Director Lean Manufacturing Americas

Sunrise Medical (US) LLC•Mount Juliet, TN

About The Position

The Director, Lean Manufacturing – Americas, is responsible for executing the regional lean strategy and driving the implementation of the Sunrise Medical Business System across manufacturing sites in the Americas. The role focuses on delivering measurable results in productivity, quality, safety, delivery, and cost by applying proven lean methodologies and coaching site teams in world-class operational practices. This position partners closely with plant leadership to ensure consistent execution of lean tools, standard work, continuous improvement activities, waste reduction, and operational stability. The role is primarily execution-oriented, ensuring that lean initiatives translate into tangible performance improvements at the site and regional levels.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Manufacturing, Operations Management, or related field required.
7–10+ years of manufacturing operations experience.
Minimum 5 years applying lean tools in a hands-on, execution-focused leadership role.
Demonstrated experience driving operational improvements in manufacturing environments within the Americas region.
Experience coaching or leading teams in structured continuous improvement frameworks.
Strong working knowledge of lean tools: VSM, Kaizen, 5S/6S, Kanban, A3 Thinking, TPM, Standard Work, problem-solving methodologies.
Proficiency in analysing operational performance data to identify waste and drive improvement.
Experience with ERP and MES systems.
Hands-on, execution-focused leadership approach.
Ability to coach, influence, and drive behavioral change at all organizational levels.
Strong interpersonal and communication skills.
Pragmatic, results-oriented mindset.
Capable of working across diverse cultures and regional environments.
Ability to travel frequently to operations sites across the Americas.

Nice To Haves

Master’s degree or MBA preferred but not required.
Communicate effectively in English; Spanish is a strong advantage given regional footprint.

Responsibilities

Execute the Americas lean roadmap aligned with corporate lean principles and regional operational goals.
Implement standardized lean practices including Work Standard Sheets, Kaizen, Kanban, 6S, Value Stream Mapping, TPM, and MES utilization.
Deliver lean training across the entire organization to foster a strong lean culture.
Ensure operational policies, procedures, and standards are consistently applied across all Americas manufacturing sites.
Support site leadership in translating business forecasts into lean-driven operational planning for production, materials management, and logistics.
Contribute to inventory planning and execution in partnership with Procurement, Finance, and plant management teams.
Coordinate with logistics teams to improve flow, reduce waste, and ensure efficient material movement within the region.
Support the attainment of operational objectives across the Americas.
Lead the execution of lean tools such as Policy Deployment (X-Matrix) and systems across Americas operations with a strong emphasis on measurable results.
Ensure consistent application of standardized work, visual management, and structured problem-solving (A3, PDCA, etc.).
Track and report KPIs related to lean execution: productivity, OEE, scrap, throughput, labor efficiency, inventory, and delivery performance.
Conduct onsite assessments, audits, and benchmarking to monitor maturity and identify improvement opportunities.
Facilitate Kaizen events and focused improvement workshops to deliver rapid operational gains.
Ensure quality processes are followed and improved to meet compliance and customer satisfaction requirements.
Partner with production, materials management, and logistics teams to ensure effective resource deployment and workflow optimization.
Support operations leaders in identifying and executing regional improvement projects.
Champion adherence to safety standards and support TPM efforts across manufacturing assets.
Review site production data to identify variances and drive corrective actions.
Support the development and maintenance of WIs for repeatable, reliable operations.
Ensure proper execution of maintenance, calibration, and equipment care procedures.
Prepare and deliver regional lean performance reports to senior operations leadership.
Serve as the primary lean leader for the Americas region, communicating progress, expectations, and outcomes to regional plant managers and senior leadership.
Facilitate cross-site sharing of best practices, learnings, and improvement results.
Present regular updates on lean performance, Kaizen outcomes, and ROI for executed initiatives.
Support employee engagement in lean and continuous improvement activities across all sites.
Maintain effective communication with the regional operations team, Sunrise Medical leadership, engineering, quality, and supply chain partners.
Communicate effectively in English; Spanish is a strong advantage given regional footprint.
Lead and coach a regional lean team (if applicable) or directly coach local site CI teams and operational leaders.
Provide on-site training, mentoring, and hands-on support to build lean capabilities at plant level.
Manage regional lean resources and support prioritization of improvement activities.
Collaborate with engineering, quality, and supply chain to integrate lean principles into daily operations.
Ensure performance expectations for direct reports (if any) are clearly defined and reviewed.
Conduct performance reviews and contribute to talent development within the region.