Continuous Improvement Senior

City and County of Denver; Denver (CO); Hybrid; USD 74,000 - 123,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Life-long pension

Retirement plan 457B

PTO 140 hours first year

Holidays

Medical/dental/vision coverage

Job summary

City and County of Denver–Denver Human Services seeks a Continuous Improvement Senior to lead Lean initiatives and manage cross‑agency projects. You will drive rapid improvement events, value stream mapping, and data‑driven analyses to improve service delivery.

The role emphasizes stakeholder engagement and sustaining improvements across the organization. Requires a Bachelor’s degree and 3 years of professional process-improvement consulting.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree required.
• Three (3) years of professional level experience consulting with management, providing expertise in process improvement to achieve department objectives, with substantial latitude for action.

Responsibilities

• Lead Lean Practice and Facilitation efforts including training, workshops, rapid improvement events, process mapping, and value stream analysis.
• Scope, design, and execute division and agency-wide projects with clear objectives, timelines, deliverables, roles, and communication plans.
• Develop and maintain project documentation (charters, plans, dashboards, risk logs, process maps, post-implementation reviews).
• Monitor progress, risks, dependencies, and KPIs to ensure outcomes are achieved.
• Build collaborative relationships to encourage adoption and engagement with continuous improvement.

Skills

Lean

Project management

Facilitation

Data analysis

Process mapping

Stakeholder engagement

Training development

MS Office (Teams, SharePoint, Excel, P

Education

Bachelor’s degree

Tools

Lean tools

PDCA

A3 problem solving

Root-cause analysis

Visual management

Microsoft Office Suite

Job description

About Our Job

Continuous Improvement Senior

With competitive pay, great benefits, and endless opportunities, working for the City and County of Denver means seeing yourself working with purpose — for you, and those who benefit from your passion, skills, and expertise. Join our diverse, inclusive, and talented workforce of more than 11,000 team members who are at the heart of what makes Denver, Denver.

What We Offer
The City and County of Denver offers a competitive salary commensurate with education and experience. The salary range for this position is $74,276 - $122,555. New hire target starting range is $74,276 – $98,415. We also offer generous benefits for full-time employees which include but are not limited to:

• A guaranteed life-long monthly pension, once vested after 5 years of service
• 457B Retirement Plan
• 140 hours of PTO earned within first year + 11 paid holidays, 1 personal holiday and 1 volunteer day per year
• Competitive medical, dental and vision plans effective within 1 month of start date

Location
The City and County of Denver supports a hybrid workplace model. Employees work where needed, at a job site 24 hours a week and off‑site as needed. Employees must work within the state of Colorado on off‑site days.

What You’ll Do
At Denver Human Services (DHS), we envision a healthy community where people are connected, supported, safe, and well. One in three people in Denver turn to DHS for support at all stages of life. Our employees help children, older adults, families, and individuals navigate social and economic pressures by connecting them to services and experts who support their overall well-being.

Denver Human Services is seeking an enthusiastic, innovative, experienced, and relationship-driven Continuous Improvement Senior to join the Continuous Process Improvement team within the Strategic Insights and Impact Division. We are looking for candidates with a proven track‑record of success using Lean tools as well as Project Management expertise to improve services to our customers.

Anchored in the Mayor’s Peak Performance initiative, our work begins with a simple yet bold vision: drive innovation by daring to be bold and creative. The City is committed to delivering breakthrough solutions with speed, efficiency, and impact which strengthens a culture that embraces continuous improvement at all levels.

At DHS, our team focuses on making the right work easier to do. The Continuous Improvement Senior will play a critical role in driving service transformation by leading improvement efforts, and managing complex projects from concept through sustainability. Responsibilities include:

Lean Practice and Facilitation

• Assess needs, prepare, plan, coordinate, schedule, organize, and facilitate various Lean events including, but not limited to training, workshops, rapid improvement events, process mapping, and value stream analysis.
• Lead and facilitate comprehensive Lean Rapid Improvement Events, Operational standard Work workshops, and end-to-end projects.
• Collect, validate, collate, and analyze qualitative and quantitative data to understand current-state processes and identify improvement opportunities.
• Recommend measures to improve efficiency, reduce waste, and enhance customer experience.

