Continuous Improvement Manager

Amylu Foods is hiring a Manager, Continuous Improvement to join our team. This is an important role and will be responsible for leading strategy and continuous improvement initiatives to drive operational efficiency at our Chicago and Milwaukee manufacturing facilities.

Who are we?

Amylu Foods is a high-growth, woman-founded, natural and health CPG company, known for its fresh ingredients and hand-crafted recipes.

As pioneers in the chicken sausage category, we combine innovation with tradition, delivering bold and fresh flavors. Rooted in Chicago and celebrating 100 years of craftsmanship, we continue to expand our product offerings and distribution nationwide, redefining the protein category.

We are seeking passionate and talented leaders to join our rapidly growing company for our next phase of growth.

Role Description

The Manager, Continuous Improvement, is responsible for driving operational excellence across sausage, meatball, patty, and chicken manufacturing operations.

This role focuses on improving safety, quality, service, and cost through structured continuous improvement methodologies while working directly with Operations, Quality, Maintenance, and Supply Chain teams.

This is a hands-on, floor-driven role that requires strong presence in production, deep understanding of protein manufacturing processes, and the ability to influence and coach teams at all levels.

The selected candidate would need to be able to split their time at our manufacturing facilities in Chicago and Milwaukee.

Areas of Responsibilities

• Leads and drives business transformation and change initiatives.
• Develops and manages multiple processes, long and short-term, to drive sustainable improvements.
• Implements continuous improvement methodologies aligned with strategic operational goals and objectives.
• Serves as a change facilitator, develops, and collaborates with business leaders and influences leadership in the transformation to and in support of a continuous improvement culture.
• Monitors existing and new processes for improvement opportunities in cost productivity through problem-solving methodology and takes appropriate follow-up action.
• Tracks, measures, and reports progress on improvements using standard, established metrics.
• Assists in the preparation of budgets, schedules, and other financial reports regarding the impact of improvements, waste reduction, and achieving ROI, as indicated by lean accounting principles.
• Maintains professional and technical knowledge of continuous improvement best practices.
• Facilitates and/or conducts continuous improvement training programs as needed.
• Partner with all levels of operations and company leadership to drive improvements.
• Measure, track, and communicate program outcomes, using both quantitative and qualitative data.
• Help drive a culture of continuous improvement across the organization.

Required Qualifications

• 5 years of Continuous Improvement, Operational Excellence, or Industrial Engineering experience in food manufacturing, preferably protein (meat, poultry).
• Bachelors degree business, engineering, operations, or a related field or equivalent experience.
• Proven track record of delivering measurable results on the plant floor.
• Expertise in Business Process Improvement and Operational Excellence.
• Experience in Operations Management with a focus on optimizing workflows and productivity.
• Proficiency in Process Improvement techniques and tools.
• Exceptional problem-solving and decision-making abilities.
• Effective communication and leadership skills to manage cross-functional teams.

Preferred Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Engineering, Operations, or a related field preferred.
• Strong preference for experience with sausage, meatballs, patties, or similar formed products.
• Lean Six Sigma Green Belt or Black Belt.
• Experience in USDA-regulated facilities.
• Experience supporting multi-line or multi-shift operations.
• Bilingual (English/Spanish) a plus.

Salary Range

$110,000 - $140,000