Sr Director Global Manufacturing Excellence

Title: Sr Director Global Manufacturing Excellence

Location: Kennewick, WA

Job Requisition ID: Req-260682

Time Type: Full time

About Lamb Weston

You’ve probably enjoyed our fries without even knowing it! As a leading manufacturer in our industry, and public Fortune 500 company, we inspire and bring people together with foods they love and trust. Our customer base includes international food service providers, restaurants, and households in over 100 countries around the world.

A highly innovative global corporation with a start-up mindset, we empower every individual to make a genuine difference. You’ll gain access to hands-on training to fuel your growth and success, explore opportunities for new solutions, and you’ll join a winning team of 10,000+ people all dedicated to raising the bar – together.

If you have a strong drive for results, a desire to help us bring the world together through our fries, and are ready for a fresh challenge, we want to hear from you.

Job Description Summary

The Senior Director, Manufacturing Excellence is a critical enterprise leader responsible for defining and driving Lamb Weston’s global operational excellence strategy across all manufacturing facilities. As a senior member of the Global Manufacturing leadership team, this role will accelerate the transformation to world-class manufacturing by embedding a high-performance operating system, strengthening organizational capability, and delivering sustained value across safety, quality, service, cost, and productivity.

This leader owns the enterprise-wide strategy, governance, and execution of the LW Excellence (operating culture) system, ensuring consistency, scalability, and measurable business impact. The role requires strong cross-functional influence, deep operational expertise, and the ability to lead transformation through others in a global, matrixed environment

Job Description

• Define and execute a multi-year global Manufacturing Excellence strategy aligned to enterprise priorities and financial objectives.
• Lead the evolution, deployment, and sustainment of LW Excellence as the company’s integrated operating system.
• Drive enterprise-wide transformation initiatives that improve operational performance, capability, and culture across manufacturing and supply chain.
• Establish and govern standardized processes, metrics, and management systems to ensure consistent performance across all sites.
• Lead the identification, prioritization, and execution of high-impact improvement initiatives across safety, quality, delivery, cost, and asset utilization.
• Embed continuous improvement into daily operations through Lean, TPM, Six Sigma, and integrated work systems.
• Build and lead a high-performing Manufacturing Excellence team with global reach.
• Coach and develop plant leadership teams to drive ownership, accountability, and engagement at all levels.
• Strengthen enterprise capability through training, talent development, and implementation of high-performance work systems.
• Lead large-scale change efforts, ensuring adoption, sustainment, and cultural alignment.
• Establish governance frameworks to track progress, measure value realization, and ensure accountability.
• Influence senior stakeholders to align priorities, remove barriers, and accelerate execution.
• Partner with Manufacturing, Supply Chain, Engineering, Quality, Finance, and HR to align strategies and drive business outcomes and deliver results at scale.
• Ensure operational excellence initiatives are fully integrated with business planning, capital allocation, and P&L performance.
• Leverage data and advanced analytics to identify performance gaps and drive decision-making.
• Benchmark internally and externally to establish best-in-class standards and practices.
• Continuously refine the operating model to improve effectiveness, scalability, and impact.

Basic & Preferred Qualifications

Education/ Certifications: (Required & Preferred)

• Bachelor’s Degree required, a degree in Engineering or related field preferred.

Skills and Experience:

• 12+ years of progressive leadership in manufacturing, operations, or operational excellence
• Proven success leading large-scale, multi-site transformation initiatives in complex environments and embed lasting behavioral change
• Deep expertise in Lean, Six Sigma, TPM with practical application experience.
• Strong track record of delivering measurable business results (productivity, cost, service, quality, safety)
• Experience building organizational capability and leading cultural transformation
• Experience building team capability and developing high performing teams
• Demonstrated ability to influence senior executives and drive alignment across a matrixed organization
• Experience managing external partners/consultants to deliver large-scale initiatives
• Deep understanding of manufacturing systems, supply chain, and business drivers
• Strong executive presence with the ability to challenge and align senior leaders

Physical Environment/Demands:

• Most work is performed in a temperature-controlled office environment
• Incumbent may sit for long periods of time at desk or computer terminal
• While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to sit; use hands to finger, handle, or feel; reach with hands and arms; and talk or hear.
• Incumbent may use calculators, keyboards, telephone and other office equipment in the course of normal workday
• Stooping, bending, twisting and reaching may be required in completion of job duties

Valid Driver’s License and driving record that meets Lamb Weston Driving Standards

Industry-Competitive Benefits

Coupled with our compensation and bonus incentive programs, our benefits deliver rewards that are market competitive.  Some of the most attractive elements of our benefit programs include:

• Health Insurance Benefits - Medical, Dental, Vision

• Flexible Spending Accounts for Health and Dependent Care, and Health Reimbursement Accounts

• Well-being programs including companywide events and a wellness incentive program

• Paid Time Off

• Financial Wellness – Industry leading 401(k) plan with generous company contributions, Financial Planning Services, Employee Stock purchase program, and Health Savings Accounts, Life and Accident insurance

• Family-Friendly Employee events

• Employee Assistance Program services – mental health and other concierge type services

Benefits may vary based on location, job role/level, job status, and/or the terms of any applicable collective bargaining agreements.

Anticipated Close Date

The anticipated close date is a good faith estimate for when this job will be closed. Some jobs may be unposted or filled earlier or later than the Anticipated Close Date depending on interview processes and business needs.

Anticipated Close Date: 07/06/2026

Pay Transparency

In compliance with applicable state and local laws, Lamb Weston has opted to include a reasonable estimate of the compensation for this role. This compensation is specific to this position and takes into account a number of variables. Actual compensation may be higher or lower in the range posted based on various factors, including, but not limited to, job duties, experience and expertise. A candidate's work location could also impact the actual compensation being outside of the range to reflect local cost of labor. A reasonable annual estimate of the range for this role is listed below.

Pay Rate or Range: $164,470.00 - $246,710.00

Equal Opportunity Employer

Lamb Weston is an Equal Opportunity Employer and considers qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, creed, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, age, disability, veteran status or any other protected factor under federal, state or local law