Project Management

• Scope, design, and execute division and agency-wide projects, establishing clear project objectives, timelines, deliverables, roles, and communication plans.
• Develop and maintain project documentation including charters, project plans, dashboards, risk logs, process maps, and post‑implementation reviews.
• Utilize established project management methodologies to ensure alignment with agency strategy, stakeholder expectations, and business needs.
• Monitor and track project progress, risks, dependencies, timelines, and key performance indicators to ensure outcomes are achieved.
• Facilitate project prioritization workshops and support senior leadership in selecting improvement initiatives aligned with DHS’ Strategic Roadmap, values, and goals.
• Support implementation of approved improvements and conduct sustainability checks to ensure long‑term adoption.
• Track, report, and communicate program benefits across the organization, illustrating cumulative progress and impact.

Training & Curriculum Development

• Develop and deliver training curricula tailored to division and agency needs.
• Train staff on Lean principles, tools, and techniques while assessing and refining training effectiveness.
• Build staff capability in critical Lean tools such as standard work, PDCA, A3 problem solving, root cause analysis, metrics, and visual management.

Communications & Stakeholder Engagement

• Build and maintain collaborative working relationships with staff, managers, executives, and cross‑departmental partners to encourage adoption and ongoing engagement with continuous improvement.
• Deliver clear, persuasive written and verbal communication to stakeholders within DHS and across the City and County.
• Provide guidance, coaching, and support to cultivate a continuous improvement mindset throughout the organization.
• Engage with management and project teams to review progress, gather input on improvement needs, and ensure clear communication throughout the implementation of Lean initiatives.
• Ensure the sustainability of improvements.

What You’ll Bring
We value diversity across ethnicity, race, socioeconomic status, sexual identity, gender, religion, ability, language, and lived experience. You will thrive here if you build strong relationships, take initiative, challenge the status quo, and elevate your work, your team, and Denver.

Our ideal candidate has some or all the following experience, skills, and characteristics:

• Expert-level knowledge of Lean and comparable continuous improvement methodologies, with the ability to select the right tools and approaches for each project.
• Proven project management skills, including scoping, planning, scheduling, risk identification, stakeholder engagement, and delivering results on time.
• Relevant certifications such as Peak Academy Black Belt and/or Project Management Professional (PMP).
• Experience operating in human services, social services, or public-sector environments.
• Advanced facilitation skills for guiding diverse groups through workshops, improvement events, and complex decision-making.
• Strong communication, interpersonal, and influencing skills, using data and evidence to support decisions and drive change without formal authority.
• Ability to collaborate across all organizational levels, lead performance dialogues, and identify root causes using structured problem‑solving methods.
• Demonstrated analytical ability, including process mapping, gap analysis, prioritization matrices, and the use of standard project management and Lean tools.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities independently, break down large efforts into manageable steps, and maintain momentum toward actionable outcomes.
• High proficiency in developing and delivering training and materials, working across cross‑functional teams, and using Microsoft Office and related platforms (Teams, SharePoint, Excel, PowerPoint, Visio).

Required Minimum Qualifications
Education requirement: Bachelor’s Degree.

Experience Requirement: Three (3) years of professional level experience consulting with management providing expertise in process improvement techniques to achieve department/agency objectives and which includes applying organization and business knowledge to market and communicate the benefits of Continuous Improvement and operates with substantial latitude for independent action or decision.

Education/Experience Equivalency: One (1) year of the appropriate type and level of experience may be substituted for each required year of post-high school education.

Additional appropriate education may be substituted for the minimum experience requirements.

License/Certifications: None

Application Deadline
This position is expected to remain open until October 11.

About Everything Else

Job Profile

CA3108 Continuous Improvement Senior

Position Type

Unlimited

Position Salary Range

$74,276.00 - $122,555.00

Target Pay

Though the full range is listed, our expected hiring range is between $74,276 and $98,415.

Agency

Denver Human Services

Redeployment during Citywide Emergencies

City and County of Denver employees may be re-deployed to work in other capacities in their own agencies or in other city agencies to support core functions of the city during a citywide emergency declared by the Mayor.

It is your right to access oral or written language assistance, sign language interpretation, real-time captioning via CART, or disability-related accommodations. To request any of these services at no cost to you, please contact [e-mail] with three business days’ notice.

Applicants for employment with the City and County of Denver must have valid work authorization that does not require sponsorship of a visa for employment authorization in the U.S.