Mgr Continuous Improvement

Hershey Company; Edgerton (KS); On-site; USD 111,000 - 139,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health & Wellbeing

401(k) match

Paid time off

Career development

Job summary

The Hershey Company in Edgerton, KS is seeking a Manager, Continuous Improvement to lead process enhancements in manufacturing. You will guide process mapping, implement Redzone and Hershey Lean, and strengthen operator capability across teams.

The role emphasizes data-driven problem solving, cross-functional collaboration, and sustaining improvements. A Bachelor's degree and 5+ years in manufacturing are required; travel up to 25% is expected.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of relevant experience in manufacturing.
• Experience in an automated manufacturing environment preferred.
• Demonstrated experience leading teams and driving process, system, or operational improvements.
• Experience with Lean Manufacturing, Lean Six Sigma tools, and Total Productive Maintenance preferred.
• Experience developing and facilitating training programs preferred.
• Experience collecting, analyzing, and translating data into practical action plans.
• Ability to travel up to 25%.

Responsibilities

• Lead teams responsible for day-to-day process execution, service delivery, and continuous improvement within an assigned manufacturing area.
• Set clear goals, roles, decision rights, performance expectations, and accountability for team members.
• Review performance against established metrics and standards, identify gaps, and implement corrective actions that improve service quality and operational consistency.
• Drive daily problem solving and data-driven planning for targeted manufacturing operations, using line-loss data to prioritize opportunities.
• Coach plant leadership and front-line teams on daily management systems and execution standards using Redzone, S/4, Hershey Lean, and related tools.
• Develop and implement improvements from loss diagnostics and ideation through process changes and capital projects.
• Coordinate process mapping and workflow redesign across teams, ensuring solutions are practical and aligned with customer needs.
• Support financial valuation for the continuous improvement pipeline, capital projects, new item costing, and related initiatives.
• Partner with stakeholders to clarify service delivery requirements, manage expectations, resolve cross-team issues, and sustain improvements.
• Establish training programs for front-line operators on Hershey Lean standards and build team capability through coaching and development.
• Promote alignment across sites by sharing standards, practices, and continuous improvement learnings.

Skills

Lean Manufacturing

Leadership

Problem Solving

Data Analysis

Stakeholder Management

Change Management

Education

Bachelor's degree

Tools

Redzone

OSI PI

Power Apps

Power BI

Microsoft 365

Job description

Note: If you apply for a role at Hershey through our career's website, we may use technologies that use automation to filter your candidacy based on objective criteria. We also use AI-enabled tools that help us facilitate the selection of our future Hershey talent. These tools may help with activities such as matching and scoring candidates to roles based on requirements and scheduling interviews. These systems process only the information you provide in your application, including your resume, work history, education, and responses to screening questions. While these technologies assist with certain steps in our recruitment process and may provide recommendations, all final decisions, including those affecting whether candidates advance to subsequent stages in the applicant process, are made by our talent acquisition teams with meaningful human review and independent judgment. Depending on your location and the specific role you apply for, additional disclosures about our use of AI in recruitment may be provided to you separately.

Why Hershey:

At The Hershey Company, our culture is rooted in purpose and inspired by Milton Hershey's enduring vision that business should create opportunity for others. Through our commitment to corporate philanthropy, we create positive impact by supporting communities, helping children thrive, and operating as a business for good. This includes our deep and long standing partnership with Milton Hershey School, where we invest in education, workforce readiness, and hands on engagement to help students succeed beyond the classroom. Supported by strategic grantmaking, product donations, cross brand collaboration, and strong employee volunteerism, Hershey offers a place to work where making a difference-locally and globally-is part of how we do business every day.

Location: Edgerton, KS

About The Hershey Company

The Hershey Company (NYSE: HSY) is an industry-leading snacks company known for making more moments of goodness through its iconic brands. With a strong portfolio across chocolate, confectionery, and salty snacks, Hershey delights consumers every day. Our brands include Hershey's, Reese's, KitKat, Dots Pretzels, Lesser Evil, Jolly Rancher, Twizzlers, Ice Breakers, and more.

Guided by our employee value proposition, Lead Today. Create Tomorrow, we empower our people to drive impact now while shaping what comes next. Our One Hershey mindset brings teams together across functions, geographies, and businesses, enabling us to operate with speed, collaboration, and shared purpose.

How Will You Fit in the Big Picture?

