Operational Excellence Leader — Plantwide Impact

Vandemoortele; Oost-Vlaanderen; On-site; EUR 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Big little family

Internal mobility & promotions

Continuous learning environment

Employee well-being

Job summary

Vandemoortele in Belgium seeks an Operational Excellence Manager at our Eeklo site to drive continuous improvement across production, maintenance, safety, quality, logistics and HR. You shape the way we work, teach problem-solving on the shop floor and turn insights into lasting value.

You will embed 5S+S, 7 wastes reduction, and standard-setting processes, coach leaders, and connect operations with digital data to sustain performance improvements company-wide.

Qualifications

• Master degree in a relevant field.
• Experience in a manufacturing FMCG environment is preferred.
• Strong knowledge of TPM, Lean manufacturing, Six Sigma or equivalent continuous improvement methodologies.
• Dynamic personality with excellent communication skills capable of connecting with all layers of the organisation.
• Fluent in Dutch.
• Demonstrated leadership with ability to empower teams and drive change across a site.
• Strong analytical skills with ability to translate KPIs into actions.
• Systems thinking – redesign processes to prevent issues rather than just solve them.
• Ambassador for Eeklo, collaborating with the site team and Vandemoortele Group.

Responsibilities

• Embed a low-threshold continuous improvement culture on the shop floor and across all departments.
• Sustain and advance operational standards (5S+S, CIL, kaizen, audits, standard setting).
• Connect operational excellence to business outcomes using data-driven insights.
• Build capability and embed continuous improvement culture across the organisation.
• Design and implement learning systems and knowledge architecture to retain expertise.
• Interact on the shop floor, build trust, and share best practices across sites and the group.

Skills

Leadership

Communication

Analytical thinking

KPIs to actions

Systems thinking

Team player

Dutch language

Change management

Education

Master degree

Tools

TPM

Lean manufacturing

Six Sigma

Job description

Vandemoortele in Belgium seeks an Operational Excellence Manager at our Eeklo site to drive continuous improvement across production, maintenance, safety, quality, logistics and HR. You shape the way we work, teach problem-solving on the shop floor and turn insights into lasting value.

You will embed 5S+S, 7 wastes reduction, and standard-setting processes, coach leaders, and connect operations with digital data to sustain performance improvements company-wide.