Operational Excellence Business Partner

Rio Tinto; Labrador City; On-site; CAD 110,000 - 150,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Safety‑focused work environment

Education assistance

Competitive base salary + annual bonus

Health and pension plans

Share ownership program

Generous leave provisions

Job summary

Rio Tinto IOC seeks an Operational Excellence – Business Partner to drive performance improvements across mine-to-port operations in Labrador City. You will partner with leaders, coach teams and strengthen capability in structured problem-solving and continuous improvement, deploying RTSPS and MOS.

Reporting to CFO, you will identify opportunities, develop business cases and track benefits while building cross-functional alignment across safety, operations and support functions.

Qualifications

• Commitment to safety for self and team.
• Experience partnering with leaders to deliver performance improvement in complex industrial environments.
• Experience with management operating systems and data analysis tools.
• Ability to coach and influence across functions in English; French is an asset.

Responsibilities

• Identify, prioritize and implement improvement opportunities aligned with safety, productivity, cost and plans.
• Facilitate structured problem-solving, Kaizen events and root-cause investigations.
• Drive RTSPS and MOS maturity and sustainment across operations.
• Develop business cases and track benefits and value realization.
• Analyze operational data and deliver reporting and actionable insights.
• Coach managers and teams in continuous improvement and change management.
• Improve cross-functional alignment across operations, technical, safety and support.
• Support productivity and cost-reduction initiatives with planning and follow-through.

Skills

Structured problem-solving

Root cause analysis

Continuous improvement

Stakeholder facilitation

Education

University degree in Engineering, Science, or Business

Tools

MOS (Management Operating System)

Lean

Six Sigma

Kaizen

Job description

• Shape operational performance and sustainable value across IOC’s integrated mine-to-port operations.
• Partner with leaders, coach teams and strengthen capability in structured problem-solving and continuous improvement.
• Role based in Labrador City, NL

At Rio Tinto IOC, we are committed to creating an inclusive and welcoming workplace where everyone feels safe, respected, and able to succeed. We actively encourage applications from women, Indigenous Peoples, and people with diverse backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives.

We’re Finding Better Ways™ to provide materials the world needs, now and in the future. Our values – care, courage and curiosity – guide how we work and how we treat each other.

About the role

We are looking for an Operational Excellence – Business Partner to help the Iron Ore Company of Canada (IOC) improve business performance and strengthen the maturity of its management operating system. Operational Excellence supports Rio Tinto Safe Production System (RTSPS) deployment, capability development, value realization and continuous improvement across Mining, Processing, Rail, Port, Operational Technical Support, Health, Safety and Security, Projects and Services, and Support Functions.

As the direct interface between Operational Excellence and assigned business areas, you will work with leaders and teams to identify, prioritize, execute and sustain improvement opportunities. This is an opportunity to influence decisions across an integrated operation, build operational capability and turn performance insights into measurable value.

In Labrador City, you’ll find a close‑knit northern community where quality of life and genuine connection come naturally.

Enjoy the outdoors year-round; camping, fishing, hunting, hiking and boating throughout the summer and fall seasons. Winter thrills include groomed snowmobile trails, snowshoeing trails, alpine and cross-country skiing, including night skiing, often beneath the Northern Lights.

What you’ll be doing

Reporting to the Chief Financial Officer and working within the Operational Excellence team, you will be:

• Partnering with operational leaders to identify, prioritize and implement improvement opportunities aligned with safety, productivity, cost and annual business-plan commitments.
• Facilitating structured problem-solving, Kaizen events and root cause investigations, and coordinating action plans arising from operational reviews.
• Driving the implementation, maturity and sustainment of the Rio Tinto Safe Production System (RTSPS) and Management Operating System (MOS).
• Developing business cases and supporting value realization, benefits validation and tracking for improvement initiatives.
• Analyzing operational performance data and developing reporting, business intelligence and actionable insights that support decision-making.
• Coaching managers, senior leaders and teams in continuous improvement methodologies, performance routines and change implementation.
• Improving cross-functional alignment and collaboration across operational, technical, safety, project and support departments.
• Supporting productivity and cost-reduction initiatives through implementation planning, change management and sustained follow-through.

About you

We’re looking for someone whose experience aligns with the key requirements below. You do not need to meet every “helpful for success” item to apply. If you bring relevant experience and are excited by the opportunity, we encourage you to submit an application.

Required for Success

• A commitment to the safety of yourself and your team.
• Skills and Capabilities: Demonstrated capability in structured problem-solving, root cause analysis, continuous improvement, value realization and stakeholder facilitation.
• Experience: Hands‑on experience partnering with leaders to deliver and sustain performance improvement in mining, mineral processing, manufacturing or another complex, safety‑critical industrial environment.
• Qualifications: A university degree in Engineering, Science, Business or a related discipline, or equivalent relevant practical experience.
• Systems and Methods: Experience with management operating systems, Lean, Six Sigma, Kaizen or comparable improvement methodologies, together with performance reporting and data analysis tools.
• Communication: Ability to coach and influence managers, senior leaders and cross‑functional teams in English; French capability is an asset for work across IOC locations.

