Operation Excellence Manager

Daikin Applied Americas•Faribault, MN

1d•Hybrid

About The Position

The Operational Excellence Manager leads the design, deployment, and sustainment of continuous improvement initiatives across the organization. The role partners with business leaders to improve processes, reduce waste, increase efficiency, and enhance customer and employee experiences using Lean, Six Sigma, and other continuous improvement methodologies. This is a hybrid position at the North Faribault Plant.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in a STEM-related discipline.
At least 8 years of quality-related experience in a manufacturing environment.

Nice To Haves

Experience with Kaizen improvement processes.
Experience with the Toyota Production System.

Responsibilities

Lead enterprise-wide continuous improvement initiatives aligned with business strategy and performance goals.
Identify, prioritize, and execute process improvement opportunities using Lean, Six Sigma, Kaizen, and problem-solving tools.
Facilitate value stream mapping, root cause analysis, and improvement workshops across functions.
Establish and track key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure operational performance and improvement impact.
Coach and mentor leaders and teams on continuous improvement principles and behaviors.
Drive standard work, visual management, and process governance to ensure improvements are sustained.
Partner with senior leadership to translate strategic objectives into operational execution.
Support change management efforts to embed a culture of continuous improvement.
Lead or support training programs, such as Yellow Belt and Green Belt, to build organizational capability.
Collaborate cross-functionally with Operations, Finance, IT, HR, and other teams to remove operational barriers.