Continuous Improvement Manager

True North Talent Limited; Greater London; On-site; GBP 54,000 - 66,000; Full time

Job summary

True North Talent Limited is seeking an experienced Continuous Improvement Manager for a leading food manufacturing site in North West London. You will own the CI strategy, drive Lean initiatives and deliver measurable operating improvements across safety, quality, cost and delivery.

Reporting to the General Manager, you will lead cross-functional teams, develop dashboards, coach managers and embed a culture of accountability and operational excellence across Engineering, Supply Chain,

Qualifications

• Proven experience delivering Continuous Improvement programmes within a food manufacturing or FMCG environment.
• Strong knowledge of Lean Manufacturing, Operational Excellence and structured problem-solving methodologies (Root Cause Analysis, 5 Whys, Process Mapping).
• Experience leading cross-functional improvement projects and embedding a culture of accountability and operational excellence.

Responsibilities

• Lead the site's Continuous Improvement strategy and ensure projects deliver measurable operational improvements.
• Drive Lean Manufacturing and Operational Excellence across all departments to improve safety, quality, delivery, cost and people performance.
• Lead structured problem-solving workshops using Lean tools (Root Cause Analysis, 5 Whys, Standard Work, Visual Management).
• Analyse operational data and KPIs to identify gaps, waste reduction opportunities and productivity improvements.
• Manage cross-functional improvement and transformation projects from concept to implementation and sustainment of benefits.
• Develop performance dashboards and report progress to the Leadership Team with strong business cases for improvements.
• Coach managers and teams to develop Continuous Improvement capability and embed accountability and excellence.
• Build strong relationships across Engineering, Supply Chain, Technical, Finance, HR and Operations to drive collaboration.

Skills

Lean Manufacturing

Operational Excellence

Root Cause Analysis

5 Whys

Process Mapping

Data interpretation

Microsoft Excel

Stakeholder management

Communication

Tools

Microsoft Excel

Job description

Continuous Improvement Manager -North West London -c£60,000 & Bonus

We are recruiting an experienced and driven Continuous Improvement Manager to join a leading food manufacturing business in London. Reporting directly to the General Manager, you'll take ownership of the site's Continuous Improvement strategy, driving Operational Excellence and embedding a culture of Lean Manufacturing across the business.

As a key member of the Leadership Team, you'll work cross functionally with Engineering, Supply Chain, Technical, Production, Finance and HR to improve safety, quality, service, cost and people performance. This is a fantastic opportunity for a hands on CI professional who thrives on delivering measurable improvements, leading change and developing teams to achieve operational excellence.

About you…

• Proven experience delivering Continuous Improvement programmes within a food manufacturing or fast paced FMCG environment.
• Strong knowledge of Lean Manufacturing, Operational Excellence and structured problem-solving methodologies, including Root Cause Analysis, 5 Whys and Process Mapping.
• The Continuous Improvement Manager will have experience leading cross-functional improvement projects and embedding sustainable cultural change.
• Highly analytical with strong data interpretation skills and advanced Microsoft Excel capability.
• Excellent communication, coaching and stakeholder management skills with the ability to influence at all levels of the business.

What will you be doing?

• Leading the site's Continuous Improvement strategy, ensuring projects align with business objectives and deliver measurable operational improvements.
• Driving Lean Manufacturing and Operational Excellence initiatives across all departments to improve safety, quality, delivery, cost and people performance.
• Leading structured problem-solving workshops using Lean tools such as Root Cause Analysis, 5 Whys, Standard Work and Visual Management.
• Analysing operational data and KPIs to identify performance gaps, waste reduction opportunities and productivity improvements.
• Managing cross-functional improvement and transformation projects from concept through to implementation, ensuring benefits are delivered and sustained.
• Developing performance dashboards, reporting progress to the Leadership Team and building robust business cases for improvement initiatives.
• As Continuous Improvement Manager, you will be coaching managers and teams to develop Continuous Improvement capability and embed a culture of accountability and operational excellence.
• Building strong working relationships across Engineering, Supply Chain, Technical, Finance, HR and Operations to drive collaboration and continuous improvement across the site.

So, what can they offer you?

This is an excellent opportunity to join a well-established and growing food manufacturing business where Continuous Improvement is at the heart of its operational strategy.

You'll become a key member of the Leadership Team with genuine influence over the site's future direction, leading business wide improvement initiatives that deliver tangible operational and financial benefits. The business is committed to investing in its people, systems and processes, providing the autonomy and support needed to make a real impact.

Whether your passion lies in Lean Manufacturing, Operational Excellence, change management or developing high-performing teams, this role offers the opportunity to shape the future of a busy manufacturing site while progressing your own career within a successful and ambitious organisation.

We are keen to speak with experienced Continuous Improvement Managers, Operational Excellence Managers, Lean Managers, CI Managers, Manufacturing Excellence Managers, Lean Six Sigma Managers, Operational Improvement Managers, Project Managers or Operations Managers from the food manufacturing or FMCG sectors who are based in London, Croydon, Dartford, Bromley, Watford, Enfield, Slough, St Albans, Chelmsford or the surrounding areas.

We are only able to consider candidates who have the legal right to work in the UK at the time of application. Unfortunately, due to the high volume of applications we receive, we can only contact successful applicants.