Working Title: Continuous Improvement Manager
Job Class: State Program Administrator, Manager
Agency: Department of Employment and Economic Development
Job ID : 96307
Location : St. Paul
Telework Eligible : Yes, may be eligible for some telework
Full/Part Time : Full-Time
Regular/Temporary : Unlimited
Who May Apply : Open to all qualified job seekers
Date Posted : 08/14/2026
Closing Date : 09/08/2026
Hiring Agency/Seniority Unit : Department of Employment and Economic Development / Managerial
Division/Unit : Paid Family and Medical Leave
Work Shift/Work Hours : Day Shift
Days of Work : Monday - Friday
Travel Required : No
Salary Range: $41.58 - $60.10 / hourly; $86,819 - $125,488 / annually
Classified Status : Classified
Bargaining Unit/Union : 220 - Manager/Unrepresented
FLSA Status : Exempt - Executive
Designated in Connect 700 Program for Applicants with Disabilities (https://mn.gov/mmb/careers/diverse-workforce/people-with-disabilities/connect700/) : Yes
The work you'll do is more than just a job.
At the State of Minnesota, employees play a critical role in developing policies, providing essential services, and working to improve the well-being and quality of life for all Minnesotans. The State of Minnesota is committed to equity and inclusion, and invests in employees by providing benefits, support resources, and training and development opportunities.
About the Paid Leave Division:
Paid Leave is a new program that launched January 1, 2026. The program provides partial wage replacement to Minnesota workers that are out of work due to a qualifying condition such as a serious health condition that prevents you from working, or when you need time to care for a family member or a new child.
We have built a program that is easy for every Minnesotan to use. We are engaging the people who depend on us: workers, employers, caregivers, and insurers, to learn from them and continue to improve the program around what they need. We are using modern delivery service and product practices to deliver the program.
The Paid Leave team has high standards and an unrelenting commitment to serving Minnesotans. It is a start-up environment without legacy systems or preconceived ways of working. Our aim is to deliver a service that delights Minnesotans.
Position Purpose:
The Continuous Improvement Manager leads the organization's business process management capability, ensuring operational processes are designed, governed, and continuously improved to support efficient, scalable, and customer-centered service delivery.
This role serves as the operational owner for end-to-end business process design, partnering closely with Operations, Product Management, Policy, Quality, Training, and Project Management Office (PMO) to ensure operational processes evolve alongside new products, technology enhancements, and policy changes.
Unlike operational leaders who are responsible for executing work, this role is responsible for designing how work should be performed. The position establishes Paid Leave process standards, drives operational improvement initiatives, and ensures operational readiness for organizational change.
As the organization grows, this role will build and lead the Continuous Improvement function, including Business Process Analysts and Continuous Improvement specialists.
Key Responsibilities:
Business Process Ownership & Operational Design - Priority designing how operational work is performed. Working in partnership with Operations, Product Management, Policy, Technology, and other stakeholders, this position establishes the operational design required to deliver consistent and high-quality services.
Continuous Improvement- Lead the operation's continuous improvement program by proactively identifying opportunities to improve operational performance. Through data analysis, employee engagement, root cause analysis, and Lean methodologies, this role drives measurable improvements in quality, timeliness, customer experience, and organizational effectiveness.
Operational Governance and Readiness - The Continuous Improvement Manager ensures operational processes remain aligned with organizational priorities and that Operations is prepared to successfully implement new capabilities. This role establishes governance for business processes, manages the operational improvement portfolio, and partners across the organization to ensure operational readiness for change.
Organizational Leadership - The Continuous Improvement Manager provides leadership for the Continuous Improvement function while fostering collaboration, accountability, and a culture of continuous improvement. This role develops organizational capability in business process management, builds trusted partnerships across the organization, and influences strategic operational decisions through expertise and data-driven recommendations.
This position is telework (https://mn.gov/mmb-stat/policies/1422-telework.pdf) eligible. Staff are provided with the tools and equipment to be successful in a virtual work environment. Please note, the telework policy could change with notice based on business needs.
This position will be based out of the St. Paul office.
This posting may be used to fill multiple positions.
Minimum Qualifications
Please ensure that your resume clearly describes your experience in the areas listed and indicates the beginning and ending month and year for each job held. Only applicants whose resumes clearly demonstrate fulfillment of each of these minimum qualifications will be considered for this position.
Four (4) years of experience in continuous improvement, business process management, operational excellence, process improvement, operations management, organizational transformation, or a related field as determined by the agency.
Applicants that meet the above minimum qualification will be further evaluated on the following:
Experience analyzing, designing, documenting, and improving complex business processes or operational workflows, including identifying root causes and developing solutions.
Experience leading cross-functional process improvement or operational change initiatives from problem identification and analysis through implementation and measurement of results.
Experience using data and performance measures to identify improvement opportunities, develop recommendations, evaluate outcomes, and communicate findings to leaders and operational stakeholders.
Leadership and facilitation skills, including the ability to engage stakeholders, build alignment, solve problems across organizational boundaries, and lead teams or workgroups with or without direct authority.
Ability to hold difficult conversations and resolve conflict.
Skills delegating or assigning responsibilities or providing developmental opportunities to team members.
Preferred Qualifications
Experience applying Lean, Six Sigma, human-centered design, business process management, or other structured continuous improvement methodologies.
Experience designing and governing complex end-to-end business processes, including process maps, standard operating procedures, business rules, process inventories, or similar documentation.
Experience establishing or advancing a continuous improvement, operational excellence, or business process management function, including building organizational capability through common standards, coaching, facilitation, or training.
Experience assessing operational impacts and readiness for technology, product, policy, or organizational changes and partnering across functions such as Product Management, Technology, PMO, Training, Quality, and Policy.
Experience delivering measurable improvements in operational performance, including efficiency, quality, timeliness, customer or employee experience, automation, waste reduction, or process simplification, preferably within a complex or regulated service-delivery environment.
Our employees are dedicated to ensuring cultural responsiveness. Preferred candidates will have a variety of experiences working effectively with others from different backgrounds and cultures.
Additional Requirements
A job offer will be contingent upon successfully passing a background check. The background check may consist of the following components:
Criminal Background Check
Employment Records Check (current and former State employees only)
Employment Reference Check
Conflict of Interest Review
Driver's License and Records Check
The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development will not sponsor applicants for work visas. All applicants must be legally authorized to work in the U.S.
AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER
Minnesota State Colleges and Universities is an Equal Opportunity employer/educator committed to the principles of diversity. We prohibit discrimination against qualified individuals based on their race, sex, color, creed, religion, age, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, marital status, status with regard to public assistance, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, or membership in a local commission as defined by law. As an affirmative action employer, we actively seek and encourage applications from women, minorities, persons with disabilities, and individuals with protected veteran status.
Reasonable accommodations will be made to all qualified applicants with disabilities. If you are an individual with a disability who needs assistance or cannot access the online job application system, please contact the job information line at 651-259-3637 or email careers@state.mn.us . Please indicate what assistance is needed.
