Operational Excellence Manager

We are currently seeking an Operational Efficiency Manager to oversee Lean manufacturing and continuous improvement efforts at our Bay Shore location.

In this hands-on position, you will collaborate with operators, supervisors, and interdisciplinary teams to minimize waste, enhance production flow, boost capacity, and achieve measurable enhancements in quality, delivery, cost, and inventory management.

The ideal candidate will combine practical shop floor experience with strong analytical and change management abilities. This role offers the chance to lead significant operational enhancements while establishing the processes, routines, and staff skills required to maintain results.

Responsibilities

Lean Manufacturing & Process Improvement

• Identify manufacturing inefficiencies, bottlenecks, and process variations through shop floor observations, process mapping, value stream mapping, and data analysis.

• Lead kaizen events and targeted improvement projects from inception through execution and sustained outcomes.

• Apply Lean methodologies such as A3/PDCA, 5S/6S, standard work, visual management, Kanban, capacity analysis, setup reduction (SMED), and root cause analysis.

• Enhance material, labor, and information flow across machining, inspection, tooling, outside processing, planning, and support functions.

• Prioritize enhancements that elevate overall production efficiency and address vital capacity constraints.

Manufacturing Performance & Cost Enhancement

• Establish performance benchmarks for safety, quality, delivery, cost, labor utilization, overtime, setup time, work in progress, scrap, and rework.

• Collaborate with Operations and Engineering to eliminate barriers impacting customer commitments, production schedules, and backlog reduction.

• Trim manufacturing lead times, setup times, queue times, and aging work in progress.

• Boost labor productivity, machine utilization, staffing alignment, and visibility into direct and indirect labor.

• Collaborate with Finance to confirm recurring savings, capacity increases, inventory reductions, and financial benefits.

• Ensure enhancements uphold aerospace quality, safety, customer, export control, and configuration control standards.

Daily Management & Operational Systems

• Implement tiered daily meetings, visual performance boards, transparent action ownership, and prompt escalation practices.

• Establish leader standard work, process controls, and sustainability audits.

• Develop a Lean deployment strategy aligned with manufacturing priorities and new product introductions.

• Utilize ERP and analytical tools to make performance visible and back fact-based decisions.

• Create consistent operating standards applicable to various product lines and facilities.

• Identify digital and automation opportunities post simplifying and stabilizing underlying processes.

Team Building & Change Management

• Mentor supervisors, engineers, operators, and support staff in effective problem solving and Lean methodologies.

• Cultivate Lean champions and process owners capable of sustaining improvements in their areas.

• Engage employees in problem identification and solution design.

• Collaborate with Operations, Manufacturing Engineering, Quality, Supply Chain, Planning, Maintenance, Finance, and HR.

• Communicate project progress, proven benefits, risks, and necessary decisions to site and senior management.

• Foster a culture of accountability, employee engagement, and disciplined follow-through.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Industrial Engineering, Operations, Supply Chain, or a related field; equivalent combination of education and accomplishments will be considered.

• Minimum of 7 years of progressive manufacturing experience, including 3 years leading Lean, Continuous Improvement, or Operational Excellence initiatives.

• Demonstrated success in waste reduction, throughput enhancement, setup reduction, labor efficiency, quality improvement, inventory management, or cost savings.

• Proficiency with value stream mapping, kaizen events, A3/PDCA, 5S/6S, standard work, visual management, SMED, root cause analysis, and flow and pull systems.

• Experience in machining, aerospace, defense, precision manufacturing, or similarly regulated settings.

• Strong analytical skills and ability to link operational improvements to verified financial outcomes.

• Capacity to influence cross-functional teams and drive change without relying solely on direct authority.

• Excellent communication, coaching, and project execution capabilities.

• Availability to work onsite and spend substantial time on the manufacturing floor.

Preferred Qualifications

• Lean Six Sigma Black Belt or comparable advanced Operational Excellence certification backed by successful implementation experience.

• Aerospace manufacturing and AS9100 experience.

• Familiarity with complex CNC machining, low-volume/high-mix production, long-cycle work, high-value forgings, and capacity-constrained equipment.

• Experience leading a site-level Lean transformation or enterprise operating system.

• Experience with Power BI, Epicor, or similar ERP and analytics platforms.

• Experience developing supervisors, Lean champions, and tiered daily management systems.

• Experience supporting NPI, manufacturing engineering, maintenance reliability, or quality enhancement.

Definition of Success

• Enhanced schedule compliance and reduced overdue production.

• Decreased manufacturing lead times and lowered work in progress inventory.

• Augmented throughput, labor efficiency, and machine utilization.

• Reduced setup times, scrap, rework, and avoidable overtime.

• Proven cost savings and enhanced financial performance.

• Consistent daily management practices and sustained employee commitment to improvements.