Director - Tech Ops Excellence & Transformation

United Airlines•Chicago, IL

1d•$159,790 - $207,998•Onsite

About The Position

The Director - Tech Ops Operational Excellence & Transformation leads a blend of CSC-based and geographically separated regional Continuous Process Improvement (CPI) teams, including Senior Managers and Process Management Experts, to build a continuous improvement culture across Tech Ops and drive measurable improvements in operational performance, technician productivity, and execution consistency across hubs and stations. This role serves as the primary bridge between field operations and Tech Ops initiatives, ensuring that improvement efforts are aligned to system priorities, grounded in operational reality, effectively implemented, and deliberately sustained across the network. The Director partners closely with Line and Base Maintenance leadership, Process Standards, Projects & Execution, Analytics and Training teams, among others, to drive a coordinated, scalable approach to improve operational excellence. Establishes training for assigned CPI professionals and field practitioners to standardize and expand skillsets.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree (Industrial Engineering, Business, Supply Chain)
8+ years of experience in continuous improvement, operations or process optimization within a complex operational environment.
3+ years of experience in Tech Ops, Line Maintenance or related operational leadership roles.
Proven experience leading multi-site teams and large-scale improvement portfolios.
Excellent communication and leadership skills, including experience presenting to senior leadership.
Lean Six Sigma Green Belt or equivalent experience.
Strong background in continuous improvement and Lean methodologies, with demonstrated application in an operational environment.
Deep understanding of Line Maintenance workflows and operational challenges.

Nice To Haves

Experience leading operational excellence or continuous improvement functions in aviation or similar industries.
Experience driving enterprise-wide initiatives and large-scale operational transformations.
Experience working in regulated environments, such as FAA / GMM.
Lean Six Sigma Black Belt or equivalent experience.
Familiarity with Theory of Constraints and its application in complex operational environments.
Demonstrates an understanding of the capabilities and limitations of generative AI tools and effectively leverages them to support research, analysis, content creation, and problem-solving. Apply critical thinking to validate AI-generated outputs while adhering to organizational policies for responsible AI use, data privacy, and security.

Responsibilities

Lead and develop regional and field CPI teams, including Senior Managers and Process Experts, ensuring strong execution, prioritization and delivery of operational results across the network. Manage talent and resource priorities, including recruiting, capability building, manager development and ready-now successor planning.
Own the Ops Excellence / CPI portfolio of tech ops continuous improvement initiatives, aligning resources and priorities to improve safety, standardization, productivity, effectiveness, and quality while reducing span times and sustainment costs where possible. Drive alignment with Process Standards, Projects & Execution, Analytics, Training and Change Management so processes are consistently defined, improved and sustained at scale.
Ensure effective implementation and sustainment of Tech Ops initiatives, consistency, and adoption across regions and stations. Establish disciplined performance management routines, leveraging data and analytics to identify gaps, prioritize actions, track benefits and sustain improvements.
Serve as a trusted partner to Line Maintenance leadership, providing strategic thought partnership on improving operational performance, identify constraints, and implementing improvement initiatives.
Ensure the voice of the field is represented in Tech Ops decision-making, ensuring initiatives are grounded in operational reality and executable across diverse station environments.
Champion and embed a culture of continuous improvement and structured problem-solving across Line Maintenance, as well as champion innovative technologies and capabilities to improve safety, quality, and performance while reducing downtime and sustainment costs. Co-develop and Implement a CI education and training program helping spread the culture and CI across Tech Ops.