Program Manager - Operational Excellence

Timken; North Canton (OH); On-site; USD 90,000 - 125,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive salary and benefits

Opportunities for career advancement

Access to a global network of professionals

Job summary

Timken in North Canton, Ohio is looking for a Program Manager - Operational Excellence to lead complex continuous improvement projects. In this role, you will influence management, collaborate with cross-functional teams, and ensure project success while driving significant cost reductions.

You should possess a Bachelor's Degree and at least 7 years of relevant experience in operations, along with expertise in Lean methodologies. The position offers competitive salary and benefits.

Qualifications

• 7 years of experience supporting operations in management or a technical professional role.
• Demonstrated expertise in manufacturing, supply chain, or engineering.
• Ability to travel to multiple Timken facilities within the U.S. for assignments.

Responsibilities

• Lead cross-functional continuous improvement projects to reduce costs.
• Identify opportunities for improvement through manufacturing analysis.
• Build project teams and drive project implementation to achieve results.

Skills

Continuous Improvement

Lean Methodologies

Project Management

Analytical Skills

Education

Bachelor’s Degree in Engineering or Business

Master’s Degree in Engineering or Business

Job description

Program Manager - Operational Excellence

What Timken makes possible begins with you. Those who came before us helped land a man on the moon, create the world's infrastructure, and introduce renewable energy alternatives. Now you can join the Timken team to write your own unique story and help drive what's next.

A career at Timken means you can have an immediate impact doing Work That Matters to the world— improving the efficiency of today's industrial equipment and preparing for the future of motion on our planet and beyond. New employees can start contributing right away, and there are many opportunities to advance your career at your own pace. Join our global team of 19,000 people in 45 countries, and start helping our customers push the limits of what's possible in their world of motion.

Purpose: Lead and drive large, complex, and cross‑functional continuous improvement projects across manufacturing operations, working with leadership, to deliver significant and sustainable cost reduction and structural change. Develop and investigate ideas, complete financial and engineering analysis, justify, build teams, plan, and lead projects to completion.

Responsibilities:

• Identify manufacturing continuous improvement opportunities and project ideas, through analysis of manufacturing costs and operations.
• Conduct and lead cost and business analysis to bring projects to cost‑benefit justification and Go decisions.
• Influence management to drive for decisions and break constraints through networking with all parts of plant and business teams.
• Build project teams, develop project plans and launch projects.
• Participate directly in project completion and delivery of results, in a range of roles. Where needed, as direct project manager. In other cases, identify the best business or plant team to lead. In all cases, serve as project team member.
• Collaborate as part of the Manufacturing C.I. team, to share projects and responsibilities, and contribute your specific or unique skill & experience to all projects.
• Lead the implementation of major cost reduction and strategic projects.
• Gain senior leadership support and approval for project scope, objective, and timeline.
• Drive project implementation to achieve maximum results in the fastest time.
• Be accountable for delivering project results to the bottom line and ensure through auditing that expected results are being accomplished.
• Influence plant management and gain business alignment when projects negatively impact one plant or functional area but benefit the overall company.

Technical/Functional Skills:

• Demonstrated expertise and results delivered in at least one of the central operations or support areas of: manufacturing, supply chain, purchasing, engineering or quality.
• Demonstrated network across manufacturing and business support functions, and experience in cross‑functional work.
• Ability to access and analyze business and engineering data and develop quantitative & qualitative project justifications.
• Communication skills that can be leveraged to influence management team, and ability to work at all levels of the organization (shop floor to VP).
• Experience working in C.I., Lean, Problem‑solving, or 6‑sigma projects.
• Demonstrated team working experience, and involvement in project planning and management.
• Ability to travel to multiple Timken facilities (U.S.) through the year, for frequent assignments of a few days to a week, and occasional assignments of 2-3 weeks.

Education/Experience:

• Bachelor’s Degree in Engineering or Business discipline required.
• 7 years of experience required supporting operations in management or technical professional role.
• Must be U.S. Citizenship or U.S. Green Card Holder.
• Master’s Degree in Engineering or Business discipline preferred.

This position may require access to United States export controlled technical data ("CTD") and hardware under the Departments of US State (ITAR) and/or Commerce (EAR). Eligible candidates are US Citizens, Green Card holders, Asylees or others eligible to receive US export license authorizations. Candidate must be authorized to work in the US.

Benefits:

Over a century of knowledge and innovation. A culture of top performance. Products that contribute to a sustainable world. A conviction to improve communities around us. Competitive salary and benefits.

All qualified applicants shall be treated equally according to their individual qualifications, abilities, experiences and other employment standards. There will be no discrimination due to gender or gender identity, race, religion, color, national origin, ancestry, age, disability, sexual orientation, veteran/military status or any other basis protected by applicable law.

Timken is a global technology leader in engineered bearings and industrial motion. Our expanding portfolio of next‑generation solutions helps customers around the world improve efficiency, solve their toughest challenges, and push the boundaries of performance. We employ 19,000 people globally, operate from 45 countries, and posted $4.6 billion in sales in 2025. We have been recognized as one of America's Most Responsible Companies 6x by Newsweek and one of the World's Most Ethical Companies 15x by Ethisphere.