Director, Continuous Improvement

Purem Novi Inc•Novi, MI

About The Position

The position serves as Continuous Improvement (CI) Leader for the BUAM and will report to the VP of Operations. This role is responsible for establishing and fostering an operational excellence culture throughout all plants and the BU in line with the EB Values. This role uses lean knowledge and methodologies along with strong leadership competencies to identify and drive opportunities for eliminating non-added value across all aspects of the business, with direct impact to the P&L and FCF. This position ensures existing processes maintain a high level of performance while continuously reviewing and refining those processes for the BUAM in line with the Group Eberspaecher Standards.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Engineering (industrial or manufacturing engineering preferred).
15 years of Experience in operations/manufacturing/engineering related work experience, preferably in Automotive or high volume mix model production.
Experience in Lean principles and extensive hands-on workshop methodologies practice (Waste elimination, Value Stream Mapping, Pull Flow, 5S, SW, Hoshin, SMED, TPM,…) improving operational and financials metrics.
Experience in Problem Solving methodologies
Supervisory experience required – Plant Mgr preferably.
Network management experience required - similar BU / Division (CI, ME, Quality,…) – CI preferably.
Experience in developing work standards and training documentation
Experience in training salary and hourly associates.
Ability to travel domestically (more than 70%) by car or plane and internationally occasionally
Time & Motion studies, Line balancing, Capacity planning, Labor utilization, Production planning and control and other industrial engineering principles.
Ability to analyze financial data
Strong math, analytical, problem solving and project management skills.
Project Management- Develops project plans; Coordinates projects; Communicates changes and progress; Completes projects on time and budget; Manages project team activities.
Strives to continuously improve expertise, knowledge and skills.
Proficiency with Microsoft Office is a must.

Nice To Haves

Prior experience in welding and metal fabrication - a plus
Layout planning and design experience – a plus
Lean Six Sigma Black Belt certification – a plus.
Proficiency with SAP – a plus.

Responsibilities

Spearhead BUAM CI Strategy, Roadmap and Initiatives that best deliver Operational Excellence
Improve awareness and understanding of CI Role, Expectations, Contribution across BU
Develop processes for data collection and analysis to identify potential, new opportunities and build budget targets with Plants.
Establish CI project portfolio with each Plant to support Budget execution.
Monitor and Support Execution.
Develop and foster a culture of CI by leading improvement activities and trainings involving employees from all levels of the organization.
Lead CI Projects including resources, timeline, and critical paths - cross-functional project teams formed to implement change and drive continuous improvement.
Ensure Standard Plant CI Organization and staffing
Animate Plant CI Network - create routine for managing and tracking progress against targets (metric/goals).
Assess and develop CI network competence, train and mentor on Leadership and Lean skills (Hoshin, SMED, Pull Flow, 5S, TPM, SW, Value Stream Mapping, Pb Solving…)
Perform gap analysis to identify deficiencies in business processes and recommend any adjustments - propose BUAM Standards aligned with EB Standards and Values
Animate and support deployment and compliance per Shopfloor Excellence Assessment in Series production and New Programs.
Lead Benchmark and Good practice sharing initiatives
Collaborate with ME and PC&L BUAM to conduct analysis and improve Plant Layouts (flow, capacity utilization, production systems) to reduce Leadtime.
Demonstrates accuracy and thoroughness and follows all ENA polices related to TS16949.
Participate in Operations and Plant Reviews
Support and Lead Turnaround task force as requested
Participate in other initiatives as assigned
Conduct all business-related activities for, and on the behalf of, Eberspaecher within the limits of applicable local, state, and federal legal requirements.