Operational Excellence Specialist
Operational Excellence Specialist
US-CA-San Diego
Job ID: 2026-9189
Type: Regular Full-Time
# of Openings: 1
Category: Production Management
San Diego Plant
Overview
The factory Operational Excellence (OpEx) Specialist is responsible for analyzing and improving factory processes within our Total Productive Maintenance (TPM) journey to improve equipment reliability, reduce downtime, reduce food loss, and enhance the overall operational efficiency (OEE) in our food manufacturing facility. This position will lead and develop others within the factory loss analysis program, problem solving process and OEE reporting.
Responsibilities
Primary Responsibilities
· Factory Loss Analysis Leadership
· With support of the Operational Excellence Manager, collect data, analyze data, identify specific losses and prioritize losses within the factory’s OEE, downtime, raw material loss, labor loss, etc.
· Provide effective visual sharing and guidance of losses to the factory leaders and team members to action against
· Ensure the appropriate loss analysis is provided on a daily, weekly, monthly and annual basis
· Problem Solving Leadership
· Lead and develop others in the usage of our root cause analysis tools (STPD, BDA, etc.) to drive continuous improvement
· Ensure the health and wellness of our problem-solving tools meet the standards for analysis and corrective actions and preventative actions
· Implement verification steps on solutions for sustainability and if possible, reapplication to other similar equipment or situations
· OEE Reporting Ownership
· Own the OEE reporting program from data collection, loss analysis, loss categorization and monitoring to ensure reporting is done effectively and correctly
· Provide OEE reporting internally to the factory leadership and team members that will use the loss identification within the continuous improvement activities
· Lead and develop others in the understanding of the OEE loss categories with the availability, performance and quality components
Qualifications
Education, Certifications and Experience
An equivalent combination of experience and education will also be considered.
Education
Education Level
Description
2 Year / Associate Degree
Minimum Associate of Science degree in a STEM field (Engineering, Food Science, Technology, Math, etc.) required.
4 Year / Bachelors Degree
Bachelor of Science degree in a STEM field or active enrollment in a 4-year STEM degree program preferred.
Other
Experience in lieu of degree will be considered.
Experience
Minimum Years of Experience
Comments
2 to 4 years
Minimum 2 years of manufacturing experience in a leadership role, preferable in the food industry.
Certifications
· Certifications in advanced CI tools preferred
Knowledge, Skills and Abilities
· Knowledge & Skills
· Knowledge of TPM methodology, specifically focus improvement (FI) pillar methodologies or a continuous improvement program is required
· Demonstrated Proficiencies
· Demonstrated leadership skills; ability to motivate, develop and inspire others
· Excellent leadership, communication, problem solving skills, and change management
· Strong analytical abilities and the administration background in systems used in data gathering, loss analysis, etc.
· Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively with others, specifically with all factory personnel levels
· Proven track record of driving results in a factory environment
Working Conditions
The working conditions of this job require the employee to frequently be exposed to wet, humid, and extremely cold conditions. Employee is occasionally exposed to vibration and the noise level can be moderate. To protect against these conditions, frequent use of personal protective equipment is required.
Physical Requirements
The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
Physical Demands Hardcoded
Demand
Frequency
Sit
Frequent
Stand
Frequent
Walk
Frequent
Lift
Frequent
Bend/Twist
Frequent
Reach
Frequent
Vision - Close vision and the ability to adjust focus.
Constant
Other Physical Demands or Working Conditions
Characterized as sedentary work. Job demands may require long periods of sitting; telephone work and/or computer work as well as interactions with other employees and customers; filing in lateral and upright file cabinets. The employee frequently is required to use hands to finger, handle or touch. The employee is occasionally required to reach with hands and arms. The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 15 pounds. Travel 25% of the time on average is required.
AAP/EEO Statement
Ajinomoto Foods North America, Inc. (AFNA) is an Equal Opportunity Employer. AFNA does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, sex, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, physical or mental disability, national origin, veteran status or any other basis protected by stated, federal, or local law. All employment is decided on the basis of qualifications, merit, and business need.
The statements contained herein reflect general details as necessary to describe the principal functions for this job, the level of knowledge and skill typically required, and the scope of responsibility, but should not be considered an all-inclusive listing of work requirements. Individuals may perform other duties as assigned.
Salary: 82,350 - 100,650 /yr - DOE
10% annual STI bonus based on performance.
#INDSAN
PI284435089