Director of Technology & Innovation

Position: Director of Technology & Innovation
Reports To: Chief Information Officer

Role Overview:
The Director of Technology & Innovation will lead transformational efforts across the organization, driving innovation, operational efficiency, and data-driven decision-making. This role oversees the Project Management Office (PMO), ERP modernization, and business process optimization, aligning IT strategy with business objectives to deliver measurable value and support long-term growth. The position requires a strong blend of leadership, strategic thinking, and expertise in manufacturing, business processes, and data analytics.

• Collaborate with the CIO and senior leaders to align IT projects, ERP modernization, business processes, and data analytics with the overall business strategy.
• Serve as a key advisor to the CIO on project management, ERP transformation, process optimization, data analytics, and IT governance.
• Monitor industry trends, emerging technologies, and best practices in manufacturing and IT, recommending beneficial adoptions.

• Establish and lead the PMO, implementing best practices in project management, resource allocation, and governance.
• Oversee project managers to ensure delivery on time, within scope, and budget.
• Implement a robust project portfolio management process to ensure alignment with business and IT strategies.

• Lead ERP modernization initiatives, ensuring seamless integration with existing processes and minimal disruption to operations.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to assess current systems and develop a comprehensive ERP strategy.
• Oversee ERP implementation and post-go-live optimization, ensuring the system meets evolving business needs.
• Drive change management efforts, including training, communication, and stakeholder engagement, for successful ERP adoption.

• Lead a team of Business Process Experts to analyze, design, maintain, and improve processes in collaboration with functional areas.
• Identify inefficiencies, streamline processes, and implement automation where appropriate.
• Maintain comprehensive documentation of business processes to ensure accessibility and accuracy.

• Drive data and analytics initiatives to enable enterprise-wide data-driven decision-making.
• Lead cross-functional teams in data management, analytics, and business intelligence efforts.
• Ensure alignment of data governance, quality, and integration with organizational needs.
• Leverage advanced analytics, machine learning, and AI to optimize processes and enhance manufacturing operations.
• Implement analytics platforms and tools to support predictive and prescriptive analytics capabilities.

• Build strong relationships with stakeholders across manufacturing, operations, finance, HR, and data teams.
• Serve as the primary contact for project, ERP, process, and data-related inquiries, ensuring clear communication.
• Facilitate regular meetings to review project progress, analytics insights, risks, and opportunities for improvement.

• Recruit, mentor, and develop a high-performing team of project managers, business process analysts, data scientists, and ERP specialists.
• Foster a culture of collaboration, continuous improvement, and accountability.
• Provide regular performance feedback and support professional growth within the team.

• Identify, assess, and mitigate risks related to projects, ERP modernization, business processes, and data analytics.
• Ensure compliance with internal policies and industry regulations, developing contingency plans to address potential challenges.

• Proven ability to lead and develop teams, fostering a collaborative and results-oriented environment.
• Strong strategic thinking skills to align team efforts with organizational goals.
• Exceptional decision-making, problem-solving, and conflict-resolution abilities.

• Extensive experience in process analysis, design, and optimization, with a focus on manufacturing efficiency.
• Familiarity with Lean Six Sigma or similar methodologies.
• Experience implementing and managing process automation solutions.

• Proven track record in leading large-scale projects, preferably in manufacturing.
• Proficiency in project management methodologies (e.g., PMI, Agile) and tools (e.g., MS Project, JIRA).
• Success in delivering projects on time, within scope, and budget.

• Significant experience leading ERP modernization initiatives, including selection, implementation, and optimization.
• Deep understanding of ERP integration with manufacturing and IT systems.
• Expertise in data migration, system integration, and change management.
• Experience with major ERP platforms (e.g., Epicor, SAP, Oracle, Microsoft Dynamics) in manufacturing environments is highly desirable.

• Demonstrated expertise in data strategy, governance, and advanced analytics.
• Proficiency in data analytics tools (e.g., Power BI, Tableau) and data science techniques (e.g., Python, R).
• Strong understanding of data management practices, including quality, integration, and governance.

• Comprehensive understanding of manufacturing processes and their intersection with IT.
• Experience advising manufacturing organizations on IT-related initiatives.

• Exceptional communication skills with the ability to convey complex information to diverse audiences.
• Proven ability to manage relationships with executives, business leaders, and external partners.
• Strong negotiation and influence skills to drive consensus and manage expectations.

• Bachelor's degree in IT, Business Administration, Data Science, or related fields; Master's preferred.
• Relevant certifications such as PMP, Lean Six Sigma, ITIL, ERP system certifications (e.g., SAP Certified Professional), or data analytics certifications (e.g., AWS Certified Data Analytics) are highly desirable.

• Experience leading change management initiatives related to IT projects, ERP transformations, and analytics adoption.
• Proven ability to manage the human aspects of change to ensure system and process adoption.