Continuous Improvement Manager

About ProEnergy

ProEnergy is an engineering, R&D, and manufacturing powerhouse addressing every need for fast-start power generation: turbine and package manufacturing, turnkey project execution, power purchase agreements, and asset lifecycle care for turbines and plants. The company delivers innovative aeroderivative solutions to energy challenges worldwide.

ProEnergy operates from global centers of aeroderivative excellence, investing over $1 billion through 2028 in infrastructure. Key locations include:

• A 600,000 sq ft Center for Excellence in Manufacturing in Sedalia, Missouri—expanding by 40 percent—specializing in fast-start power solutions.
• A 500,000 sq ft Center for Excellence in Lifecycle Care in Houston, Texas, featuring a Level-IV depot and aero repair facility for comprehensive aeroderivative engine services.
• An Engineering office in Kansas City supporting turnkey projects and contracted power solutions.
• Worldwide service centers in Phoenix, Buenos Aires, New Brunswick, Europe, Australia, and Southeast Asia.

Our Philosophy

ProEnergy prioritizes its people and aims to make a positive global impact. The company offers competitive pay and benefits, including:

• Medical, dental, vision, and life/disability insurance at minimal cost to employees.
• 10 paid holidays and paid time off.
• A 401K retirement plan.

About the Role

The Continuous Improvement Manager will lead operational excellence initiatives focused on improving efficiency, reducing waste, and driving sustainable growth within the manufacturing power sector. This role requires a proven leader with deep expertise in Lean Manufacturing, Six Sigma methodologies, and process improvement strategies, along with hands-on experience in complex manufacturing environments.

Reporting to the VP of Production Planning & Continuous Improvement, the CI Manager will own deployment and execution of the enterprise continuous improvement strategy, including daily management systems, improvement project pipelines, frontline capability building, and cultural change.

Responsibilities

• Deploy and manage the organization’s continuous improvement program in alignment with enterprise strategy and business objectives, owning execution, sustainment, and results at the site and value-stream level.
• Lead Lean, Six Sigma, and other process improvement initiatives to enhance safety, quality, productivity, and cost-efficiency—chartering, facilitating, and closing high-impact projects with disciplined action-item closure and sustainment audits.
• Oversee the analysis, optimization, and standardization of manufacturing, services, and supply chain processes, partnering with production planning and process owners to document standard work and stabilize core processes before encoding into D365 workflows.
• Support the D365/ERP implementation from the process side: lead value stream mapping and process design, drive post-go-live stabilization kaizen, and convert daily management boards and CI metrics from manual tracking to system-fed data without losing floor ownership.
• Collaborate cross-functionally with engineering, operations, quality, and maintenance teams to identify process bottlenecks and implement sustainable solutions.
• Establish and monitor KPIs to measure progress, including validated hard savings, cycle-time and work-in-process reduction, scrap/rework reduction, and schedule-adherence support.
• Run the daily management system: coach supervisors and managers through tiered accountability meetings, leader standard work, and visual management.
• Mentor and train the organization on continuous improvement tools, problem-solving methodologies, and best practices to scale improvement capacity.
• Drive cultural change to foster a mindset of continuous learning and innovation, engaging employees from the shop floor to the executive level.
• Lead root cause analysis and corrective action for recurring production and operations issues using structured problem-solving (A3, 5-Why, 8D, PDCA) with verified, permanent countermeasures.
• Manage resource allocation for improvement projects, build ROI cases, and ensure maximum return on investment.
• Stay current with industry trends and emerging technologies to maintain competitive advantage in power generation manufacturing.

Requirements

• Education: Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Business, Manufacturing, or a related field.
• Experience: Minimum 10+ years of progressive experience in manufacturing operations, with at least 5 years in a leadership role driving continuous improvement initiatives.
• Industry Expertise: Direct experience in manufacturing precision parts and assemblies, with hands-on shop floor implementation knowledge.
• Operational Excellence: Strong understanding of VSM, Kaizen, TPM, daily management systems, and other process improvement frameworks—practitioner depth, not program administration.
• Change Leadership: Demonstrated ability to lead organizational change and engage employees at all levels, with a proven track record of measurable results in operational efficiency.
• Skills: Excellent analytical, problem-solving, and project management skills; exceptional communication, facilitation, and stakeholder management abilities.
• Work Authorization: Must be authorized to work in the U.S. without sponsorship.

Successful candidates will need to satisfactorily complete pre-employment drug screen and background check.

Preferred Qualifications

• Certifications: Lean Six Sigma Black Belt or Master Black Belt; direct Toyota Production System and/or Shingijutsu lineage (sensei-led kaizen training) highly valued.
• Advanced degree: Master’s degree in Engineering, Business Administration, Industrial Engineering, or a related field.
• Industry leadership: Proven success leading continuous improvement in power generation, aerospace, or gas turbine manufacturing environments with complex, high-value equipment.
• Technology integration: Experience supporting ERP implementation or migration from the process side—process standardization, data readiness, user acceptance testing, or change management—with Microsoft Dynamics 365 a plus; experience integrating digital manufacturing tools (MES, real-time KPI dashboards, predictive analytics) into CI programs.
• Change management expertise: Demonstrated ability to lead cultural transformation across multi-site operations.
• Innovation track record: Evidence of introducing new methodologies, technologies, or processes delivering measurable gains in safety, quality, throughput, and cost efficiency.
• Financial acumen: Strong capability building ROI models for CI projects, managing budgets, and aligning process improvements with corporate financial goals.
• Regulatory compliance: Familiarity with ISO 9001, AS9100, OSHA, and other regulatory and quality standards applicable to precision manufacturing.