Lean Continuous Improvement Manager
- Compensation
- Not disclosed
- Location
- Romulus, MI
- Work setup
- Not specified
- Seniority
- Not specified
- Employment
- Not specified
- Experience
- 7+ years
- Category
- Industrial engineering
- Posted
Skills
Nice to have
- • Automotive industry (OEM or Tier 1) experience
- • Six Sigma Black Belt or Lean certification
- • Experience in high-volume, complex manufacturing environments
- • Experience in unionized manufacturing environments
- • Exposure to advanced manufacturing and automation environments
- WORK ENVIRONMENT
- While performing the duties of this role, the employee will be regularly exposed to a manufacturing
- environment, including moving mechanical parts and varying noise levels. This position requires regular
- presence on the plant floor to support operations and team engagement.
- EEO STATEMENT
- Detroit Thermal Systems is an Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action Employer. Qualified applicants will be considered without regard to age, race, creed, color, national origin, ancestry, marital s
Full description
POSITION SUMMARY
The Continuous Improvement Manager is responsible for leading plant-wide continuous improvement
initiatives with primary accountability for driving performance improvements across Safety, Quality,
Delivery, Cost, and People (SQDCP).
This role establishes and standardizes core Industrial Engineering (IE) processes and standards while
developing Manufacturing Engineers to build IE capability over time.
ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES (Include but are not limited to):
Continuous Improvement Leadership (~70%):
- Lead plant-wide continuous improvement aligned to Piston Group’s CI / Lean Strategy to improve
business objectives and SQDCP performance targets
- Drive implementation and sustainment of Lean manufacturing systems, including daily
management, standard work, and waste elimination
- Identify and eliminate operational losses using data, structured problem solving, and root cause
analysis
- Coach and lead cross-functional teams in Kaizen events, problem-solving workshops, and
improvement projects
- Establish and sustain KPI management systems, including tiered accountability and performance
escalation processes
- Drive continuous improvement initiatives focused on throughput, inventory reduction, flow
optimization, and productivity improvement
- Ensure alignment and integration of CI activities with plant operations, quality, maintenance, and supply chain functions
- Lead development of a continuous improvement culture through training, coaching, and leadership engagement
- Track and report improvement initiatives with clear ownership, timelines, and measurable
impact
Industrial Engineering Systems (~30%):
- Define, develop, and standardize core Industrial Engineering processes, tools, and methodologies across the plant
- Establish standards for:
Labor planning and line balancing
o Standard work and work measurement
o Capacity analysis and modeling
o Layout optimization and material flow design
Partner with Manufacturing Engineering to deploy IE standards into production environments
- Train and coach Manufacturing Engineers to develop core IE competencies and ownership of