Continuous Improvement Manager - job 1 of 2

Cornerstone Building Brands, headquartered in Cary, North Carolina, is the largest manufacturer of external building products in North America with over $6 billion in annual revenue and an expansive North American footprint that includes almost 20,000 employees, operating in +70 manufacturing facilities, supported by a network of +80 distribution and branch office facilities. We have a broad product offering with a well-regarded brand portfolio including the #1 position in windows, vinyl siding, metal accessories, and metal roofing and wall systems. We believe every building we create, and every part of that building, positively contributes to communities where people live, work and play.

The Continuous Improvement Manager will lead bold change through the Lean Manufacturing initiatives at the site to ensure continuous, systemic, and sustainable elimination of waste through developing a fully engaged culture of continuous improvement (zero waste mindset), execution of Kaizen Events linked to the site Vision and annual Strategy Deployment and building of foundational capability for long term sustainment.  Create a vision that directs change efforts at the site and develops strategies / action plans to achieve the vision.  Eliminate barriers to change and modify systems / processes as required in support of Lean and Consumption Driven Supply principles (on demand, defect free, one by one, at lowest cost). 

Responsibilities:

Lead Site Guiding Coalition

• • Be the change agent – drive and accelerate change in culture, attitude, and capability
  • Annual planning of Kaizen Event activities to support Site Strategy Deployment based on Value Stream Mapping and Waste Analysis
  • Quarterly priority setting of Kaizen Events to deliver step change in results (60 – 90-day outlook) at the target pace for the site
  • Approval of Kaizen events & close-out and sustainment plans
  • Ensure Lean tool capability is developed across the site
  • Drive employee engagement by ensuring a high percentage of new members on Kaizen Events
  • Approval of standards, systems, and processes to support sustainable execution
  • Approval of site standards as related to Lean methodologies and implementation
  • Develop, modify, and improve standard processes to continuously improve efficiency of Coalition related to the above responsibilities
  • Instill a standard, disciplined, rigorous, process focused approach to problem solving across the organization
  • Actively participate in the CI Steering Committee to share, develop, and deploy Business Unit standards for Lean tools, principles, and methodologies as well as standard business processes

Daily/Active Waste Elimination Coaching

• • Participate in Accountability Meetings daily with Operations Manager or Production Managers to highlight opportunities for continuous improvement in Lean principles / tools and adherence to production system standards
  • Participate in weekly (or periodic based on site) Production Department meetings to support development of corrective actions and coach problem solving methodology
  • Participate in periodic Functional Department meetings to identify gaps / issues which need resolution, assist in the prioritization of work processes, and support in the development of corrective actions
  • Outside of the Production Departments or Functional Department meetings (monthly minimum), coach structure and linkage of the Business Boards to ensure proper cascade of measures, targets, and actions from Leadership to shopfloor
  • Identify and lead training in accordance with the needs defined by the Guiding Coalition, Site Strategy Deployment, and personal observation (daily coaching and walk throughs).  Ensure proper understanding of these tools / techniques and ownership of deployment.

Kaizen Event Facilitation  

• • Drive the site to model a Learn by Doing approach
  • Organize / facilitate Kaizen Event-based and specific tool training for all monthly Kaizen Event teams
  • Coordinate Preparation, Execution, and Follow-Up stages of the Kaizen Event process through weekly interaction with Leaders / Co-Leaders to ensure team is on pace with the guidelines / expectations of Kaizen Methodology. 
  • For Kaizen Teams that go beyond the desired 30-day close-out window, work with Team Leaders / Co-Leaders and Business Owner to close all open follow-up items and execute countermeasures to close gaps against desired deliverables / results

Lean Tool Capability

• • Develop personal mastery in the Lean principles and tools to allow broad facilitation (Kaizen events, lean workshops, and daily coaching) in Production Departments and Functions.  This shall include a mastery of training modules such as Waste Elimination, 5S, Root Cause Problem Solving, Standard Work, SMED, PM, Plan-Do-Check-Act, and other lean tolls defined in our production system.
  • Coordinate Kaizen event Training process to ensure the site has broad base capability in all primary Lean tools to be self-sufficient for monthly and on-demand training requirements
  • Lead training sessions and Kaizen Events within the site or within other CBB facilities as required.

