Senior Director of Continuous Improvement

_ Dawn Foods • Louisville, KY

3d

About The Position

Dawn Foods is a global leader in bakery manufacturing and ingredients distribution. As the partner of choice for inspiring bakery success, we help customers grow their business through meaningful partnerships, research-driven insights and innovations, and products and expertise they can depend on. As a family-owned company, our commitments to our people, products, customers, and corporate values, are all part of our recipe for success. _ Why work for Dawn Foods? PEOPLE. PRODUCTS. CUSTOMERS. Why should you apply? We invest in you! Industry-leading health insurance on Day 1! Competitive Pay 401(K) + company match 10 Paid Company Holidays Paid Time Off Professional training Family-owned business over 100 years in service An opportunity for career advancement, working as part of an empowering workforce Job Purpose and Overview Leads, develops, and implements operational continuous improvement strategy and initiatives to drive cost reduction, eliminate waste, improve customer satisfaction, reduce product defects, and increase market share through the use of lean methodology and tools. Work Environment & Travel: This is a position based in Jackson, MI or Louisville, KY at one of our manufacturing plants. Travel may be required, up to 50% of the time.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in business administration, process management, operations, industrial engineering, engineering management, or another relevant field required
• A minimum of 10 years’ experience in manufacturing, logistics, distribution, warehousing, and/or engineering or other related supply chain field with at least:
• A minimum of 5 years' experience owning continuous improvement initiatives
• A minimum of 5 years’ experience leading and supervising others
• Requires excellent oral, written, and presentation communication skills
• Requires analytical problem-solving skills, time management skills, and advanced skills in the use of data management tools to monitor progress toward goals
• Experience with developing, maintaining, and revising Six Sigma training curriculum, delivering classroom training, and building relationships with external agencies to deliver Six Sigma training
• Experience in managing cross-departmental and cross-business projects
• Strong ability to lead organizational changes
• Demonstrated success in developing and establishing a CI framework in an organization, building processes, and policies that influence a cultural shift towards CI
• Strong ability to influence others without direct authority to seek and gain executive alignment and activate resources to deliver to project commitments
• Ability to work at a computer for extended periods (up to 8 hours per day).
• Required to use motor coordination with arm, hand, finger, and leg dexterity.
• Required to exert physical effort in handling objects up to 25 pounds.
• Ability to participate in virtual meetings and in-person collaboration as needed.

Nice To Haves

• Master’s Degree preferred
• Lean Six Sigma Black Belt or Master Black Belt preferred
• Experience in the food industry or baking industry preferred

Responsibilities

• Develop, manage, and facilitate the Continuous Improvement initiatives and strategy for Operations
• Build, lead, and develop a team of continuous improvement experts to identify, define, and implement and improvement opportunities to drive down cost using Lean, Six Sigma, and other continuous improvement principles
• Outlines the direction and overall deployment of the Lean framework to ensure consistent and rigorous application across the operation
• Drive a continuous improvement culture with a focus on prioritizing opportunities tied into a lean transformation strategy, process improvement, methodology, tools and data, and provide leadership for process improvement initiatives
• Ensure sustainability of past CI projects and focus on standardization and adoption of improved processes
• Sponsors process deep dives, or Kaizen events, to create gap analyses and areas warranting process improvement
• Develops and maintains a roadmap for long-term, sustainable cost reduction initiatives, including investments in tools and infrastructure that provide automated reporting and/or supplier collaboration
• Provides leadership in annual goal setting, cost savings targets, and aligning department staffing to support future business growth
• Leverages lean skills, tools, and best practices to identify opportunities for improvement and methods to improve
• Develop Six-sigma training and certification programs for Operations and Dawn N.A.
• Acts as a true Lean transformation leader and Kaizen coach that can provide in-depth knowledge of rapid improvement methodologies with tools acquired through hands-on implementation
• Understands and promotes the philosophies and policies of Dawn Food Products, Inc.
• Supports the Circle of Excellence, and the Dawn Philosophy of Team Dawn

Benefits

• Industry-leading health insurance on Day 1!
• Competitive Pay
• 401(K) + company match
• 10 Paid Company Holidays
• Paid Time Off
• Professional training
• Family-owned business over 100 years in service
• An opportunity for career advancement, working as part of an empowering workforce
• comprehensive health and well-being coverage
• competitive compensation packages
• award-winning benefit offerings
• generous 401(k) matching program that provides additional retirement funds and many tools and resources on financial wellness
• Dawn encourages professional growth through tuition assistance and educational programs
• Base salary range $140,880-$246,530 with bonus potential

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Director
• Number of Employees: 1,001-5,000 employees