Continuous Improvement Engineer

Dover Corporation•Cedar Rapids, IA

2d•Onsite

About The Position

Dover Food Retail is seeking a Continuous Improvement Engineer for its Keosauqua, Iowa location. The role drives targeted, measurable, and sustainable improvements across operations and support functions. The engineer co-owns the development and execution of site strategies and initiatives, builds lean capabilities, and fosters a culture of Kaizen, continuous improvement, and structured problem solving. The position works as an individual contributor, team facilitator, and coach within operations, and reports directly to the factory CI Leader. The role partners across functions to identify and reduce waste, lead and facilitate lean activities, develop employees’ use of lean tools, and build continuous improvement capabilities throughout the organization. It also involves organizing Kaizen events, documenting processes, preparing business cases and capital expenditure requests, assessing the financial impact of improvement actions, and leading or co-leading facility and operations upgrades. Other responsibilities may be assigned.

Requirements

Ideally, at least 2 years of Continuous Improvement experience; candidates with a relevant bachelor’s degree and/or an equivalent combination of education and experience that meets the expectations of the job will also be considered.
Strong computer skills, including Microsoft Office.
Demonstrated success with team building, leadership, and facilitation skills.
Strong listening and coaching skills.
Ability to communicate effectively and influence across functions and at all organizational levels.
Ability to manage projects independently with little to no supervision.
Ability to recognize organizational roadblocks and use change management techniques to navigate toward solutions.

Nice To Haves

Ability to speak the language of Lean and Continuous Improvement.
At least 2 years of experience facilitating and leading methodologies such as continuous process improvement, Lean, Personnel Qualification Standard, Tiger Teams, Daily Management/Management for Daily Improvement, Key Process Indicators, Flow, Job Safety Analysis, Training Within Industry, Standard Work, Standard Operating Procedure, Point of Use, and Pull Replenishment.
Hands-on understanding and experience using and coaching TPS/Lean fundamentals, including 5S, SW, PSP, Kaizen, DM, VSM, TPI, and Poka-Yoke.
Experience leading or facilitating Kaizens through a Lean OPEX conversion.
Cross-functional experience in Operations, Material Flow, Supply Chain Management, Customer Support, Accounting, or Product Development.
Experience with project and change management tools.
At least 2 years of project management experience.
Experience as a people leader and/or facilitator.
Experience developing Lean capabilities across cross-functional departments.

Responsibilities

Coach others formally and informally to identify and take action to reduce waste.
Form, facilitate, lead, and participate in cross-functional teams.
Use and coach data-based decision-making and problem-solving processes.
Facilitate, lead, and participate in lean conversion actions.
Train employees formally and informally in the use of lean tools.
Develop lean capabilities across the organization.
Work cross-functionally as a problem-solver and team builder.
Organize Kaizen events, workshops, and associated logistics.
Project a positive, solution-seeking attitude in business interactions.
Work effectively in team environments as an individual contributor and leader.
Motivate others to engage, support, and share the organization’s vision.
Communicate effectively across organizational levels.
Adapt and remain flexible across business environments, audiences, and priorities.
Share best practices with local CI staff, leadership, and Dover Enterprise teams.
Document and develop process and system documentation as appropriate.
Write business cases and capital expenditure requests, and assess the financial impact of sustained continuous improvement actions.
Lead or co-lead facility and operations upgrades or enhancements.
Perform other responsibilities as assigned.