Continuous Improvement Leader

WestRock Company • Winston-Salem, NC • 1d ago

The Opportunity

The Continuous Improvement (CI) Leader plays a key role in building a sustainable culture of employee engagement in continuous improvement. This position will act as a change agent to elevate levels of plant performance and deliver high impact results. The CI Leader functions as a member of the site leadership team and is responsible for all operational excellence and world-class manufacturing activities. This role serves as a site resource to drive local CI improvement. The role may also liaison with divisional and site resources to execute productivity strategies and ensure CI activities are aligned with business goals related to Safety, Quality, Cost, Service, and People.

Success in this role requires a leader who can effectively drive change in a fast-paced manufacturing environment utilizing continuous improvement methodologies and tools. Sample responsibilities include identifying / prioritizing improvement activities, tracking financial progress, and coaching / mentoring project leaders and teams. The ability to influence and lead others is key to success.

This role will be based in Winston Salem and may require occasional travel.

How you will impact Smurfit Westrock:

Partner with site leadership to ensure site CI priorities are aligned with overall business strategy and goals.

Leverage a zero-loss mindset to identify and prioritize areas of improvement.

Deliver value by both leading and supporting the focused execution of CI projects.

Manage the local pipeline of improvement projects aligned to productivity targets.

Work with site leaders to prioritize and assign resources to ensure project success.

Build capability in others through coaching and mentoring project leaders and teams.

Support implementation of enterprise initiatives such Daily Management System, Problem-Solving Practices, and Reliability Excellence.

Coordinate regular progress reviews of CI projects with project leaders and site leadership.

Function as a liaison to the divisional Operational Excellence team.

Tracking and reporting of results including cost / productivity benefits.

Ensuring all projects and savings are properly documented in the WestRock productivity tracker.

Sharing best practices within and outside of the site.

Supporting the enterprise Learning & Development framework, processes, and tools in partnership with the Operations and support of technical floor trainers.

What you need to succeed:

B.S or A.S in a technical field preferred but not required.

Prior experience in a manufacturing role is required. Paper and packaging experience is a plus.

Lean Six Sigma Green Belt certification preferred but not required. Will be required to complete WestRock Yellow Belt and Green Belt training within 6 months of hire and become certified within 18 months.

Knowledge and skill of continuous improvement tools including structured problem-solving methodology.

Experience with leading team-based process improvement projects for manufacturing applications.

Strong interpersonal and communication skills.

Ability to lead and influence to drive positive change.

Demonstrated ability to coach, teach, and mentor others.

Basic proficiency with standard MS Office tools (Excel, PowerPoint, etc.)

Time management and organization skills.

What we offer:

Corporate culture based on integrity, respect, accountability and excellence

Comprehensive training with numerous learning and development opportunities

An attractive salary reflecting skills, competencies and potential

A career with a global packaging company where Sustainability, Safety and Inclusion are business drivers and foundational elements of the daily work.

Smurfit Westrock (NYSE:SW) is a global leader in sustainable paper and packaging solutions. We are materials scientists, packaging designers, mechanical engineers and manufacturing experts with a shared purpose: Innovate Boldly. Package Sustainably. Guided by our values of safety, loyalty, integrity, and respect, we use leading science and technology to move fiber-based packaging forward.

Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, protected veteran status or other characteristics protected by state or federal law.

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