Director, Global Strategic Operational Excellence in Blackburn

Founded in 1975, with its head office in Blackburn, England, PPE operates manufacturing facilities in the UK and the US, plus sales offices and Channel Partner networks across the US, Europe and Asia. PPE manufactures high-performance O-rings and sealing components using advanced elastomer materials and precision designs that extend equipment life. Seals are critical to the function of industrial systems, and PPE’s solutions are trusted in the most demanding environments. Today, PPE offers over 200 elastomer grades used globally across industries such as oil & gas, chemical processing, food and pharma manufacturing, marine and power generation, aerospace, and semiconductors. The company’s success is built on the continual development of new elastomer materials combined with exceptional levels of customer service and technical support.

Precision Polymer Engineering Ltd (PPE) is a leading provider of high-performance O-rings, technical rubber moldings and sealing solutions to a diverse range of industries around the world and are part of the IDEX Corporation. IDEX Corporation is an applied solutions provider serving niche markets worldwide. Key markets include process industry and infrastructure related applications, life science and medical technologies, industrial and municipal fire and rescue, and equipment associated with the retail dispensing of architectural paints and coatings.

Reporting directly to the President, this important role sits on the SLT and will create and deliver a strategic plan for the application of IDEX Lean Tools and methodologies linked directly to PPE’s strategic objectives. This individual will drive measurable results using two different skill sets: Strategic Operations and Continuous Improvement.

• Strategic Operations: Partnering with the organization to identify, justify, approve, plan and implement large scale operational improvements in a global setting.
• Continuous Improvement: Driving the adoption and utilization of the IDEX operating model and continuous improvement model.

The role will lead and drive the VIP (Value Improvement Program) globally, working closely with key company stakeholders to drive critical programs and activities across the company. They will engage and empower team members to identify, understand, and implement sustainable process improvements.

Essential Duties:

• Gains a solid understanding of the Company’s key initiatives, competitive priorities, accountabilities and ensures linkage of strategy and continuous improvement efforts with these goals.
• Act as a business partner with operations & functional management, to identify large, strategic, game changing opportunities to drive simplicity, scale and profitability.
• Support Operational projects through project plan development, results tracking and leading and coaching site leaders and their teams through project execution process.
• Utilize Lean, Practical Problem Solving and CI tools to lead the organization in data-based decision making and driving actions to generate measurable improvement.
• Deliver effective Continuous Improvement training and coaching tailored to meet organizational needs and priorities.
• Facilitate improvement events, building and leading focused and empowered teams to address systemic problems.
• Develop and implement a business communication plan for process improvement efforts.
• Serve as subject matter expert for CI Methodology, CI Tools and the implementation of Daily Process controls to drive operational improvements.
• Communicate, track, and report on project progress, results, and deviations from the project plans with key stakeholders.
• Promote the transformation from a reactive organizational culture to one that is more preventative and predictable.
• Create analysis, data gathering, and validations methods for business analytics.
• Support Goal Deployment Action Plans and improvement targets for the business.
• Develop and participate in Rewards and Recognition programs to promote the use of Continuous improvement and recognizing team successes.

Education And Experience:

• Bachelor’s degree in manufacturing, business, engineering discipline, or technical degree.
• 7-10 years of experience in Continuous Improvement, Operational Excellence, Operations.
• Must have high operations process knowledge.
• Travel 25-50% to support CI Initiatives and Strategic projects.
• Must possess knowledge of LEAN principles, Problem Solving Tools (RCA, DMAIC), Six Sigma, TQM, TPM and SPC.

OTHER SKILLS And ABILITIES:

• Analytical thinker, excellent problem-solving skills, and the ability to adapt to changing priorities and deadlines.
• Experience in developing and leading high-performance cross-functional teams.
• Anticipate and remove obstacles that can slow down or prevent teams from delivering on project goals.