Soft Services Continuous Improvement Manager

Cushman & Wakefield; Creve Coeur (MO); Remote; USD 128,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

Cushman & Wakefield seeks a Soft Services Continuous Improvement Manager to drive enterprise-level improvements in janitorial, office and related services. The role focuses on margin recovery, labor optimization, and AI-enabled tool adoption to cut costs and boost service quality.

You will partner across Finance, Operations, and HR to implementPI initiatives, analyze KPI trends, and deliver finance-validated P&L impact with cross-account coordination.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in facilities management, business, or related field, or equivalent professional experience.
• 7+ years in soft services operations, facilities management, including exposure to multi-site or portfolio-level account management.
• Experience delivering measurable P&L impact through operational improvement initiatives.
• Strong analytical skills using financial and operational data such as labor utilization, KPI performance, and budget adherence.
• Ability to travel to client sites as needed.

Responsibilities

• Identify and drive operational efficiency and service delivery improvements across accounts.
• Lead margin recovery projects and financial models to prioritize initiatives with P&L impact.
• Develop solutions with Client Services and business support to elevate account performance.
• Charter and lead margin recovery projects with clear scope, timeline and success metrics.
• Standardize best practices across accounts with playbooks for scalable improvements.

Skills

Analytical skills

P&L impact

Cross-functional leadership

Labor utilization

Education

Bachelor's degree in facilities management, business, or related field

Job description

Job Title

Soft Services Continuous Improvement Manager

Job Description Summary

The Continuous Improvement Manager, Maintenance Operations identifies and drives operational efficiency and service delivery improvements across accounts and at the enterprise level with direct impact on P&L performance. This role targets key operational levers including labor optimization, technology deployment, and performance enablement across accounts delivering soft services (janitorial, day porter, office and mailroom, and grounds services). Combining deep soft services operations expertise with enterprise-level execution, this role partners closely with Finance, Business Development, and Human Resources to drive optimal account-level performance. This role is accountable for delivering finance-validated P&L impact.

Job Description

WHAT YOU WILL DELIVER

Enterprise-Level Margin Recovery & Performance Optimization

• Will be focusing on accounts within Soft Services. Janitorial/Custodial/Office Space service lines
• 50% travel required
• This is a remote position but you must be based within the Midwest or East Coast
• Analyze service execution, key performance indicator trends, labor utilization, financial performance, and client relationships to identify root causes for under-performing accounts
• Identify and eliminate inflated operating expenses at soft services client sites to improve account health and financial performance
• Build business cases and financial models to prioritize improvement initiatives based on P&L impact and implementation feasibility
• Develop solutions in partnership with Client Services and business support teams to elevate account performance
• Charter and lead margin recovery projects at under-performing accounts, defining scope, timeline, deliverables, and success metrics in partnership with account leadership
• Track and report progress and financial impact to enterprise leadership, escalating risks or resource needs as required
• Establish governance and accountability mechanisms to sustain performance gains after project close
• Standardize best practices through playbook development across accounts to prevent recurrence of common performance and margin detractors
• Produce results-oriented case studies and boilerplate content for use in solution scaling and business development proposals

Labor Optimization & Workforce Efficiency

• Evaluate staffing models, scheduling practices, and resource deployment against workload demand to identify labor efficiency opportunities
• Reduce reliance on overtime and premium labor through improved scheduling and workforce planning practices
• Partner with account and site leadership to right-size crews and align labor spend with the contracted scope of work
• Identify and address skill gaps or training needs that limit productivity and service quality
• Reduce external vendor dependence through scope insourcing, process development, and training and skills development

Technology Deployment & Adoption

• Drive adoption and expansion of C&W Services’ AI-enabled tools and platforms to improve service delivery and reduce operating costs
• Identify opportunities to deploy automation for labor-intensive or manual processes across maintenance and engineering operations
• Partner with TechOps and Business Optimization to pilot, deploy, and scale AI-driven solutions across accounts

Cross-Functional Partnership & Enterprise Collaboration

• Partner with Finance, Business Development, Commercial Operations, and Human Resources to align improvement initiatives with broader business objectives
• Support new business development, account growth, and client transitions through data, insights, and best practices generated from CI initiatives

WHAT YOU BRING

Required

• Bachelor's degree in facilities management, business, or related field, or equivalent professional experience
• 7+ years in soft services operations, facilities management, including exposure to multi-site or portfolio-level account management
• Demonstrated experience identifying and delivering measurable P&L impact through operational improvement initiatives
• Strong analytical skills with experience using financial and operational data such as labor utilization, KPI performance, and budget adherence to diagnose root causes and prioritize solutions
• Understanding of business fundamentals including P&L management, budgeting, and financial statements, with the ability to translate operational decisions into financial outcomes
• Experience leading cross-functional projects including scoping, chartering, and driving initiatives to completion with measurable outcomes
• Working knowledge of quality inspection systems, work order platforms, or other soft services management platforms
• Ability to travel to client sites as needed

Preferred

• Lean Six Sigma certification
• Experience deploying or scaling AI-enabled tools within janitorial, office and mailroom, or groundskeeping services
• Prior experience in a continuous improvement, operational excellence, or process improvement role specifically within soft services or a related services industry
• Experience optimizing workforce structure and labor spend, including staffing models, scheduling and crew right-sizing against contracted scope

Cushman & Wakefield also provides eligible employees with an opportunity to enroll in a variety of benefit programs, generally including health, vision, and dental insurance, flexible spending accounts, health savings accounts, retirement savings plans, life, and disability insurance programs, and paid and unpaid time away from work. In addition to a comprehensive benefits package, Cushman and Wakefield provide eligible employees with competitive pay, which may vary depending on eligibility factors such as geographic location, date of hire, total hours worked, job type, business line, and applicability of collective bargaining agreements.

The compensation that will be offered to the successful candidate will depend on factors such as whether the position is covered by a collective bargaining agreement, the geographic area in which the work will be performed, market pay rates in that area, and the candidate’s experience and qualifications.

The company will not pay less than minimum wage for this role.

The compensation for the position is: $ 127,500.00 - $150,000.00

C&W Services is an Equal Opportunity employer to all protected groups, including protected veterans and individuals with disabilities. Discrimination of any type will not be tolerated.

In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act (ADAAA), if you have a disability and would like to request an accommodation in order to apply for a position at C&W Services, please call the ADA line at 1-888-365-5406 or email [e-mail]. Please refer to the job title and job location when you contact us.

INCO: "C&W Services"