Operational Excellence Manager - Paper Center of Excellence

Are you ready to lead with purpose and drive real results?

Leola, PA, will soon be home to Dart's new paper plate manufacturing Center of Excellence! This industry-leading facility will be an efficient manufacturing powerhouse, with the capacity to meet the growing demand for paper-based food and beverage packaging.

We're seeking a passionate, results-driven Operational Excellence Manager to join our new paper dinnerware manufacturing Center of Excellence. With a relentless focus on manufacturing excellence and continuous improvement, you'll play a key role in fostering a "One Team" approach - uniting our people around shared goals and delivering meaningful outcomes.

What We Offer:

• Competitive compensation and comprehensive benefits including medical, dental, and vision insurance, 401(k) with company match, paid time off, and paid holidays.
• A values-driven culture that prioritizes safety, integrity, innovation, and a collaborative "One Team" approach to leadership.
• Training and development programs to support your career growth
• A chance to make a meaningful impact at a new Center of Excellence

What You'll Do - Results:

• Lead and sustain continuous improvement (CI) initiatives that improve KPIs, reduce waste and variability, and eliminate bottlenecks using Lean tools and data-driven problem solving.
• Champion Daily Management Systems (DMS) and Lean principles across teams, ensuring consistent use and understanding of how these systems connect to problem solving.
• Conduct Kaizens, lead follow-up problem-solving meetings, and train Managers, Leads, and Supervisors to independently use CI tools and sustain improvements.
• Reduce waste, defects, and process variability through data-driven problem solving.
• Identify and eliminate production bottlenecks to improve flow and efficiency.
• Facilitate and support action plans tied to strategic operational goals (A3, Gantt charts).

What You Bring - Competencies:

• Acts as a proactive change agent with the ability to influence and align stakeholders at all levels toward a culture of continuous improvement.
• Applies strong analytical and project management skills to identify root causes, solve complex problems, and drive measurable results.
• Clearly conveys ideas and trains cross-functional teams, fostering engagement, understanding, and capability development.
• Champions ownership, accountability, and a learning mindset to strengthen operational discipline and team empowerment.
• Builds strong cross-functional relationships to align priorities, share best practices, and accelerate improvement efforts.

Experience and Skills

• Bachelor's Degree in Operations, Engineering or other manufacturing related field with five (5) years of continuous improvement experience in a manufacturing environment
• Deep experience in continuous improvement, lean manufacturing, and operational excellence.
• Strong knowledge of CI methodologies (FMEA, SMED, Kaizen, 5S, VSM, Root Cause Analysis, etc.).
• Skilled in data collection and statistical analysis; experienced in identifying loss and variation.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office with the ability to develop actionable reports and implementation plans.
• Preferred: Lean/Six Sigma certification and background in paper converting.

Work Schedule & Travel:

Overview: Dart makes everyday products that give people the freedom to enjoy the food & drinks they love, wherever they are. From to-go containers and dinnerware to tamper-evident food packaging and even the red SOLO cup, Dart products have been keeping people on the go and having fun for 65 years.We're a family-owned, family-focused company of 12,000 employees united by a shared set of values and dedicated to providing exceptional customer service. Headquartered in Mason, MI, with 30 locations in three countries, we're proud of our ability to innovate, manufacture and lead the way with each new generation of quality products.

Benefits: Dart Container full-time employees enjoy great benefits, including medical, dental, vision, life insurance, 401(k) with company matching contributions, paid vacation, paid holidays, short-term disability, tuition assistance, product discounts and more.

Dart Container is a drug-free workplace. Candidates are subject to a drug test (excluding THC*/marijuana/cannabis) and background check at the time of offer.

*THC testing ONLY when such testing is required by law.

Dart Container is an equal opportunity employer and will consider all candidates for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.

https://www.dartcontainer.com/eeoaa/

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