Director Operational Excellence

Makers Pride•Downers Grove, IL

2d•Remote

About The Position

The Director, Operational Excellence is a senior operations leader responsible for driving enterprise‑wide operational excellence initiatives focused on efficiency, standardization, and sustained performance improvement across the manufacturing network. This role leads a team of Change Agents and partners closely with site leadership and cross‑functional teams to embed continuous improvement principles, standardize processes, and deliver measurable business results. The Director operates as both a strategist and hands‑on leader—identifying optimization opportunities, prioritizing initiatives, and ensuring disciplined execution across multiple plants. The role requires extensive travel to manufacturing locations to assess operations, coach leaders, and ensure improvements are fully adopted and sustained.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Operations, Manufacturing, or related field (or equivalent manufacturing experience)
10+ years of progressive manufacturing operations experience
Prior experience as a Plant Manager, Engineering Leader, Continuous Improvement Leader, or Operations Leader
Demonstrated success leading complex, multi‑site operational improvement initiatives
Deep working knowledge of Lean, Six Sigma, TPM, Daily Management, and performance systems
Proven ability to influence senior leaders and drive change without direct authority
Lean Six Sigma Black Belt certification (or equivalent) preferred
Willingness to travel extensively across the manufacturing network (~75%)
Demonstrated ability to lead and sustain large enterprise‑wide change initiatives
Advanced analytical mindset with the ability to interpret operational data, identify root causes, quantify impacts, and make fact‑based decisions that improve safety, quality, cost, delivery, and productivity.
Strong communication skills with the ability to clearly articulate insights, recommendations, and outcomes to senior leaders and plant teams, influencing decisions without direct authority.

Responsibilities

Own and lead the enterprise Operational Excellence roadmap, ensuring alignment with business strategy and performance goals
Define and standardize best practices for Lean, Six Sigma, TPM, Daily Management Systems, and Tiered Accountability
Ensure consistent deployment and sustainment of Operational Excellence principles across all manufacturing sites
Directly manage, coach, and develop a team of Change Agents responsible for executing improvement initiatives at the site level
Translate enterprise priorities into clear project charters, expectations, and success metrics for Change Agents
Review site diagnostics, action plans, and results; remove barriers and escalate risks as needed
Build organizational capability by developing Change Agents as strong CI practitioners and change leaders
Travel extensively across the manufacturing network to assess processes, performance routines, and operational maturity
Identify productivity, cost, quality, safety, and service improvement opportunities and convert them into actionable initiatives
Lead and sponsor cross functional, multi-site projects from opportunity identification through implementation and sustainment
Develop business cases, quantify benefits, and track financial and operational impact
Serve as the enterprise change leader for Operational Excellence
Ensure alignment and buy in from plant leadership and functional partners for new ways of working
Guide communication, engagement, and reinforcement strategies to drive adoption and behavioral change
Coach site leaders and frontline teams to embed CI behaviors into daily operations
Establish enterprise KPIs, visual management standards, and governance routines to track progress and sustain gains
Review and challenge site performance data, ensuring disciplined follow up and accountability
Ensure consistent reporting of results, lessons learned, and best practices across the network
Build internal CI capability by overseeing training, workshops, kaizens, and problem solving routines facilitated by Change Agents
Foster a culture of accountability, discipline, and continuous improvement across operations
Reinforce and role model behaviors aligned with Operational Excellence principles