Operational Excellence Program Leader

CMS At ZOLL, we're passionate about improving patient outcomes and helping save lives. We provide innovative technologies that make a meaningful difference in people's lives. Our medical devices, software and related services are used worldwide to diagnose and treat patients suffering from serious cardiopulmonary and respiratory conditions. ZOLL Cardiac Management Solutions offers a unique portfolio of novel technologies designed to deliver better insights and better outcomes. On any given day, clinicians utilize these ZOLL products for tens of thousands of cardiac patients around the world: LifeVest , the world's first wearable defibrillator, has been trusted to protect more than 1M patients at risk of sudden cardiac death. HFMS (Heart Failure Management system) is a non-invasive, patch-based device that monitors pulmonary fluid levels and has been shown to reduce heart failure readmissions rates by 38 percent. TherOx Super Saturated Oxygen (SSO2) Therapy is the first FDA-approved therapy since the stent 20+ years ago to reduce infarct size in patients with the most severe heart attacks. Heart disease is the leading cause of death for both men and women in the U.S. At ZOLL, your work will help to ensure cardiac patients get the life-saving therapy they need. ZOLL has been Pittsburgh's Manufacturer of the Year, one of Western PA's Healthiest Employers, and even one of Pittsburgh's Coolest Offices. But it's our unique opportunity to impact people's lives that makes ZOLL the ideal place to build your career. Job Type On Site Job Summary Reporting to the Manager of Operational Excellence, the Continuous Improvement Project Leader collaborates with front-line leaders, production team members, and key support roles to drive operational excellence within ZOLL CMS Operations. This role is responsible for identifying and leading improvement initiatives to impact safety, quality, delivery, cost, and people engagement. This role is also responsible for establishing key systems and infrastructure to ensure that improvements are sustained and scaled. The OpEx Project leader will have a hands-on role in championing and facilitating lean thinking, problem solving, waste elimination, and continuous improvement. Essential Functions Facilitate and actively participate in hands-on Kaizen events, A3 Problem Solving sessions, and Gemba Walks directly on the manufacturing floor to identify and resolve issues in real-time. Deploy and sustain Lean Operating System (e.g. Daily Management, Visual Management, Gemba, etc.) alongside Operational Excellence and production teams to eliminate waste and optimize flow. Collaborate cross-functionally to pilot, implement, and validate process improvements on the line, ensuring practical integration with NPI launches and digital initiatives. Partner with Advanced Manufacturing and Data teams to develop dashboards, etc. to make problems visible and enable stable production performance. Mentor frontline supervisors, operators, and PTMs, demonstrating "what good looks like" for Lean principles, CI tools, and task management. Model the behavior for daily management and problem-solving to build capability and promote a culture of continuous improvement for ZOLL CMS Operations. Drive the us of the employee suggestion system program (Spark) and support implementation of employee-submitted CI suggestions. Develop, deploy, and own granular operational excellence standards (e.g. Standard Work Sheets, SOPs, Visual Controls) based on floor observations and team feedback. Maintain and improve CI training materials and lessons learned repositories to ensure solutions are practical and scalable. Partner with Operations support teams to map, optimize, and standardize key processes. Track and report project / kaizen event impact on KPIs to operations leadership (throughput, scrap, downtime). Ensure alignment with overall Operational Excellence governance while ensuring compliance with regulatory requirements (FDA, ISO, OSHA). Required/Preferred Education and Experience Bachelor’s Degree in Industrial Engineering, Business, Organizational Development, or related field (OR 10+ years’ experience in developing, deploying, and sustaining lean transformation) required. 5+ experience with continuous improvement, process development, quality improvement, and/or cost reduction required. Formal Lean Six Sigma certification (Green Belt, Black Belt, etc.) within 1 year of service required. Knowledge, Skills and Abilities Demonstrated experience leading and facilitating hands-on improvement activities (Kaizen events, problem solving, VSM workshops, etc.) in a high-volume manufacturing or service environment required. Strong working knowledge of Lean Manufacturing and Six Sigma methodologies with the ability to apply structured problem-solving techniques to technical challenges and coach others to do the same required. Excellent interpersonal and presentation skills, with the ability to influence behavior, build relationships, and drive adoption among production employees, peers, and leadership without direct authority required. Strong organizational skills with the ability to independently plan, prioritize, and execute multiple CI projects simultaneously required. Proven ability to work effectively with cross-functional teams (Production, Engineering, Supply Chain, etc.) to identify improvements and drive them to completion required. Experience in regulated manufacturing environments (FDA/ISO) preferred. Experience designing and/or delivering CI Training Programs preferred. Familiarity with Operations Technology (ERP/MES) and digital CI tools preferred. Formal project management (CAPM, PMP, etc.) or change management certification preferred. Travel Requirements 5% based on business needs Physical Demands The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions o