Continuous Improvement - EMEA Regional Leader

The Continuous Improvement – EMEA Regional Leader is a senior individual contributor reporting directly to the EMEA Sr Operational Excellence Director. This role is the cornerstone of Pillar 3 – Lean Management within Vertiv’s EMEA Operational Excellence organization, covering 10 manufacturing plants across the region. The role is responsible for driving the deployment, standardization, and sustained adoption of Lean and Continuous Improvement (CI) methodologies across all EMEA sites. The Lean / CI Regional Leader builds a living Lean culture through hands-on coaching, structured site assessments, best-in-class tool deployment, and the development of self-sustaining local CI capability at each plant.

Based at any of Vertiv's EMEA plants or offices.

The role will involve approximately 50% travel across EMEA manufacturing locations. Proximity to an international airport would therefore be beneficial.

Lean Methodology Deployment & Standardization

• →Deploy a standardized Lean Management System (LMS) across all 10 EMEA sites, defining minimum requirements for tools, cadence, and governance to ensure consistent baseline deployment.
• →Implement and sustain core Lean tools including Kaizen, Value Stream Mapping (VSM), 5S/6S, SMED, TPM, pull/kanban systems, and visual management across all plants.
• →Develop and maintain a site-by-site Lean deployment roadmap aligned to each plant’s operational priorities, maturity level, and improvement opportunities.
• →Create and maintain standardized Lean playbooks, toolkits, and reference materials to enable consistent deployment across geographically dispersed sites.

Shop Floor Transformation & Flow Optimization

• →Lead full-scope VSM workshops at each site to identify waste, bottlenecks, and improvement opportunities; design future-state flow layouts and pull systems to reduce WIP and shorten lead times.
• →Lead SMED initiatives at major changeover bottlenecks to reduce setup times and support TPM deployment to maximize OEE through autonomous and planned maintenance activities.
• →Implement visual management systems including production control boards, Andon systems, and KPI displays; facilitate Kaizen events targeting waste elimination and process redesign.

CI Capability Building & Coaching

• →Identify and develop plant-level CI Champions, Lean Coordinators, and site Lean Leaders to serve as primary CI resources at each EMEA facility.
• →Design and deliver structured Lean training programs covering foundational tools (5S, Kaizen, VSM, pull systems) and advanced methodologies (SMED, TPM, flow design) tailored to different audience levels.
• →Provide hands-on coaching during Kaizen events, VSM workshops, and shop floor improvement activities; establish mentoring relationships with site CI leaders to build long-term self-sustaining capability.

Plant Maturity Assessment & CI Roadmap

• →Design and maintain a structured Lean maturity assessment model covering leadership engagement, tool adoption, CI culture, visual management, and daily management systems.
• →Conduct regular maturity assessments at all 9 EMEA plants (minimum annually); develop and own a detailed CI improvement roadmap for each site linking gaps to specific initiatives and milestones.
• →Present plant maturity progress and roadmap status to site leadership and the EMEA Sr OpEx Director; benchmark EMEA performance against global Vertiv sites and external best-in-class manufacturers.

Operational KPI Improvement

• →Drive year-over-year OEE improvement across all EMEA plants through integration of Lean and TPM tools, focused improvement events, and daily management systems.
• →Reduce manufacturing lead times through VSM-driven flow redesign, pull system implementation, batch size reduction, and queue elimination; improve inventory turns by reducing WIP and raw material overstock.
• →Track and report CI project savings and KPI improvement trends at plant and regional level, ensuring transparency of results and contribution to the EMEA OpEx savings pipeline.

Cross-Plant Best Practice Sharing

• →Establish a structured EMEA CI network bringing together site CI leaders for regular knowledge sharing, benchmarking, and collaborative problem-solving.
• →Identify lighthouse plants exemplifying Lean excellence and lead horizontal deployment of proven improvement solutions, adapting best practices from one site for rapid replication across similar processes at other plants.

Required:

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Industrial Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, Operations Management, or a closely related technical discipline.
• Lean Practitioner or Lean Expert certification from a recognized body; Six Sigma Green Belt minimum (Black Belt preferred); TPM Facilitator certification strongly preferred.
• 7–10+ years of progressive experience in Lean, Continuous Improvement, or Operational Excellence within complex, multi-site manufacturing environments.
• Demonstrated track record of leading hands-on Lean transformations including VSM, Kaizen facilitation, 5S/6S, SMED, TPM, pull systems, and visual management across multiple sites.
• Proven experience building and coaching CI teams, developing site-level Lean leaders, and managing concurrent improvement initiatives across geographically distributed operations.
• Proficiency in performance data analysis and KPI tracking (Excel, Power BI); familiarity with MES data and its application to Lean problem-solving and OEE analysis.
• Fluency in English; additional European languages strongly preferred.

Preferred:

• Master’s degree (MSc, MBA, or MEng) in Engineering, Business Administration, or Operations Management.

Application Requirements: Please submit your CV in English.

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This role may be performed in multiple jurisdictions. In jurisdictions subject to EU Pay Transparency requirements, a locally applicable salary range applies and will be communicated in accordance with local legal obligations, if not shown in this posting. Salary ranges for other jurisdictions may vary in line with local market conditions and applicable legislation.