Senior Operational Excellence Manager - Leeds

Arla Foods; Aylesbury; On-site; GBP 60,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job description

At Arla, we are dedicated to achieving world-class standards in operational excellence, and we are now seeking a Senior Operational Excellence Manager in (UK) to join our central operational excellence and digital team, driving and leading the regional Arla Performance System (APS) strategy and implementation across the sites in our (UK) market and playing a key role in moving our production towards our vision of ZERO losses, ONE team and 100% engagement. A high degree of mobility is needed in developing our lead sites within the UK, with an estimated 50% travel expected locally in the UK and to Europe.

How you will make an impact

As our new Senior Operational Excellence Manager, you will be part of the Market VP Leadership Team based either from our UK Head Office, Leeds or our Flagship UK dairy production site in Aylesbury. You will take a leading role in our operational excellence implementation and shaping a culture of continuous improvement across your market. A key focus, apart from leading the OpEx journey in the market, will be to own and lead globally the development and governance of specific APS methodologies and work practices and acting as the subject matter expert within that area.

Through regular site visits you will provide hands-on coaching at all levels, assess progress, support site management teams, and ensure that Operational Excellence initiatives are successfully implemented and sustained across sites. As part of the implementation strategy you will ensure successful management of pilot implementation and supporting sufficient capability building strategies for sites to sustain their own initiatives as well as successful expansion of APS to further sites as defined in well-developed roll out plans. You will also take a leading role in initiating and fostering strong operational excellence communities within and across key production markets. In addition, you will spearhead efforts to digitalize and automate processes where possible and foster a collaborative environment across cross-functional teams to achieve a zero-loss culture.

As part of the Market VP Production area where you hold the operational excellence responsibilities we have defined a Lighthouse site and structured roll out approach to all sites. As such, you will be ensuring the implementation of world class operational excellence practices and standards first at the defined lighthouse site. Following that, and as part of the structure roll out of these practices you will ensure the right design, support structure and speed of expansion of APS and digital transformation roll out from the Lighthouse to the next waves of sites, ensuring the right adherence and consistency of standards aligned to the global model and programmes. For this framework to be successful you will ensure and foster close collaboration with all Lighthouse sites across the other Market regions as well as fostering the “in market” communities to accelerate best practice sharing, capability development and expansion of the various programmes and initiatives within operational excellence.

Your key responsibilities will be to:

• Drive and lead the implementation of APS, leveraging TPM and Lean methodologies to optimize performance across multiple site regions including Lighthouses and expansion to other sites.
• Function as a key sparring partner in driving the operational excellence and balanced scorecard (SQCDMP) progress and results in the market.
• Use regular site visits to drive the OpEx agenda and APS program forward and partner with Senior OpEx Managers across regions to build APS and digital communities.
• Develop and implement world-class operational excellence ways of working and drive the standardization of processes across multiple production sites fostering communities and collaboration across Lighthouse sites and within regions.
• Facilitate workshops, training sessions and on-the-job coaching in developing capability at all levels to sustain a site and market operational excellence programme.
• Fully support, enable and champion the automation and digital transformation implementation across sites in the market.

What will make you successful

To thrive in this role, you should have a degree in engineering, dairy science, economics, or supply chain management, and at least 10 years of relevant experience in manufacturing, leadership and operational excellence. You have a deep understanding of Lean, TPM, and Continuous Improvement methodologies, and a proven track record of leading large-scale improvement initiatives in a complex, matrixed organization.

Further, to successfully deliver on key priorities we believe that you have:

• Strong interpersonal and coaching skills, with the ability to engage and inspire stakeholders at all levels.
• Proven track record of driving large-scale improvement initiatives and achieving measurable results.
• Ability to lead in different situations balancing operational, performance and strategic needs and people development.
• Experience in digital transformation, including automation and Industry 4.0 technologies is highly valued.
• A passion for inspiring and developing manufacturing teams towards world-class operational excellence.

What we offer

At Arla, you will be part of a forward-thinking organization that is committed to pushing the boundaries of operational excellence. In this role, you will have the opportunity to make a significant impact by leading critical improvement initiatives across multiple sites and shaping our long-term operational strategy.

We’re committed to professional development and have a positive and collaborative culture. You will work alongside passionate and skilled colleagues who are dedicated to delivering high-quality products and driving continuous improvement across all aspects of our operations.

Would you like to join us?

If you are ready to take the next step in your career and drive operational excellence at Arla, we would love to hear from you. Please submit your application, including your CV and cover letter, by 14th February 2025.

We have a purpose for Good
At Arla, we strive to unlock the highest potential in each other while working together to create a sustainable future of dairy. We call it Stronger People Stronger Planet and it is deeply anchored in our organisation and founded on our commitment to respecting human rights, increasing access to healthy dairy nutrition, inspiring good food habits, and improving the environment for future generations. In order to succeed we need to hire people with a sustainable mindset. Could this be you?