The Manager, Continuous Improvement will help create a zero-loss culture across assigned manufacturing operations by developing and implementing process improvements, strengthening operator capability, and improving the consistency and quality of service and execution. This role manages teams within a defined discipline and translates business priorities into tactical and operational plans that address cross-team issues, reduce rework, and improve performance.

As a leader in Hershey Lean, this manager will guide process mapping, workflow redesign, daily management systems, and data-driven problem solving. The role will support the implementation of Redzone and related standards, maintain visibility to line-loss data, and lead continuous improvement projects from ideation through execution. Success requires practical judgment, strong stakeholder partnership, and the ability to solve difficult or undefined problems through data analysis and corrective action

What Will You Do?

• Lead teams responsible for day-to-day process execution, service delivery, and continuous improvement within an assigned manufacturing area.
• Set clear goals, roles, decision rights, performance expectations, and accountability for team members.
• Review performance against established metrics and standards, identify gaps, and implement corrective actions that improve service quality and operational consistency.
• Drive daily problem solving and data-driven planning for targeted manufacturing operations, using line-loss data to prioritize the most significant opportunities.
• Coach plant leadership and front-line teams on daily management systems and execution standards using Redzone, S/4, Hershey Lean, and associated tools and practices.
• Develop and implement improvements from loss diagnostics and ideation through process changes and capital projects.
• Coordinate process mapping and workflow redesign across teams, ensuring solutions are practical and aligned with customer and stakeholder needs.
• Support financial valuation for the continuous improvement pipeline, capital projects, new item costing, and related initiatives.
• Partner with stakeholders to clarify service delivery requirements, manage expectations, resolve cross-team issues, and sustain improvements.
• Establish training programs for front-line operators on Hershey Lean standards and build team capability through coaching, feedback, and development.
• Promote alignment across sites by sharing standards, practices, and continuous improvement learnings.

Minimum Requirements

Experience:

• 5+ years of relevant experience.
• Experience working in an automated manufacturing environment preferred.
• Demonstrated experience leading teams and driving process, system, or operational improvements.
• Experience with Lean Manufacturing, Lean Six Sigma tools, and Total Productive Maintenance preferred.
• Experience developing and facilitating training programs preferred.
• Experience collecting, analyzing, and translating data into practical action plans.
• Demonstrated change management, problem-solving, communication, and stakeholder management skills.
• Ability to work independently, take ownership, and address complex or undefined operational problems.
• Experience with Redzone, OSI PI, Power Apps, Power BI, Microsoft 365, or similar digital manufacturing and analytics tools preferred.
• Ability to travel up to 25%.

Education:

• Bachelor's degree required.

Benefits and Perks

At Hershey, we offer competitive pay and a comprehensive total rewards package designed to support your wellbeing, financial security, and life outside of work.

• Health & Wellbeing: Medical, dental, and vision coverage, plus wellness programs supporting physical and mental health.

• Financial Security: Competitive pay, annual incentive opportunities, and a 401(k) with company match.

• Time Off & Flexibility: Paid time off, company holidays, and flexible ways of working where applicable.

• Growth & Development: Career development programs, learning opportunities, and internal mobility.

Benefits may vary based on role, location, and eligibility.

The anticipated base salary range for this role is $111,040 to $138,800 per year. The actual base salary offered will depend on a variety of jobrelated factors, including, but not limited to, experience, skill set, education, and training. In addition to a market-competitive base salary, our Total Rewards package includes performancebased incentives and a comprehensive, competitive benefits package designed to support overall physical, mental, and financial wellbeing (as applicable). Learn more about Hershey's benefits and all the resources Hershey provides to support our employees' physical, emotional, and financial wellbeing by visiting the Hershey Digital Employee Experience at www.askHRbenefits.hersheys.com

The Hershey Company is an Equal Opportunity Employer. The policy of The Hershey Company is to extend opportunities to qualified applicants and employees on an equal basis regardless of an individual's race, color, gender, age, national origin, religion, citizenship status, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, transgender status, physical or mental disability, protected veteran status, genetic information, pregnancy, or any other categories protected by applicable federal, state or local laws.

The Hershey Company is an Equal Opportunity Employer - Minority/Female/Disabled/Protected Veterans. You may request a reasonable accommodation if you are unable or limited in your ability to use or access our online application process as a result of a disability. You can request an accommodation via phone or email. To request an accommodation via phone, please call [phone] and leave a voicemail with your contact information. You may also email a request for accommodation to [e-mail]. Please be sure to include "Accommodation Needed" in the subject line. This will ensure that your email is routed to the appropriate contact who will handle your request.