At Lakeside Foods and our family of companies, we're committed to providing wholesome foods to enrich people's lives through food. We are a culture that pursues our vision of growth and innovation with passion, confidence, and commitment. We are strongest together - valuing collaborative contribution, transparency and new ideas to enable change and growth. We are committed to an inclusive and respectful environment that promotes a healthy work-life balance, and there's a seat at the table for you.

Join Our Leadership Team!

Are you looking for a rewarding career in process improvement? Do you have a passion for increasing productivity, quality and efficiency? If so, you might be the perfect fit for our newly created Process Improvement Specialist position at Lakeside Foods, Owatonna, MN. As a Process Improvement Specialist, you will be responsible for providing proactive leadership and expertise focuses on continuous improvements to production and quality, working closely with the General Manager.

What You'll Love:
At Lakeside Foods, we care about our people. That's why, as part of our leadership team, you'll enjoy a package of affordable benefit choices and resources that covers your health, well-being, family and future.

Comprehensive Benefits:

• A choice of three quality affordable healthcare coverage options
• Vision coverage
• Dental coverage
• Health savings account with employer contribution/flexible spending accounts
• Retirement planning including Profit Sharing and 401(k) match
• Company-provided life, AD&D, short and long-term disability insurance
• Generous paid time off including vacation, personal days and holidays

Work-Life Integration:

• Educational & professional development assistance
• Wellness programs and fitness reimbursement
• Dependent scholarship program
• Career growth opportunities

What You'll Do:

• Defines productivity targets in coordination with department leaders.
• Responsible for development and implementation of productivity projects to reduce cost and improve profitability.
• Leads projects as well as coaches others on the implementation of improvements.
• Integrates productivity strategies and is responsible for optimal coordination with other departments.
• Tracks, updates and monitors projects and productivity KPI's.
• Set priorities and develop plans, schedules, and budgets for process improvement projects.
• Design and lead the execution of initiatives/projects that will deliver the improvements identified.
• Deploy visual management and 5S across all value streams in the plant
• Facilitate value stream mapping in order to identify key opportunities to eliminate waste and improve performance.
• Lead Gemba/SQDC walks with facility leadership reviewing current safety, quality, delivery and cost progress/trends/action plans
• Leads kaizen events/Just Do It (JDI) improvement activities
• May perform other duties, as assigned by management.
• Own the Manufacturing Execution system (MES) deployment and utilization in the plant along with identification and execution of improvement projects based on MES data and Gemba observations.

What You'll Need:

• Bachelors Degree required
• 3 - 5 years of related experience with demonstrated results utilizing lean tools and methodologies in a production environment such as:
  • Structured problem solving with strong root cause analysis to eliminate waste
  • Value Stream Mapping to identify Kaizen opportunities
  • Kanban implementation
  • Standard Work implementation
• Mechanical aptitude with ability to design process aids to:
  • help improve product flow and eliminate waste in production processes
  • improve product quality
  • support physical safety improvements
• MES software deployment and utilization experience
• SAP experience a plus
• Proven track record in managing projects and experience using scope control procedures, planning, budgeting and reporting tools
• Demonstrated leadership in the deployment of new processes and technology including automation
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills
• Strong written and verbal communication skills with ability to influence, facilitate collaboration and build consensus
• Self-Driven, sense of urgency

Where You'll Work:

WELCOME TO OWATONNA

Located one hour south of Minneapolis, Owatonna is rich in history. From Historic Downtown shops, restaurants, and outdoor concerts, to over 700 acres of parklands and walkways, there is something for everyone in Owatonna.

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Lakeside Foods and our family of companies welcomes people of all backgrounds and the varied ideas they bring to the workplace. Being an equal opportunity and affirmative action employer is part of our heritage and culture. We recruit, hire and promote employees based on qualifications and merit, without regard to race, religion, age, gender, disability, marital or veteran status.

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