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Position Overview
The Pencader Site Continuous Improvement Leader is responsible for driving sustainable improvements in plant performance through the deployment and advancement of the DuPont Operational Excellence (OpEx) System. Reporting to the Plant Leader, this role partners closely with site leadership, front-line teams, functional partners, and Business Operational Excellence resources to improve performance across Safety, Quality, Delivery, Inventory, and Productivity (SQDIP).
Serving as the site's Continuous Improvement practitioner and change leader, this individual will build organizational capability, coach leaders and employees, facilitate Kaizen and structured problem-solving activities, and establish the management systems necessary to sustain improvements.
The successful candidate will combine hands-on manufacturing experience with Lean/Continuous Improvement expertise, strong analytical and problem-solving skills, and the ability to influence change at all levels of the organization. The role will also help identify and advance digital and Industry 4.0 opportunities that improve visibility, productivity, standard work, and decision-making.
Key Responsibilities
Operational Excellence Deployment
- Partner with Plant Leadership to identify performance gaps and establish improvement priorities aligned to SQDIP, productivity, margin, EBITDA, and operational maturity objectives.
- Develop and execute the site's Operational Excellence roadmap in alignment with plant and business priorities.
- Deploy and sustain the DuPont Operational Excellence framework using established playbooks, management systems, roles, and routines.
- Translate business and plant priorities into actionable Continuous Improvement initiatives with measurable outcomes.
- Serve as a change leader who helps embed Operational Excellence principles into the way the plant operates.
Daily Management & Performance Systems
- Coach leaders and teams in the effective use of Daily Visual Management, tiered accountability, Bowler processes, Leader Standard Work, action tracking, and escalation routines.
- Leverage plant performance data to identify losses, waste, bottlenecks, recurring issues, and execution gaps.
- Strengthen accountability and problem-solving routines to improve action closure and sustain performance gains.
- Help establish a culture in which teams use data and structured problem solving to drive daily performance.
Continuous Improvement & Kaizen
- Lead and facilitate Kaizen events, focused improvement workshops, Value Stream Mapping, waste-elimination activities, and structured problem-solving efforts.
- Partner with cross-functional teams to build, maintain, and prioritize a robust pipeline of Continuous Improvement opportunities.
- Coach improvement projects from problem definition and root-cause analysis through implementation, sustainment, and benefit validation.
- Apply Lean, Six Sigma, Agile, and other Continuous Improvement methodologies based on the needs of the operation.
- Ensure improvements transition from short-term projects into sustainable operating practices.
Digital Enablement & Productivity
- Promote practical use of digital tools to improve visibility, standard work, action tracking, process efficiency, and decision quality.
- Partner with Digital/IT resources and plant teams to translate operational opportunities into dashboards, automation, data-analysis tools, or other digital solutions where appropriate.
- Identify opportunities to leverage Industry 4.0 concepts and technologies in support of Operational Excellence and productivity objectives.
- Use data and analytics to turn plant information into meaningful insights and actions.
Program Management & Benefits Validation
- Lead or support the plant's Continuous Improvement project portfolio and Project Management Office (PMO) processes.
- Establish project charters defining scope, resources, milestones, expected benefits, and implementation plans.
- Maintain visibility of the site's improvement opportunity pipeline and project progress.
- Partner with Finance and functional stakeholders to validate productivity, margin, EBITDA, and other measurable benefits.
- Ensure projects maintain disciplined milestone tracking, benefit realization, and sustainment.
Capability Building & Change Leadership
- Build Continuous Improvement capability across the organization through coaching, workshops, formal training, and hands-on application.
- Coach plant leaders, front-line leaders, operators, engineers, and functional partners in Operational Excellence methodologies.
- Facilitate practical learning in tools including 5S, Kaizen, Value Stream Mapping (VSM), SMED, Daily Management, Leader Standard Work, and structured problem solving.
- Connect employees to the purpose and expected outcomes behind improvement efforts to strengthen engagement and adoption.
- Share lessons learned and leverage the broader Continuous Improvement network to accelerate adoption of proven practices.
Required Qualifications
- Bachelor’s degree in engineering, Operations, Supply Chain, Manufacturing, Business, Information Technology, or a related field.
- Approximately 5–7 years of experience in manufacturing, engineering, supply chain, operations, Operational Excellence, or Continuous Improvement.
- Demonstrated experience applying Lean, Six Sigma, Agile, or Continuous Improvement methodologies within a manufacturing environment.
- Experience leading cross-functional improvement initiatives, Kaizen events, and/or structured problem-solving activities.
- Demonstrated ability to develop improvement roadmaps, project charters, implementation plans, and benefit-validation approaches.
- Experience using operational data to identify opportunities, solve problems, and measure results.
- Ability to coach, teach, facilitate, and build capability across different levels of an organization.
- Strong written and verbal communication skills with the ability to influence and drive change without direct authority.
Preferred Qualifications
- Lean Six Sigma Green Belt or equivalent Continuous Improvement certification.
- Experience supporting or leading Operational Excellence within a manufacturing site.
- Previous supervisory, people leadership, or significant informal leadership experience.
- Experience with Daily Management Systems, Visual Management, Leader Standard Work, Value Stream Mapping, SMED, Kaizen, 5S, and structured problem solving.
- Experience developing and managing Continuous Improvement project pipelines and benefits tracking.
- Experience with data analytics, dashboards, automation, and/or digital manufacturing technologies.
- Exposure to Industry 4.0 or digitally enabled manufacturing improvement initiatives.
- Experience working across manufacturing, engineering, quality, supply chain, finance, and other plant functions.
Critical Skills & Behaviors
The successful candidate will demonstrate:
- Strong collaboration and influencing skills across functions and organizational levels.
- Ability to coach, teach, mentor, and facilitate practical learning.
- Hands-on understanding of Lean and Continuous Improvement principles.
- Strong analytical thinking and structured problem-solving capability.
- A bias for action with strong ownership and follow-through.
- Ability to translate complex operational data into clear priorities and actions.
- Effective change leadership and the ability to build trust without relying on formal authority.
- Strong facilitation and communication skills.
- A focus on measurable business results as well as long-term sustainment.
- Commitment to DuPont Core Values and Balanced Leadership Factors: Head, Heart, and Hand.
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