Continuous Improvement/Opex Manager

Eaton's PDRD (Power Delivery & Regulation Division) operations team is seeking a Continuous Improvement/Operational Excellence Manager to support multiple sites. Candidates must be based within 50 miles of one of the division's sites in Waukesha/Milwaukee, WI, Nacogdoches, TX, or Jonesville, SC. Travel is expected to be around 50% of the time; less if based in Waukesha/Milwaukee (25%). Relocation assistance is available to within 50 miles of one of the listed sites; immigration sponsorship is not available for this role.

The expected annual salary range for this role is $146,000 - $215,000 a year. This position is also eligible for a variable incentive program.

Please note the salary information shown above is a general guideline only. Salaries are based upon candidate skills, experience, and qualifications, as well as market and business considerations.

You will lead and own the divisional Continuous Improvement (CI) strategy for PDRD, accelerating operational excellence, productivity, and sustainable margin expansion across all sites. You will translate business strategy into value stream transformation roadmaps and governance routines, ensuring rigorous deployment and sustainment of the Eaton Business System, the Eaton Continuous Improvement System (ECIS), Lean Six Sigma (ELSS), and Operations Assessment (OpA) maturity progression. You will partner with the Ops Director, Plant Managers, plant leadership teams, and CI leaders to embed a culture of daily problem solving and deliver measurable improvements in safety, quality, delivery, cost, and customer performance.

What you'll do:

• Develop and deploy the divisional CI strategy aligned with EBS Pull and ECIS, converting business priorities into annual and multi-year CI plans for each plant and value stream.
• Deploy a standardized operating system to drive execution, sustainment, and accountability for CI performance across all PDRD sites.
• Lead and standardize Value Stream Mapping (VSM) and strategy deployment across plants, focusing on reducing non-value added work, enhancing safety, quality, and flow, shortening lead time, and improving delivery performance.
• Build and execute Model Plant roadmaps with Plant Managers and site CI leaders to elevate Lean systems, daily management, and site maturity year over year.
• Own divisional CI results by developing and managing a robust productivity and cost-out pipeline that achieves annual targets and advances the five-year plan through verified savings, increased productivity, and waste reduction.
• Drive CI culture and capability by coaching Plant Managers, leadership teams, and CI professionals in problem solving and CI fundamentals such as A3 problem solving, daily accountability, leader standard work, and Gemba walks.
• Mentor, coach, and challenge CI leaders and site leadership teams to integrate ELSS tools and behaviors, including Kaizen/Rapid Improvement Events (RIE), structured problem solving, and Lean Six Sigma project discipline.
• Ensure completion and quality of annual self-assessments and formal assessments as required (for example, ELSS and OpA/ECIS maturity), translate gaps into actionable site plans, and track closure to maturity targets.
• Build organizational capability and a talent pipeline by selecting, developing, and evaluating CI talent, contributing to succession planning, and supporting certification and instructor development where applicable.
• Represent PDRD in corporate, sector, and group/division CI initiatives, councils, and special projects, ensuring alignment, adoption, and transfer of best practices across sites.

Scope / Span of Influence:

• Multi site PDRD division (manufacturing plants and associated value streams)

Functional Leadership:

• Indirect/functional leadership of site CI leaders/managers across PDRD sites

Key Metrics Impacted (direct influence / high impact):

• High 5 metrics and operating KPI performance
• Customer scorecards (delivery, quality, responsiveness) and lead time improvements
• Employee engagement and CI culture adoption (daily accountability, leader standard work, Gemba/visual management)
• ELSS / ECIS / OpA maturity progression and assessment closure
• Annual productivity/cost out targets

Qualifications:

Basic Requirements:

• Bachelor's degree from an accredited institution
• Minimum 10 years of professional experience in a manufacturing environment.
• Minimum 5 years leading Continuous Improvement / Six Sigma programs and related disciplines
• Business Travel required up to 50%
• Eaton will not consider applicants for employment immigration sponsorship or support for this position. This means that Eaton will not support any CPT, OPT, or STEM OPT plans, F-1 to H-1B, H-1B cap registration, O-1, E-3, TN status, I-485 job

Preferred:

• Lean certification and Six Sigma Black Belt preferred (or demonstrated equivalent capability)
• Time spent within a manufacturing plant

Skills:

• Technical/CI Expertise: Deep knowledge of Lean manufacturing, value stream management, CI culture/sustainment systems (daily accountability, leader standard work, Gemba, visual management), and advanced problem solving including Six Sigma.
• Leadership/Influence: Proven ability to lead change through influence in a matrix environment and effectively coach leaders from senior leadership to frontline teams.
• Business/Analytical Skills: Strong qualitative and quantitative analysis capability; comfort with statistics and data-driven decision making; proficiency with common tools (e.g., Excel, PowerPoint, Minitab, Visio, SharePoint or similar).
• EBS/ECIS Familiarity: Working knowledge of the Eaton Business System or similar and CI governance models preferred.

All positions may require participation in video and in-person interviews as part of the hiring process. All candidates will be evaluated based on job-related competencies, and all candidates' privacy rights and data security will be protected in accordance with applicable laws.

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Eaton believes in second chance employment. Qualified applicants with arrest or conviction history will be considered regardless of their arrest or conviction history, consistent with the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance, the California Fair Chance Act and other local laws.

You do not need to disclose your conviction history or participate in a background check until a conditional job offer is made to you. After making a conditional offer and running a background check, if Eaton is concerned about conviction that is directly related to the job, you will be given the chance to explain the circumstances surrounding the conviction, provide mitigating evidence, or challenge the accuracy of the background report.

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We know that good benefit programs are important to employees and their families. Eaton provides various Health and Welfare benefits as well as Retirement benefits, and several programs that provide for paid and unpaid time away from work. Click here for more detail: Eaton Benefits Overview. Please note that specific programs and options available to an employee may depend on eligibility factors such as geographic location, date of hire, and the applicability of collective bargaining agreements.