Director of Lean & Operational Excellence

States Manufacturing Corporation; Columbus (OH); On-site; USD 150,000 - 190,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Up to 50% travel

Job summary

Forgent Power seeks a seasoned Continuous Improvement Director to drive Lean transformation across the company. You will partner with senior leadership to define strategy, lead value stream analyses, and orchestrate Kaizen events to raise efficiency and profitability.

You will coach executives and teams in Lean thinking, deliver targeted training, and build organizational capability through standard work, visual management, and robust metrics.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Engineering, Operations, or related field (Master’s preferred).
• 15+ years experience in operations leadership.
• 10+ years of Lean transformation, continuous improvement, or operational excellence roles.
• Lean Six Sigma Black belt or equivalent certification preferred.
• Proven track record coaching leaders and teams through enterprise-level Lean initiatives.
• Experience driving transformational change in both operations and back-office environments.

Responsibilities

• Lean Strategy & Implementation: design and execute Lean transformation roadmaps; lead value stream analyses, Kaizen events, and continuous improvement initiatives across departments.
• Coaching & Capability Building: coach leaders and frontline teams on Lean thinking; develop and deliver training on Lean tools; mentor Lean champions.
• Process Improvement & Performance Management: identify opportunities; support KPIs and dashboards; monitor progress and ensure corrective actions.
• Change Management & Culture Development: promote a culture of continuous improvement; develop Lean immersion programs; collaborate on operating system development; facilitate cross-functional alignment.

Skills

Lean principles

Coaching & training

Change management

Data-driven improvement

Strategy & leadership

Education

Bachelor's degree

Master's degree preferred

Tools

5S

A3 problem solving

Value stream mapping

Kanban

PDCA

Root cause analysis

Job description

Forgent Power seeks a seasoned Continuous Improvement Director to drive Lean transformation across the company. You will partner with senior leadership to define strategy, lead value stream analyses, and orchestrate Kaizen events to raise efficiency and profitability.

You will coach executives and teams in Lean thinking, deliver targeted training, and build organizational capability through standard work, visual management, and robust metrics.