Your Opportunity as an Operational Excellence Manager
Responsible for coaching site pillar leaders and the entire plant organization towards the successful utilization of a High-Performance Organization (HPO), continuous improvement, and their tools and practices. These tools ensure the organization is designed to deliver the site plan through loss elimination and the engagement of all employees. This role drives consistent and effective use of pillar tools, effective communication across teams, and reapplication of company best practices and standards. The Operational Excellence process is designed to have individuals with expertise in several areas to lead the overall implementation and progression.
Location: 1525 Industrial Rd, Emporia, KS 66801 (Hostess Manufacturing Plant)
Work Arrangements: 100% on-site, AM Shift – Flexibility required. Willingness to work off shift (including nights, weekends, and/or holidays) and flow to the work as needed
In this Role You Will:
Promote the continued implementation and integration of Operational Excellence throughout the Company
Assist site leadership team in developing High-Performance Organization (HPO) systems and behaviors during planning, startup, and operation
Coach plant leadership and pillars to build high performance capability at all levels of the organization
Leverage existing resources to facilitate Operational Excellence implementation and create documented High-Performance Organizations.
deliver the overall Operational Excellence Master Plan and timeline for the on-going delivery of the compelling business needs
Define and deliver Operational Excellence Phase Measures
Help to ensure reliability systems are developed to be robust with safety and quality systems
Assist in the development and coordination of the Operational Excellence strategy for the site.
Support operations leadership, supply chain leadership, and the site leaders in their implementation of Operational Excellence by providing coaching and direction on integration, improvement processes, specific scorecards results, and master plans
Conduct audits and assessments to reinforce Operational Excellence phase progression
Provide plant support for problem solving, improvement projects, and priority work as necessary
Coach teams on sustaining improvements and system integration into daily work
Ensure completion of organization performance modeling and health assessments
Establish a glide path for HPO phase completion
Stay in front of the site from a capability standpoint to continually drive progress and deliver business needs. Help develop new tools and capabilities in others
What We are Looking For:
Minimum Requirements:
A bachelor’s degree
At least 3 years of operations experience in a manufacturing environment using continuous improvement (CI, SQMS, HPO, Operational Excellence, etc.) tools to deliver business results
Prior success in implementing and sustaining improvements.
At least 3 years of experience in training and leading group.
Ability to work with people at all levels of the organization
Additional skills and experience that we think would make someone successful in this role:
An Engineering degree
Continued education or certifications in Continuous Improvement (six sigma, lean manufacturing, black belt)
Working knowledge of the intents and details for all CI pillars
Previous experience leading a CI and / or Quality systems pillar (FI – Focused Improvement, etc.)
Experience with plant or large project start up
Food (pet or human) and / or beverage manufacturing experience
Work Environment: This job operates in a manufacturing environment. The noise level in the work environment and manufacturing sites can be high.
Physical Demands:
Regularly required to talk and hear.
Frequently required to stand; walk; use hands and fingers to handle or feel; and reach with hands and arms.
Occasionally required to sit; climb or balance; and stoop, kneel, crouch or crawl.
Able to lift objects up to 50 pounds frequently.
May push and pull heavy trash carts, dough carts, portable equipment, and catch pans.
Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception and ability to adjust focus.
#LI-JS1
#INDSA
The Right Place for You
We are bold, kind, strive to do the right thing, we play to win, and we believe in a strong community that thrives together. Our culture is rooted in our Basic Beliefs, and we believe in supporting every employee by meeting their physical, emotional, and financial needs.
Stay connected with us on LinkedIn®
We're an equal opportunity employer. All applicants will be considered for employment without attention to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information, age, national origin, disability status or protected veteran status.

At The J.M. Smucker Co., it is our privilege to make food people and pets love by offering a diverse family of brands available across North America. We are proud to lead in the coffee, peanut butter, fruit spreads, frozen handheld, sweet baked goods, dog snacks and cat food categories by offering brands consumers trust for themselves and their families each day including Folgers®, Dunkin'®, Café Bustelo®, Jif®, Smucker's® Uncrustables®, Smucker's®, Hostess®, Voortman®, Milk-Bone® and Meow Mix®. Through our unwavering commitment to producing high quality products, operating responsibly and ethically and delivering on our Purpose, we will continue to grow our business while making a positive impact on society.