Process Improvement - Director, Process Improvement

Job Title:            Director – Cooper Business System (CBS)

FLSA Status:      Exempt - Salaried

Location:            Houston, TX

About Cooper Machinery Services:

Cooper Machinery Services provides natural gas compression equipment and services to customers globally in the Oil & Gas, Power, Transportation, and Marine sectors. With a proud heritage dating back to 1833, Cooper Machinery Services is the OEM for legendary product lines including Cooper-Bessemer™, Ajax™, Superior™, Gemini, TSI, CSI, Enterprise, and Joy. Headquartered in Houston, TX, but with commercial and services hubs around the world, Cooper Machinery Services provides world-class services to more than 22,000 units in its installed base.

Our strength is our people. Each employee plays an integral role in our success and growth. With a commitment to our vision that strong relationships drive strong results and better business, our people make Cooper Machinery Services legendary.

Job Overview:

The Director of the Cooper Business System (CBS) will be instrumental in optimizing efficiencies, streamlining processes, and driving improvements across the company’s operational and commercial functions. This role is central to cultivating a culture of continuous improvement, fostering innovation, and aligning operational excellence with the company’s commercial strategy to achieve growth objectives. In this position, you will have a significant impact on strategic initiatives, revenue growth, innovation, customer satisfaction, and competitive advantage.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

• Develop and Implement Continuous Improvement Strategy: Create and execute a comprehensive continuous improvement strategy aligned with the company’s overarching business objectives, focusing on driving productivity and efficiency while prioritizing customer needs.
• Cultivate a Continuous Improvement Culture: Lead, coach, and foster a culture of continuous improvement throughout the organization by utilizing various methodologies, including but not limited to Kaizen Events, PDCA (Plan-Do-Check-Act), Process Mapping, Fishbone Diagrams, and DMAIC, with a particular emphasis on operational and commercial functions.
• Collaborate on Process Optimization: Work with cross-functional teams to identify improvement opportunities, analyze existing processes, and develop innovative solutions aimed at optimizing performance and reducing costs.
• Foster Innovation and Growth: Encourage creative problem-solving and the adoption of new ideas through continuous improvement initiatives, driving the company forward and supporting sustainable growth.
• Establish and Monitor Performance Metrics: Develop and maintain performance metrics and KPIs to measure and track the progress of continuous improvement initiatives, regularly presenting results and insights to senior leadership.
• Promote Best Practices and Training: Enhance a culture of continuous improvement by sharing best practices, providing training and support to build continuous improvement capabilities, tools, and skillsets, and encouraging employee engagement and active participation in improvement projects.
• Act as a Change Agent: Drive and influence organizational change to support the successful adoption of new processes and procedures resulting from continuous improvement efforts.
• Develop Opportunity Pipeline: Identify and prioritize opportunities, create a pipeline of initiatives, and determine the necessary resources to achieve desired results within the continuous improvement strategy.
• Change Management and Leadership Development: Lead change management initiatives to embed the CBS culture throughout the organization, ensuring that change efforts are consistent with the CBS design. Develop future leaders by mentoring high-potential individuals within CBS and other functions, aligning leadership development with the CBS framework.

Required Skills and Experience:

Education:

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Business Administration, Operations Management, or a related field. MBA or advanced degree is highly desirable.

Experience:

• Minimum 10 years of leadership experience in operational excellence, lean manufacturing, or continuous improvement with a strong emphasis on commercial processes.
• Proven track record in leading large-scale transformation initiatives across diverse business units, including commercial functions.

Skills:

• Expertise in lean manufacturing, Six Sigma, and commercial process improvement methodologies.
• Strong leadership, communication, and interpersonal skills with the ability to influence and engage stakeholders at all levels.
• Strategic thinker with a history of aligning operational and commercial initiatives with overarching business goals.
• Proficiency in data analysis, KPI management, and performance metrics.

Desired Characteristics

• Visionary leader with a strong focus on driving sustainable change.
• Excellent problem-solving skills with a commitment to delivering measurable results.
• Collaborative, with a demonstrated ability to work effectively across functions and organizational levels.
• High integrity and a steadfast commitment to the company’s values and mission.

Cooper Machinery Services is an equal opportunity employer and gives all qualified applicants consideration of employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, any other characteristic protected by law.