Operational Improvement Manager

Get ready to grow with us!

Northwest Pipe Company is the nation’s leading manufacturer of water infrastructure products and with over 50 years of experience, we’re just getting started! Our business is growing, and we’re looking for great people to grow with us. We’re immediately seeking a Operational Improvement Manager to join our Geneva Pipe and Precast team in Orem, UT.

We Offer

• Medical, Dental, Vision, Life, AD&D Insurance
• Paid Vacation, Holidays, and Sick Time
• 401k Retirement Savings Plan with Employer Match
• Bonus Potential (2x per year)
• Up to $5,000 per year Tuition Reimbursement
• Safety Footwear and Eyewear Voucher (Day 1 of Employment)
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
• Opportunities for Career Advancement
• Values-Driven Culture Committed to Diversity, Inclusion, and Safety

Our Values

• Accountability is evident when we do what we say we are going to do and people accept responsibility for their actions. We do not point fingers and blame others. We own our actions.
• Commitment is not only promising to do something, but actually investing in the necessary effort and actions to make it happen.
• Teamwork is essential for competing in a challenging and constantly changing business environment. Working together across all job functions is critical to achieving our success.

About the Job

The Operational Improvement Manager plays a key role to drive process improvements, enhances productivity, and foster innovation in business operations. Collaborates with cross-functional teams to identify inefficiencies and implement streamlined procedures. Leads the Sales and Operations Process. Responsibilities include streamlining workflows, implementing best practices, and ensuring operational efficiency. Leads the implementation of Lean initiatives, verify effectiveness and ensure sustainability through audits. Develop and implement solutions to improve production processes and quality. Must embrace and support core values of integrity, mutual respect, excellence, teamwork and accountability.

Essential Functions & Major Responsibilities

• Develop a strategy and executes a plan to deliver process performance improvements to optimize Safety, Cost, Quality and Delivery.
• Define, propose and implement objectives and best operational practices.
• Leads the implementation of Lean Manufacturing initiatives and strategies of each facility to improve operation processes within the organization. Ensures sharing and implementation of best practices across plants.
• Evaluate all continuous improvement activities and develop plans to optimize performance and processes.
• Delivers practical, hands-on training to site lean coordinators in standardized lean processes and tools to eliminate waste in all administrative, manufacturing and support functions.
• Partners with Senior Leadership to identify key opportunities for process improvements linked to strategic imperatives. Collaborates with leadership team to conduct assessment of current processes with suggestions for improvement.
• Measures and reports progress on an on-going basis.
• Facilitates change and supports the deployment, adoption and sustainment of Lean thinking and a Lean-based Management Systems.
• Develops and implements strategies for fostering basic problem solving (ACT/PDCA) knowledge and behavior at all levels; this includes coaching, training and driving disciplined application of fact-based, root-cause thinking.
• Constantly seeks to identify, share and facilitate adoption of best practices to eliminate waste and improve performance.
• Supports, tracks progress and leads key business improvement projects, including new capital projects.
• Collect plant metrics, analyze data and recommend appropriate changes and courses of action.
• Leads and collaborates with cross functional teams to develop a S&OP (Sales and Operations Process) to improve customer demand forecasting, scheduling and on-time delivery.
• Other duties as assigned.

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities

• Ability to read, analyze, and interpret common scientific and technical journals, financial reports, and legal documents.
• Ability to effectively present information to top management and public groups.
• Ability to apply mathematical operations to such tasks as frequency distribution, determination of test reliability and validity, analysis of variance, correlation techniques, sampling theory, and factor analysis.
• Ability to define problems, collect data, establish facts, and draw valid conclusions.
• Ability to interpret an extensive variety of technical instruction in mathematical or diagram form and deal with several abstract and concrete variables.
• Excellent communications, relationship-building, and facilitation skills.
• Strong computer skills necessary. Advanced MS office skills and statistical software packages (Minitab etc.).
• Thorough understanding of multiple business areas to include Operations, Supply Chain, Engineering, Safety and Quality Control.
• Advanced knowledge of Lean principles and applications.
• Ability to read, analyze, and interpret general business periodicals, professional journals, technical procedures, or governmental regulations.
• Ability to write reports, business correspondence, and procedure manuals.
• Ability to effectively present information and respond to questions from groups of managers, clients, customers, and the general public.
• Ability to add, subtract, multiply, and divide in all units of measure, using whole numbers, common fractions, and decimals.
• Ability to compute rate, ratio, and percent and to draw and interpret bar graphs.
• Ability to solve practical problems and deal with a variety of concrete variables in situations where only limited standardization exists.
• Ability to interpret a variety of instructions furnished in written, oral, diagram, or schedule form.

Education/Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering or a technical discipline is desired.
• Minimum 10 years of experience in the implementation of lean manufacturing tool applications in a fast-paced manufacturing environment is required.
• Minimum 10 years demonstrated ability to train people and manage cultural changes to obtain buy-in.
• Lean Six Sigma certification required AME (Association of Manufacturing Excellence) is preferred.
• Comprehensive understanding of welding concepts, industrial coating applications, concrete manufacturing science and processes.
• Extensive operational leadership experience in a Manufacturing organization is highly regarded and valued

CERTIFICATES, LICENSES, REGISTRATIONS:

• Certification in Lean Manufacturing processes strongly preferred.

Full list of anticipated physical demands for this position and detail on our work environment is available on our application portal. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Our organization maintains a drug-free workplace. Except where prohibited by state law, all offers of employment are conditioned upon successful passing of a drug test and background check.

Northwest Pipe Company is committed to equal employment opportunity and affirmative action. Minorities, females, veterans, and individuals with disabilities are encouraged to apply.

Northwest Pipe Company reserves the right to close the position, with or without notice, if a qualified candidate is identified prior to the close date.