Lean Manufacturing Lead - Continuous Improvement

Stellar Recruitment; Auckland; On-site; NZD 120,000 - 170,000; Full time

Job summary

Stellar Recruitment in Auckland seeks an experienced Continuous Improvement Lead to drive Lean initiatives across NZ manufacturing operations. You will report to the Operational Excellence Manager in Australia and focus on productivity, waste reduction, quality, and sustainable cost savings.

This hands-on role requires on-floor leadership, collaboration with production, maintenance and quality teams, and the ability to implement data-driven solutions that boost efficiency and profitability.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in a relevant engineering discipline.
• Minimum 5 years in process engineering or continuous improvement in manufacturing.
• Strong experience with Lean and continuous improvement methods.
• Experience in FMCG or similar manufacturing sectors is preferred.

Responsibilities

• Lead continuous improvement projects and Lean initiatives across multiple sites.
• Coordinate Kaizen workshops, root-cause analysis and structured problem-solving.
• Identify opportunities to improve productivity, quality and cost performance.
• Analyse production data and equipment performance to drive decisions.
• Support product introductions, process validation and manufacturing trials.
• Develop and maintain KPIs, SOPs and process documentation.
• Collaborate with maintenance, production and technical teams to improve reliability.
• Investigate quality issues, downtime and customer complaints and implement corrective actions.
• Coach site teams in Lean and continuous improvement concepts.

Skills

Lean manufacturing

Continuous improvement

Data analysis

Project management

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

Bachelor's degree in Chemical, Mechanical, Manufacturing, Industrial or Process Engineering

Job description

Stellar Recruitment in Auckland seeks an experienced Continuous Improvement Lead to drive Lean initiatives across NZ manufacturing operations. You will report to the Operational Excellence Manager in Australia and focus on productivity, waste reduction, quality, and sustainable cost savings.

This hands-on role requires on-floor leadership, collaboration with production, maintenance and quality teams, and the ability to implement data-driven solutions that boost efficiency and profitability.