Operational Excellence Manager - East Kilbride

Coca-Cola Europacific Partners; East Kilbride; On-site; GBP 60,000 - 90,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Private Medical Insurance

Share scheme

Pension contributions

Flexible benefits & discounts

Free parking & EV charging

Drinks on site

Parental benefits

Job summary

Coca-Cola Europacific Partners in East Kilbride is seeking an Operational Excellence Manager to drive the site’s improvement agenda. You will lead the deployment of the OE framework, work with site leadership to embed continuous improvement, and deliver measurable benefits across safety, quality, service and cost.

Reporting to the Site Director, you will coach teams, analyze data, and shape capability development across the operation to sustain performance and growth.

Qualifications

• Degree in FMCG, Supply Chain, Industrial Engineering or equivalent experience.
• Proven track record in operational excellence or transformation programmes.
• Experience leading cross-functional teams and managing complex data.
• Ability to coach teams to apply continuous improvement methods.

Responsibilities

• Lead the site's Operational Excellence roadmap and maturity within the CCEP framework.
• Conduct gap assessments and translate findings into improvement plans.
• Drive continuous improvement across manufacturing, engineering and support functions.
• Use data to identify opportunities and deliver measurable benefits.
• Develop and manage the Continuous Improvement team and standards.
• Oversee the improvement pipeline and ensure project benefits are realized.
• Coach leaders and facilitate structured problem-solving workshops.

Skills

Leadership

Operational excellence

Data analysis

Stakeholder management

Problem solving

Coaching & development

Communication

Education

Deg relevant to FMCG/Engineering

Tools

TPM

Lean Manufacturing

Six Sigma

Job description

Operational Excellence Manager – East Kilbride

Permanent

Structured career development + Annual performance related pay bonus and pay reviews + Private Medical Insurance + Share scheme + Competitive pension contributions + Range of flexible benefits and Corporate discounts, holiday buy/sell scheme, optional health care and life assurance + Free parking and EV charging + Free hot and cold drinks and subsidised canteen + Excellent parental benefits

What you become part of:

Join one of the most dynamic manufacturing operations in Great Britain. Our East Kilbride site produces around 33 million cases of drinks every year across four high-performing production lines, including two glass and two PET bottling lines. It is also the only site in Great Britain producing Appletiser in glass, making it a unique place to develop expertise within a world-class manufacturing environment. As part of Coca-Cola Europacific Partners, you'll be joining a business that invests in its people, technology, and future. Whether you're looking to broaden your leadership experience, develop operational excellence capability or drive transformation at scale, this role offers the opportunity to make a significant impact within a market-leading manufacturing business. Reporting directly to the Site Director, you'll play a key role in shaping site performance, embedding a culture of continuous improvement and supporting East Kilbride's operational excellence journey.

What to expect:

As Operational Excellence Manager, you'll lead the deployment and maturity of the CCEP Operational Excellence framework, helping to deliver sustainable improvements across safety, quality, service, sustainability, cost, and people performance. Working closely with site leadership and cross-functional teams, you'll drive continuous improvement initiatives, develop capability across the business and ensure Operational Excellence principles are fully embedded into day-to-day operations.

Key responsibilities include:

• Leading and delivering the site's Operational Excellence roadmap, supporting progression through the CCEP maturity framework
• Conducting gap assessments and translating findings into actionable improvement plans
• Driving continuous improvement initiatives across manufacturing, engineering and support functions
• Using data and performance insights to identify, prioritise and deliver improvement opportunities
• Managing and developing the Continuous Improvement team, building capability and promoting a high-performance culture
• Overseeing the site's improvement pipeline and ensuring projects deliver measurable business benefits
• Auditing frontline routines and coaching leaders to strengthen standards, problem-solving and accountability
• Supporting autonomous maintenance, reliability and productivity improvement activities
• Facilitating improvement workshops and coaching teams through structured problem-solving methodologies
• Reviewing capability requirements and supporting learning and development plans to strengthen operational performance
• Partnering with operational leaders to prioritise and deploy technical resources in support of key improvement initiatives

This is a highly influential role, providing the opportunity to work across all areas of the site while helping shape the future performance and capability of the operation.

Skills & Essentials:

• A degree relevant to FMCG, Supply Chain, Industrial Engineering, or equivalent relevant experience.
• Proven experience leading operational excellence, continuous improvement or transformation programmes within a manufacturing environment.
• Strong knowledge of recognised improvement methodologies such as TPM, Lean Manufacturing, Six Sigma or similar frameworks.
• Experience implementing performance improvement initiatives and delivering measurable operational results.
• The ability to analyse complex data and translate insights into practical actions.
• Experience coaching and developing teams to adopt continuous improvement principles and behaviours.
• Strong stakeholder management skills with the ability to influence at all levels of the organisation.
• Excellent communication and facilitation skills.
• Strong problem-solving capabilities and a data-driven approach.
• A collaborative leadership style with the ability to engage and influence across multiple functions.
• A passion for coaching, developing capability and driving continuous improvement.
• If you're looking for an opportunity to influence site-wide performance, develop organisational capability and play a leading role in shaping the future of one of our key manufacturing sites, we'd love to hear from you.