Continuous improvement associate

Starting Pay: $23.00

Shift: 1st shift with flexibility

Primary location- Erie, PA

Secondary locations: North East, PA & Westfield, NY

We are seeking a full-time Continuous Improvement (CI) Associate to join our team across the Erie, North East, and Westfield facilities. In this role, you will report to the CI Manager and work closely with the Manufacturing Manager and leadership team to drive operational excellence.

Who we are!

Schwan's Company, a U.S. affiliate of the global lifestyle brand CJ CheilJedang Corporation, is a leader in manufacturing and marketing quality foods enjoyed nationwide. We have beloved brands like Red Baron®, Tony's®, Big Daddy's®, Villa Prima™ and Freschetta® pizzas; bibigo®, Pagoda® Asian-style snacks and we can't forget Mrs. Smith's® and Edwards® pies! We bring families and communities together through great food. Join our team and see the opportunities are real, and the sky is the limit; this isn't just a job, it's a seat at the table.

What we want to do for you!

We offer eligible employees competitive pay, and a comprehensive benefits package designed to assist employees and their families with their financial security, health, and well-being.

• Health, Life, Dental, and Vision Plans
• Earn up to 2 weeks paid time off during first year
• 401k with Company Match

What we need from you:

This position is responsible for supporting the identification, development, and evaluation of processes; creating new opportunities for increased performance; applying improvement methodologies from idea to implementation.

Responsibilities

• Analyze processes and procedures to identify and develop opportunities to improve safety, quality, increase capacity and improve productivity.
• Create centerline targets for optimal operational conditions and develop control strategies to enable operations to respond to out of limit centerlines.
• Assist in creating reports on factory performance and improvement related activities.
• Lead or participate in production trials to eliminate waste or improve operational capabilities using lean tools such as cause-and-effect analysis, PDCA, and/or improvement Kaizen.
• Participate in the DMS process and lead the development of visual factory through 5S standards, performance metrics, and communication boards.
• Train on best practices (following LUIT (Lean, Use, Teach, Inspect) process.
• Use project management tools to define project requirements and milestones, track progress, resolve problems, communicate progress, and recommend actions.
• Responsible to conduct yourself and ensure your subordinates (if applicable) conduct themselves in a manner consistent with company mission, values, code of ethics, policies, and other standards of conduct.

Preferred Qualifications

Education: Degree of Engineering or related field; Certificate in Lean Six Sigma or other relevant Continuous Improvement Methodology.

Years of Related Experience: Candidates should have 0-1 year of continuous improvement experience.

Knowledge/Skills/Abilities: Working knowledge of MS Office Suite, MS Project; Understanding of general industrial process and control systems; Working knowledge of basic statistical tools. Effective communication, and problem-solving skills.

This job description is not intended to be an exhaustive list of all duties, responsibilities and qualifications associated with the job. An individual must be able to perform all of the duties and responsibilities listed in a fully competent manner to be considered successful in the job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform essential duties and responsibilities.