Director, Continuous Improvement, Chemical

Job Responsibilities

• Coordinate the implementation of the Milliken Performance System (MPS) across our manufacturing locations that will result in lowered operating cost and efficient, reliable supply of product.
• Develop organizational capability by coaching and mentoring leaders and associates in problem-solving, lean tools, and MPS methods to strengthen a culture of continuous improvement.
• Lead cross functional improvement events—including Kaizen, FI teams, and focused workshops—to deliver measurable improvements in safety, quality, delivery, and productivity.
• Lead the development and implementation of key strategic growth and change initiatives across all Operations functions to enable safe, efficient, and reliable supply to our customers.
• Build and deliver training programs that advance MPS knowledge, enhance skills, and support system deployment across all organizational levels.
• Add train and develop associates in lean and Six Sigma methodologies.
• Establish and manage KPIs by analyzing performance data, identifying gaps, setting challenging targets, and guiding teams toward data driven solutions.
• Ensure execution and sustainability of improvement initiatives, including benefit validation, project tracking, and progress reporting to corporate leadership.
• Promote standardization and best practice sharing by developing and maintaining a cross-site practice database and facilitating global learning.
• Collaborate with plant and corporate CI/MPS leaders to align priorities, coordinate improvement roadmaps, and accelerate enterprise performance.
• Manage the cost reduction/hopper process and support ongoing strategic deployment and execution across the group.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in engineering, chemistry or related field
• 10+ years of relevant manufacturing experience
• Leverage Lean Six Sigma Black Belt certification
• Application experience and working knowledge of the Toyota Production System, Danaher Business System or related management control system
• Demonstrated ability to teach, coach and mentor individuals and project teams
• Applicable experience successfully leading and executing projects
• Strong financial acumen and experience linking CI results to business impact
• Able to travel domestically and globally as required (typically 20%)