Operational Excellence Manager (Manufacturing)

Commonwealth Sciences, Inc.; Maryland; On-site; USD 120,000 - 160,000; Full time

Job summary

Commonwealth Sciences, Inc. is seeking a senior Operational Excellence leader to drive manufacturing performance improvements and deliver measurable business results.

You will work with plant and functional leadership to identify gaps, prioritize opportunities, and define clear action plans. You will lead cross-functional CI projects using Lean and Six Sigma, establish visual controls and daily accountability, and coach site teams to sustain gains.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Industrial Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, or related field.
• 5+ years of progressive experience in Operational Excellence, Continuous Improvement, Lean Manufacturing, Manufacturing Engineering, Industrial Engineering, Operations, Quality, or related discipline.
• Demonstrated success leading continuous improvement initiatives with measurable improvements in cost, quality, productivity, throughput, delivery, or operational performance.
• Hands-on experience working in a manufacturing environment.
• Strong working knowledge of Lean Manufacturing, Six Sigma, root-cause analysis, process improvement, and structured problem-solving methodologies.

Responsibilities

• Lead the development for Operational Excellence program focused on improving manufacturing performance and delivering measurable business results.
• Work directly with plant and functional leadership to identify performance gaps, prioritize improvement opportunities, and establish clear action plans.
• Lead complex, cross-functional improvement projects involving productivity, quality, cost, throughput, capacity, inventory, delivery, and working capital.
• Apply Lean and Six Sigma methodologies to analyze processes, identify root causes, eliminate waste, and implement sustainable solutions.
• Establish consistent continuous improvement practices across manufacturing sites, including performance management, visual controls, daily accountability, and structured problem solving.
• Conduct site assessments to identify operational opportunities and develop improvement roadmaps based on site-specific needs and business objectives.
• Facilitate Kaizen events, process improvement workshops, value-stream analysis, and other Lean initiatives.
• Partner with plant managers, engineering, quality, supply chain, finance, and other functional leaders to ensure improvement projects are aligned with business priorities.
• Develop and coach site-based teams and continuous improvement champions, building internal capability to independently identify and resolve operational issues.
• Work with Finance and business leaders to establish project baselines, quantify financial impact, validate savings, and ensure improvements are sustained.
• Utilize manufacturing data, KPIs, dashboards, and analytical tools to identify trends, constraints, process variation, and opportunities for improvement.
• Serve as a change leader, helping manufacturing organizations adopt new processes, management systems, and behaviors required to sustain operational improvements.
• Travel to North American manufacturing sites on a regular basis, with occasional international travel.

Skills

Lean Manufacturing

Six Sigma

Root-Cause Analysis

Structured Problem Solving

Cross-Functional Leadership

Data-Driven Decision Making

Change Management

Education

Bachelor's Degree in Industrial/Manufacturing Engineering

Job description

• Lead the development for Operational Excellence program focused on improving manufacturing performance and delivering measurable business results.
• Work directly with plant and functional leadership to identify performance gaps, prioritize improvement opportunities, and establish clear action plans.
• Lead complex, cross-functional improvement projects involving productivity, quality, cost, throughput, capacity, inventory, delivery, and working capital.
• Apply Lean and Six Sigma methodologies to analyze processes, identify root causes, eliminate waste, and implement sustainable solutions.
• Establish consistent continuous improvement practices across manufacturing sites, including performance management, visual controls, daily accountability, and structured problem solving.
• Conduct site assessments to identify operational opportunities and develop improvement roadmaps based on site-specific needs and business objectives.
• Facilitate Kaizen events, process improvement workshops, value-stream analysis, and other Lean initiatives.
• Partner with plant managers, engineering, quality, supply chain, finance, and other functional leaders to ensure improvement projects are aligned with business priorities.
• Develop and coach site-based teams and continuous improvement champions, building internal capability to independently identify and resolve operational issues.
• Work with Finance and business leaders to establish project baselines, quantify financial impact, validate savings, and ensure improvements are sustained.
• Utilize manufacturing data, KPIs, dashboards, and analytical tools to identify trends, constraints, process variation, and opportunities for improvement.
• Serve as a change leader, helping manufacturing organizations adopt new processes, management systems, and behaviors required to sustain operational improvements.
• Travel to North American manufacturing sites on a regular basis, with occasional international travel.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Industrial Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, or a related field.
• 5+ years of progressive experience in Operational Excellence, Continuous Improvement, Lean Manufacturing, Manufacturing Engineering, Industrial Engineering, Operations, Quality, or a related discipline.
• Demonstrated success leading continuous improvement initiatives that resulted in measurable improvements in cost, quality, productivity, throughput, delivery, or operational performance.
• Hands-on experience working in a manufacturing or production environment.
• Strong working knowledge of Lean Manufacturing, Six Sigma, root-cause analysis, process improvement, and structured problem-solving methodologies.