Helpful for Success

• Experience implementing or sustaining RTSPS, MOS or a comparable operating system.
• Experience developing business cases, tracking benefits and supporting annual planning, productivity or cost‑reduction commitments.
• Lean Six Sigma certification and experience with business intelligence or data visualization tools.

What we offer

Be recognized for your contribution, your thinking and your hard work, and go home knowing you’ve helped the world progress.

• A work environment where safety is always the number one priority

• Career development & education assistance to further your technical or leadership ambitions

• A competitive base salary reflective of your skills and experience with annual incentive program

• Ongoing access to family‑friendly health and medical programs, pension and savings plans

• Attractive share ownership plan

• Leave for all of life’s reasons (vacation/annual, paid parental, sick leave)

• Exclusive employee discounts

Where you’ll be working

We are a leading North American producer and exporter of premium iron ore pellets and high‑grade concentrate with average iron grades greater than 66%. With a team of over 2,700 employees, IOC is committed to providing value and continuity for our customers, employees, communities and shareholders through our unique mine to port approach, taking advantage of our full integration and wholly owned infrastructure to deliver our high-quality concentrate and pellets to our customers across the globe.

IOC’s operations include a mine with five operational pits, a concentrator and a pelletizing plant located near Labrador City in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador. We also operate a wholly‑owned 418 km railway, the Quebec North Shore and Labrador Railway (QNS&L), that links our Labrador operations to Company‑owned port facilities in Sept‑Iles.

Working at Rio Tinto also means choosing to be part of a company recognized one of Canada’s Top 100 Employers in 2026 and one of Canada’s Top Employers for Young People in 2025.

About Rio Tinto

Rio Tinto is a leading global mining and materials company. We operate in 35 countries where we produce iron ore, copper, aluminium, critical minerals, and other materials needed for the global energy transition and for people, communities, and nations to thrive.

We have been mining for 150 years and operate with knowledge built up across generations and continents. Our purpose is finding better ways to provide the materials the world needs – striving for innovation and continuous improvement to produce materials with low emissions and to the right environmental, social and governance standards. But we can’t do it on our own, so we’re focused on creating partnerships to solve problems, create win‑win situations and meet opportunities.

Respect and Inclusion

At Rio Tinto, we particularly welcome and encourage applications from Indigenous Peoples, women, the LGBTQ+ community, mature workers, people with disabilities and people from different cultural backgrounds.

We are committed to an inclusive environment where people feel comfortable to be themselves. We want our people to feel that all voices are heard, all cultures respected and that a variety of perspectives are not only welcome – they are essential to our success. We treat each other fairly and with dignity regardless of race, gender, nationality, ethnic origin, religion, age, sexual orientation or anything else that makes us different.

À propos de Rio Tinto

Rio Tinto est un chef de file mondial du secteur des sociétés minières et des matériaux. Nous sommes établis dans 35 pays où nous produisons du minerai de fer, du cuivre, de l’aluminium, des minéraux critiques et d’autres matériaux nécessaires à la transition énergétique mondiale et à la prospérité des personnes, des communautés et des nations.

Nous exerçons nos activités depuis 150 ans, en nous appuyant sur les connaissances accumulées au fil des générations et sur les différents continents. Notre mission – trouver de meilleures façons de fournir les matériaux dont le monde a besoin – nous guide dans notre quête d’innovation et d’amélioration continue, dans le but de fabriquer des produits à faibles émissions et répondant aux bonnes normes environnementales, sociales et de gouvernance. Mais comme nous ne pouvons pas y arriver seuls, nous nous attachons à créer des partenariats nous permettant de résoudre des problèmes, de créer des situations mutuellement avantageuses et de saisir des occasions.

Respect and Inclusion

Chez Rio Tinto, nous accueillons favorablement et encourageons les candidatures d’Autochtones, de femmes, de membres de la communauté LGBTQ+, de travailleurs âgés, de personnes handicapées et de représentants d’origines diverses.

Nous sommes déterminés à créer un milieu inclusif où les employés se sentent à l’aise d’être eux-mêmes. Nous souhaitons de plus que chacun ait l’impression que sa voix compte, que toutes les cultures sont respectées et que les points de vue, aussi variés soient‑ils, sont non seulement bienvenus, mais également essentiels à notre succès. Nous nous traitons mutuellement avec équité et dignité, sans égard à la race, au genre, à l’origine ethnique, à la religion, à l’âge, à l’orientation sexuelle ou à tout autre aspect distinctif.