Continuous Improvement Leader

About the role

Excelitas is seeking a Continuous Improvement Leader who is passionate about technical manufacturing, focused on the customer, and willing to participate in a variety of challenging projects while quickly learning our products and processes.

Responsibilities

• Lead the organization's Continuous Improvement program by identifying, prioritizing, and driving initiatives that improve quality, productivity, efficiency, cost, and overall operational performance.
• Serve as the site subject matter expert for Lean Manufacturing, 6S, and structured problem solving, driving adoption, standardization, sustainment, and continuous maturity of operational excellence practices.
• Own the site's 6S program, including standards, audit processes, scoring methodologies, corrective actions, reporting, and continuous improvement of the program to ensure long-term effectiveness and cultural adoption.
• Develop, maintain, and analyze operational metrics, performance dashboards, yield data, Cost of Poor Quality (CoPQ), and other key business indicators to identify trends, risks, and opportunities for improvement.
• Proactively identify systemic issues and strategic improvement opportunities through data analysis, operational assessments, and collaboration with business leaders.
• Lead and facilitate structured problem-solving efforts using methodologies such as A3, PDCA, Root Cause Analysis, and Lean tools to address complex operational challenges and drive sustainable results.
• Manage the organization's A3 project portfolio, including project prioritization, status tracking, action item management, barrier escalation, and verification of sustained results.
• Drive accountability for improvement commitments by routinely following up with project owners, monitoring progress against milestones, and ensuring timely completion of agreed-upon actions.
• Lead Kaizen events, process improvement initiatives, and cross-functional projects from concept through implementation, effectiveness verification, and long-term sustainment.
• Facilitate process mapping, value stream analysis, and workflow assessments to identify waste, bottlenecks, variation, risk, and opportunities for simplification and standardization.
• Establish and maintain governance processes for continuous improvement activities, including project reviews, action tracking, effectiveness monitoring, and leadership reporting.
• Support implementation of new business systems, reporting tools, automation solutions, and organizational change initiatives that improve operational performance and business effectiveness.
• Partner with leaders across the organization to build a culture of continuous improvement, accountability, ownership, and data-driven decision making.
• Coach and mentor leaders, supervisors, and employees on Lean principles, performance metrics, structured problem solving, and continuous improvement methodologies.
• Other duties as assigned

Qualifications & Experience

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Operations, Quality, Manufacturing, Business, or a related technical discipline, or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• 5+ years of experience leading continuous improvement, operational excellence, Lean manufacturing, quality, or process improvement initiatives in a manufacturing or operational environment.
• Demonstrated success using data analysis, metrics, and performance dashboards to identify opportunities, drive decisions, and deliver measurable business improvements.
• Strong experience leading structured problem-solving efforts utilizing methodologies such as A3, PDCA, 5 Why, Root Cause Analysis, or similar approaches.
• Experience driving organizational change and influencing cross-functional teams without direct authority.
• Proven ability to independently identify problems, prioritize opportunities, develop improvement plans, and drive initiatives to completion with minimal direction.
• Strong analytical skills with the ability to interpret complex data, identify trends, and translate findings into actionable recommendations.
• Excellent project management and organizational skills with demonstrated ability to manage multiple initiatives simultaneously.
• Lean Six Sigma Green Belt, Black Belt, or equivalent Lean certification preferred.
• Experience with Power BI, Tableau, Minitab, or similar data visualization and statistical analysis tools preferred.
• Experience facilitating Kaizen events, value stream mapping, and process improvement workshops preferred.
• Experience implementing and sustaining 6S, Lean Manufacturing, and Operational Excellence programs preferred.
• Experience in manufacturing in a regulated industry preferred.

Pay

The anticipated hiring range for this role is $120,000 - $135,000.