Director | Operational Excellence - Quality & Continuous Improvement

POLYWOOD®; Syracuse (IN); Hybrid; USD 150,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

POLYWOOD® seeks a Director of Operational Excellence - Quality & Continuous Improvement to lead the deployment of THE POLYWOOD WAY across Syracuse, Indiana, and Roxboro, NC. You will partner with the COO, drive safety, quality, delivery, and cost improvements, and develop routines to sustain gains.

You will connect Quality, Lean, and data to develop a capable problem-solving culture, coaching leaders and teams to become self-sufficient problem solvers across sites.

Qualifications

• Experience leading manufacturing teams and improvements.
• Significant experience in Operational Excellence, Lean, Continuous Improvement, or Quality.
• Able to explain tools like setup reduction and value stream mapping clearly.

Responsibilities

• Turn THE POLYWOOD WAY into practical routines used daily.
• Lead tiered management and daily huddles with leaders on site.
• Lead quality strategy across both sites and process controls.
• Analyze operational, quality, and cost data to set priorities.
• Validate improvements and build sustainment plans.
• Coach supervisors and site leaders to solve problems.

Skills

Manufacturing leadership

Lean

Continuous Improvement

Quality

Data analysis

Problem solving

Tools

Value stream mapping

Root cause analysis

Setup reduction

Job description

Director | Operational Excellence - Quality & Continuous Improvement

Help us build the way POLYWOOD® runs, improves, and grows.

At POLYWOOD®, we have built a strong business on hardworking people and the knowledge they bring to the job every day. As we grow, we have an opportunity to give our teams a common, structured way to solve problems, improve performance, and sustain the gains.

We are hiring a Director, Operational Excellence - Quality & Continuous Improvement to help us take that next step. This position partners directly with our COO to build and deploy THE POLYWOOD WAY, our management system and operating philosophy, across our manufacturing operations in Syracuse, Indiana, and Roxboro, North Carolina.

You will work alongside site and functional leaders to find the real root cause of problems, lead structured improvements in safety, quality, delivery, cost, and team performance, and build the routines that keep those improvements in place.

This is not a role for a scholar who teaches tools from a conference room. It is a hands‑on opportunity for a practitioner who has led manufacturing teams, improved the areas they were responsible for, and enjoys helping others become better problem solvers.

Reporting directly to our Chief Operating Officer, you will have the opportunity to shape how POLYWOOD® manages, improves, and grows for years to come.

The Work You Will Own

You will help turn THE POLYWOOD WAY into practical routines our teams use every day, from tiered management and daily huddles to standard work, visual management, and structured problem solving.

Your work will connect Quality, Lean, Continuous Improvement, data, and people development. You will put on your safety shoes and safety glasses, seek to understand the process first, and then help the people closest to the work make improvements that last.

Where You Will Make an Impact

• Partnering with the COO to develop, deploy, and continuously improve THE POLYWOOD WAY across both sites
• Strengthening our tiered management system so goals on the floor line up with company goals for safety, quality, delivery, cost, and team
• Leading setup reduction, value stream mapping, and root cause and countermeasure problem solving with the subject‑matter experts who do the work
• Leading quality strategy across both sites, including process controls, defect prevention, and corrective and preventive action
• Applying structured problem solving beyond the plant floor, to challenges like team member turnover, warranty replacements, downtime, and training
• Analyzing operational, quality, and cost data and turning findings into clear priorities for site and executive leaders
• Validating the operational and financial results of improvements and building plans to sustain them
• Building a network of Continuous Improvement resources and coaching supervisors and site leaders to solve problems on their own
• Sharing effective practices between Syracuse and Roxboro and keeping standards consistent

What You Bring

You have experience in manufacturing leadership, as a supervisor, manager, or plant manager, and you can speak to how you improved the area you were responsible for.

You have significant experience in manufacturing operations, Operational Excellence, Lean, Continuous Improvement, or Quality. You have personally led improvements, not only taught them, and you can explain tools like setup reduction, value stream mapping, and root cause problem solving in plain language.

You know that improvement starts with data you can trust, and when the data is noisy, you start by understanding the process gaps. You are comfortable influencing across functions and levels, including people who do not report to you.

Most importantly, you are hands‑on, practical, and collaborative. You build the skills of others, follow through without unnecessary bureaucracy, and measure success by results that last.

Bonus Points

• Experience with tiered management systems and strategic goal deployment
• Experience leading improvements across more than one manufacturing site
• Experience with Training Within Industry (TWI) or other structured training programs
• Experience applying problem solving to turnover, hiring, or other business processes
• Experience in extrusion, plastics, or building products manufacturing

About Us

At POLYWOOD®, we design and build outdoor furniture that brings people together and stands the test of time. We do this using sustainable materials, including our genuine POLYWOOD® lumber made from recycled plastics. The strength of our products starts with the strength of our people.

Our manufacturing teams in Syracuse, Indiana, and Roxboro, North Carolina, build the products our customers love. THE POLYWOOD WAY will give those teams a common language and a structured way to keep getting better, together.

What Makes This Role Special

• You will help build something new. You will shape THE POLYWOOD WAY and how it comes to life across both sites.
• You will partner directly with the COO. You will work closely with a leader who is passionate about building systems and developing people.
• Your work will show up in real results. Your improvements will be visible in safety, quality, delivery, cost, and team performance.
• You will help people grow. Many of our leaders have grown up within POLYWOOD®, and you will help them learn new ways of working that can change their careers.
• You will join an "All Hands on the Rope" culture. Improvement is everyone’s job here, from the leadership team to the shop floor.
• You will be based in Syracuse with reach across both sites. This position is on‑site in Syracuse, Indiana, at least 80% of the time, with travel to Roxboro, North Carolina, as needed and up to 20% remote flexibility.

If you are a hands‑on leader who builds systems, develops people, and delivers results that last, we would love to hear from you.

POLYWOOD is an equal opportunity employer. POLYWOOD evaluates qualified applicants without regard to characteristics protected by federal, state, or local laws.