Sr Manager, Operational Excellence/PPI Business System

About the Role

As part of the Thermo Fisher Scientific team, you’ll facilitate transformational change and continuous improvement across the Clinical Trials Division (CTD). Leading the implementation of our Practical Process Improvement (PPI) Business System, you will partner with business leaders to establish and mature lean management practices that enable profitable growth, enhance customer experience, and increase employee engagement. CTD partners with pharmaceutical and biotech customers globally to ensure the right patients get the right therapies in the right doses at the right time. Our services include project management, packaging, distribution, transportation management, specialty logistics, ancillary supply management, clinical supply optimization, and bio-repository storage.

The role reports to the Allentown, PA site and supports over 3,000 employees in over 15 countries.

Responsibilities

• Lead deployment and sustainment of the site PPI Business System, including Daily Management, Leader Standard Work, and Tiered Accountability.
• Partner with the Site Leadership Team to align PPI priorities with strategic objectives, driving performance, accountability, and fact-based decision making.
• Foster a culture of continuous improvement by embedding PPI principles and behaviors into daily operations across all levels.
• Translate site goals into actionable, measurable objectives across value streams to improve safety, quality, delivery, and cost performance.
• Own and manage the site productivity funnel, ensuring robust identification, prioritization, execution, and tracking of improvement initiatives.
• Coach and develop leaders and teams in Lean principles, structured problem solving (A3), and root cause analysis to build sustainable capability.
• Lead and facilitate kaizen events and high-impact improvement initiatives, while enabling teams to independently sustain and replicate results.
• Implement and maintain visual management and performance systems to enable transparency, rapid issue escalation, and data-driven decisions.
• Assess PPI maturity and develop roadmaps to advance site capabilities, standardize best practices, and close performance gaps.
• Ensure strong linkage between PPI initiatives and business outcomes, including financial performance and customer impact.
• Champion a structured, data-driven approach to problem solving, ensuring sustainable countermeasures and continuous learning.

Requirements

• BS degree required in Engineering, Science, Business, Operations, or related field.
• Six Sigma Black Belt and/or Lean certification; PMP a plus.
• Advanced degree with 6 years, or bachelor’s degree with 8 years of experience in Lean leadership, continuous improvement, or operational excellence.
• Experience in manufacturing, operations, or a related environment.
• Demonstrated experience deploying Lean/PPI tools, including daily management systems, value stream mapping, and problem-solving methodologies.
• Experience coaching and developing continuous improvement capabilities in leaders and teams.
• Experience leading change in a matrixed, global organization.
• Experience in regulated industries (e.g., life sciences, medical devices).

Skills

• Demonstrates Thermo Fisher’s PPI mindset: Bias for Action, Customer Focus, and Continuous Improvement.
• Strong financial and business acumen with ability to quantify and track improvement impact.
• Strong project management and organizational skills with ability to manage multiple priorities.
• Strong influencing and communication skills across all organizational levels.
• Ability to lead through others without direct authority.
• Data-driven, structured thinker with strong analytical capability.
• Proven ability to drive engagement and sustain cultural change.
• Willingness to travel up to 30%.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite.

Benefits

• Competitive remuneration.
• Annual incentive plan bonus scheme.
• Healthcare and a range of employee benefits.

Thermo Fisher Scientific offers employment with an innovative, forward-thinking organization, and outstanding career and development prospects. We offer an exciting company culture that stands for integrity, intensity, involvement, and innovation.

Schedule

Standard (Mon-Fri)