Reapplication/Benchmarking

• • Develop and facilitate Lean Manufacturing Annual Plans within the site to ensure best practices are shared and reapplied efficiently to accelerate results
  • Actively participate in the CBB CI Steering Committee meetings – share successful improvements with the network for potential reapplication to accelerate Company results and be open to learning from other site to reapply successful, sustained improvements
  • Actively participate in Benchmarking visits and audits as required at CBB sites.  The expected output from any such visit is a potential list of potential reapplications to be reviewed and inserted into the Idea Sharing read Across.
  • Identify industries / companies / sites within the same geographic region to conduct external benchmarking based on performance and Lean journey progress

Strategy Deployment

• • Provide support to the CI Steering Committee in their implementation of actions, sharing his knowledge and practical experience in handling lean tools as required
  • Ensure process confirmation through a relevant Go-Look-See process, to understand, support / coach, and challenge associates toward the achievement of expected business results
  • In conjunction with the Plant Manager, lead the Site Leadership Team in the development of the Site Cost Take Out Roadmap linked to the Company Strategies and Objectives
  • In conjunction with the Plant Manager, lead / coordinate the Site Leadership Team in development of annual plan Strategy Action Plans to achieve the Company goals
  • Coordinate the monthly Strategy Deployment process including normal updates, gap analysis, and countermeasure development
  • Conduct periodic reviews and audits of the Site, Production Department, and Functional Department WIT Boards to ensure ongoing alignment to the annual objectives, linked KPIs, site initiatives, and site standards
  • Manage the preparation of daily reports.
  • Facilitate quarterly projects with Supervisors and Group Leads to ensure development, presentation and completion of improvements following the Paris documented process
  • Continue to develop, certify, and train on TWI (Training with Industry) principles
  • Coordinate with Human Resources on Onboarding, Mentorship and Skill Matrix applications
• Responsible for personal safety as well as the promotion of, involvement in, and enforcement of all Environmental, Health, and Safety (EHS) efforts at this facility.  This includes complying with all EHS policies or regulations set forth by Simonton and/or various governmental agencies.
• Provides strong leadership skills in a one-on-one environment and in a team atmosphere.

• BA / BS (4-year technical or business) degree preferable 
• 4 – 6 years of Manufacturing Operations experience
• Greenbelt Certification required Black Belt Preferred
• Previous Lean experience a positive for internal candidates and required for external candidates, High school graduate with some college.
• Extensive experience leading and facilitating formal Kaizen events
• Able to build successful teams and guide others in accomplishing work objectives

• Strong analytical and problem-solving capabilities
• Seeks and uses ‘customer’ feedback to improve effectiveness of Lean group and deployment
• Encourages open discussion and dialogue within and between Functions
• Well-developed decision-making skills
• Excellent computer and analytical skills
• Excellent verbal, written and interpersonal communication skills
• Lead and Manage by Influence
• Individual and Team Coaching
• Extremely Process Focused
• Excellent self-motivation and attitude toward their work
• High degree of maturity and professionalism

Why work for Cornerstone Building Brands? 

Our teams are at the heart of our purpose to positively contribute to the communities where we live, work and play. Full-time* team members receive** medical, dental and vision benefits starting day 1. Other benefits include PTO, paid holidays, FSA, life insurance, LTD, STD, 401k, EAP, discount programs, tuition reimbursement, training, and professional development. 

*Full-time is defined as regularly working 30+ hours per week. **Union programs may vary depending on the collective bargaining agreement.

Cornerstone Building Brands is an Equal Opportunity Employer. 

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, pregnancy, genetic information, disability, or status as a protected veteran. You can find the Equal Employment Opportunity Poster here. You can also view Your Right to Work Poster here along with This Organizations Participation in E-Verify Poster here. If you'd like to view a copy of the company's affirmative action plan for protected veterans or individuals with disabilities or policy statement, please contact Human Resources at 281-897-7788 or [email protected]. If you have a disability and you believe that you need a reasonable accommodation in order to search for a job opening or to submit an online application, please contact Human Resources at 281-897-7788 or [email protected]. This email is used exclusively to assist disabled job seekers whose disability prevents them from being able to apply online. Only emails received for this purpose will be returned. Messages left for other purposes, such as following up on an application or technical issues not related to a disability, will not receive a response.

California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) of 2018

Must be at least 18 years of age to apply.

Notice of Recruitment Fraud

We have been made aware of multiple scams whereby unauthorized individuals are using Cornerstone Building Brand's name and logo to solicit potential job-seekers for employment. In some cases, job-seekers are being contacted directly, both by phone and e-mail. In other instances, these unauthorized individuals are placing advertisements for fake positions with both legitimate websites and fabricated ones. These individuals are typically promising high-paying jobs with the requirement that the job-seeker send money to pay for things such as visa applications or processing fees. Please be advised that Cornerstone Building Brands will never ask potential job-seekers for any sort of advance payment or bank account information as part of the recruiting or hiring process.