Program Manager, Operational Excellence

Role Overview

• Oversee the execution of Operational Excellence strategies, including Lean and other frameworks, to advance process optimization and operational efficiency within multiple departments.
• Facilitate the application of Operational Excellence tools (e.g., value stream mapping, A3 problem solving, FMEA), identifying areas for improvement and inefficiencies, and provide instruction, mentorship, and coaching in their use.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams, including Enterprise Process Administration, to implement continuous improvement projects, streamline processes, eliminate redundancies, and maintain alignment with organizational objectives.
• Lead kaizen events and guide teams in adopting Operational Excellence principles, serving as a catalyst for a company-wide culture of adaptation and ongoing process refinement.
• Act as a subject matter expert for Operational Excellence, ensuring best practices are regularly benchmarked and integrated into NuScale’s operational framework.
• Work closely with leadership to assess change impacts, recognize resistance, and devise actionable mitigation plans.
• Lead organization in identification and reduction of cost of poor quality (COPQ), leveraging continuous improvement tools to identify and eliminate redundancies and waste.
• Participate with finance and project leadership to determine value associated with improvements and elimination of COPQ.
• Support leaders in establishing performance metrics and key indicators, utilizing data analysis to identify inefficiencies and generate actionable recommendations for improved business outcomes.
• Continually enhance and champion the usability of data visualization platforms such as PowerBI and KanBo to aid improvement initiatives.
• Guide the generation and prioritization of suggestions and initiatives, uphold tracking standards, and ensure accountability mechanisms are in place.
• Employ KanBo and similar tools to track progress, monitor accountability, and measure the impact of improvement activities on business outcomes.
• Perform additional duties as assigned.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering or related field and significant applicable work experience in Operational Excellence / continuous improvement.
• Certification as Lean / Six Sigma Green or Black Belt preferred.
• Certification as a root cause analyst is a plus.
• 7+ years of operational excellence experience including application in a non-manufacturing environment.
• Proven leadership experience and application of skill set delivering tangible business results; demonstrated ability to lead improvement initiatives and manage priorities to meet near-term needs and long-term goals.
• Ability to effectively coach / mentor others on application of tools.
• Must have excellent communication skills including writing, presentation, and interpersonal.
• Knowledge and experience in nuclear corrective action programs, including causal analysis is a plus.
• Experience working within commercial nuclear industry is a plus, as is experience working in ASME NQA-1 and ISO 9001 quality programs/systems.
• Eligible to work under Department of Energy 10 CFR Part 810.

Benefits

• Employee Benefits | NuScale Power