Innovation Advisor

Marathon Petroleum Corporation•Findlay, OH

4d•Onsite

About The Position

The Innovation Advisor is an individual contributor role within the Value Chain Optimization (VCO) organization, reporting to the Director of Value Chain Process Excellence & Innovation. This role is responsible for advancing innovation across the Plan‑to‑Produce process by managing the optimization and analytics innovation pipeline from idea intake through pilot execution and evaluation. Success depends on influence, structured collaboration, and clear communication across functional and organizational boundaries rather than direct authority. The Innovation Advisor researches emerging planning, optimization, and analytics technologies and methodologies; designs and executes pilots and proof‑of‑concepts; and evaluates technical feasibility, scalability, and business value. Working closely with planning teams, digital and data partners, IT, Operations Research, and external vendors, this role enables disciplined experimentation and accelerates learning. This position owns the structured transition of successful pilots into formal process improvement or standardization pathways, ensuring clear handoffs, documentation, and captured learnings to support adoption and scale. In support of near‑term VCO transformation priorities, the Innovation Advisor will also lead or coordinate select transformation initiatives and cross‑functional projects, providing structured planning, execution oversight, and integration with the broader innovation and improvement portfolio.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree required.
Eight (8) years of experience required; including four (4) years of experience in optimization, advanced analytics, digital transformation, or innovation‑focused engineering roles.
Innovation & Experimentation Execution – Ability to explore, prototype, and test new concepts in ambiguous environments while driving structured experimentation and learning.
Project & Initiative Management – Ability to plan, coordinate, and manage innovation initiatives, pilots, and proofs‑of‑concept from concept through completion.
Advanced Analytics & Optimization Background – Solid grounding in optimization, modeling, analytics, or decision‑support methods, with openness to emerging and non‑traditional approaches.
Stakeholder Influence & Collaboration – Effective at engaging planning, digital, technical, and external partners, synthesizing input, and advancing ideas without direct authority.

Nice To Haves

Bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering, Industrial Engineering, Operations Research, or Data Science preferred.

Responsibilities

Manages the optimization and analytics innovation pipeline (innovation and improvement backlog), providing end-to-end project management from idea intake and prioritization through pilot execution, evaluation, and documented learnings.
Researches emerging planning, optimization, and analytics technologies, tools, and methodologies relevant to the Plan‑to‑Produce process and associated planning and optimization workflows.
Designs and executes pilots, prototypes, and proof‑of‑concept initiatives to test new tools, models, and approaches.
Engages planning teams, digital/data groups, IT, vendors, and external partners to source ideas, secure technical resources, and co-develop pilot solutions.
Evaluates technical feasibility, scalability, and business value of innovation initiatives to inform progression or retirement decisions.
Synthesizes insights, lessons learned, and best practices from innovation activities, formally communicating findings to process excellence, governance, and standardization partners to inform future development priorities.
Owns the transition of successful pilots to the Process Optimization Specialist for integration into the improvement backlog or to the Value Chain Excellence Engineer for incorporation into standard model frameworks, including defined handoff criteria and documentation.
Continuously improves innovation methods, tools, and ways of working to increase experimentation speed, learning quality, and impact.