Partner with the corporate engineering team to make sure projects are resourced appropriately to achieve the defined results on time and on budget.

• Facilitate the adoption of best practices in project management and process optimization at the plant, ensuring consistency and standardization where appropriate.

• Oversee the documentation and updating of processes and procedures to ensure they reflect safest and most efficient best practices which comply with all food safety and regulatory requirements.

• Research and implement new technologies or methodologies that can further enhance operational efficiency, staying ahead of industry trends and competitive benchmarks.

• Partner with corporate and R&D support acting as the plant lead for and coordinating all new product introductions and material / cost out / alternatives at the plant.

• Ensure all projects comply with regulatory requirements, industry standards, and company policies including ones related to production processes, food safety guidelines, OSHA/safety, environmental regulations, and HR practices.

• Act as role model for and champion of the company vision, mission, and values.

• Actively partner with other plant leadership team members and corporate support functions to achieve company objectives and deliver results.

Required Skills & Abilities:

• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.

• Excellent project management and organizational abilities.

• Effective communication, interpersonal and collaboration skills.

• Proficiency in Lean, Six Sigma, and other continuous improvement methodologies.

• Ability to work collaboratively with cross-functional teams.

• Ability to effectively work with MS office tools, ERP / Enterprise software, and equipment related software.

Education & Experience:

• Bachelor's degree in engineering preferred.

• Lean Six Sigma certification (Green Belt or Black Belt) preferred.

• Minimum of 5 years of experience in operational excellence, continuous improvement, or a related field.

• Previous food or beverage manufacturing experience preferred.

• Proven track record of leading successful process improvement initiatives and delivering results.

Physical Requirements:

• Physically able to conduct inspections and spend prolonged amounts of time on the production plant floor.

• Prolonged periods of sitting at a desk and working on a computer.

• Must be able to lift 25 pounds at a time.