Associate Director - Operational Excellence

Associate Director, Operational Excellence in Springfield, MO

Build your future at Curia, where our work has the power to save lives

Curia is a global contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) with over 30 years of experience partnering with pharmaceutical and biotech companies to provide life-saving treatments to patients. At Curia, we are on a mission to advance our customers’ therapies from curiosity to cure and ultimately to improve patients’ lives.

We proudly offer

•    Generous benefit options (eligible first day of employment) 
•    Paid training, vacation and holidays (vacation accrual begins on first day of employment)
•    Career advancement opportunities 
•    Education reimbursement
•    401K program with matching contributions
•    Learning platform
•    And more!

Essential Responsibilities

Operational Excellence Strategy and Site Remediation

• Partner with the Site Leadership Team to develop and execute an operational excellence strategy aligned with site remediation priorities, business objectives, and customer commitments. 

• Translate site goals into focused improvement plans with clear objectives, ownership, timelines, performance measures, and governance. 

• Conduct operational assessments and diagnostics to identify risks, performance gaps, process inefficiencies, and opportunities for improvement. 

• Support the development and implementation of effective management systems, standard work, escalation processes, and performance routines. 

• Ensure improvement efforts strengthen operational readiness, compliance, reliability, and the site’s ability to consistently execute the production schedule. 

• Partner with Quality and other functional leaders to ensure operational improvements support cGMP requirements, inspection readiness, and sustainable remediation outcomes. 

Continuous Improvement and Performance

• Lead projects that improve safety, quality, delivery, cost, capacity, productivity, and employee engagement. 

• Establish and mature the site’s Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE) program to identify, prioritize, and reduce sources of production loss. 

• Use data and structured problem-solving methods to identify root causes, evaluate solutions, and drive measurable business results. 

• Facilitate value stream mapping, process mapping, root cause analysis, and other improvement activities to simplify workflows and eliminate waste. 

• Apply Lean, Six Sigma, 5S, visual management, and other appropriate tools based on the needs of the process and organization. 

• Identify and lead cost-improvement opportunities while ensuring changes do not compromise employee safety, product quality, regulatory compliance, or supply reliability. 

• Develop performance measures and reporting tools that provide clear visibility to progress, risks, trends, and business impact. 

• Establish controls and follow-up processes to verify that improvements are adopted, effective, and sustained. 

Leadership and Organizational Capability

• Serve as a trusted coach and change leader for the Site Leadership Team, department leaders, supervisors, and employees. 

• Build site capability in structured problem-solving, daily management, change leadership, and continuous improvement. 

• Develop and deliver practical training, tools, and resources that help employees recognize problems, identify solutions, and improve their work. 

• Mentor project leaders and improvement teams, helping them establish clear objectives, manage priorities, remove barriers, and achieve sustainable results. 

• Engage employees closest to the work when assessing processes and developing solutions, recognizing that their knowledge and participation are essential to lasting improvement. 

• Encourage a culture in which employees raise concerns, challenge inefficient practices, learn from setbacks, and take ownership of results. 

• Model the Curia Way by demonstrating integrity, respect, collaboration, accountability, and a commitment to patients, customers, and one another. 

• Build cross-functional partnership and lead change management

• Facilitate cross-functional teams through complex improvement and remediation initiatives, ensuring roles, expectations, decisions, and deliverables are clearly defined. 

• Develop stakeholder engagement and change-management plans that support understanding, adoption, and sustained use of new processes. 

• Communicate effectively with employees and leaders at all levels, translating complex information into clear priorities and practical actions. 

• Partner with other Curia sites and Operational Excellence leaders to share best practices, align approaches, and implement applicable enterprise initiatives. 

• Balance multiple priorities and adjust plans as site risks, customer needs, and business conditions evolve. 

Safety, Quality, and Compliance

• Promote a work environment in which safety, quality, and compliance are foundational to every improvement decision. 

• Identify and escalate risks that could affect employees, product quality, data integrity, compliance, customers, or business continuity. 

• Ensure operational excellence activities are appropriately documented and executed in accordance with applicable procedures, cGMP requirements, and regulatory expectations. 

• Participate in site inspections, audits, governance meetings, and remediation activities as needed. 

• Perform other duties in support of site and business needs

Good Manufacturing & Documentation Practices

Quality is something we take pride in together. You’ll perform your work in alignment with cGMP requirements and Curia’s standards, which means:

• Perform all documentation in compliance with ALCOA++ principles and site SOPs.

• Adhere to applicable cGMP documents including SOPs, batch records, protocols, change controls, and controlled forms.

• Keep all required cGMP training current and escalate quality concerns along with proposed solutions to the Quality department.

Qualifications

Required

• Bachelor’s degree in science, engineering, operations, business, or a related field. 

• At least eight years of progressive experience leading operational excellence, continuous improvement, manufacturing excellence, or performance transformation initiatives in a manufacturing environment. 

• At least two years of experience in a formal leadership or management role. 

• Demonstrated success using Lean, Six Sigma, or comparable structured improvement methods to deliver measurable and sustainable business results. 

• Experience leading complex, cross-functional projects from problem definition through implementation and sustainment. 

• Demonstrated ability to influence leaders and employees without relying solely on direct reporting authority. 

• Experience supporting organizational change, developing employee capability, and improving management systems. 

• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, including the ability to interpret operational data, identify trends, determine root causes, and translate findings into action. 

• Strong project-management and organizational skills, with the ability to manage multiple priorities in a changing environment. 

• Excellent written, verbal, facilitation, and presentation skills. 

• Proficiency with Microsoft Office applications and other tools used for data analysis, reporting, project management, and performance tracking.

Preferred

• Experience in pharmaceutical, biotechnology, chemical, or another highly regulated manufacturing environment. 

• Experience supporting site remediation, operational turnaround, inspection readiness, or significant organizational transformation.

• Lean Six Sigma Black Belt, change-management certification, Project Management Professional certification, or comparable credentials. 

• Experience implementing OEE, tiered accountability, daily management, visual management, or leader standard work. 

• Working knowledge of cGMP requirements and pharmaceutical quality systems.
   

Education, experience, location and tenure may be considered along with internal equity when job offers are extended.

We do not accept unsolicited assistance from any headhunters or recruitment firms for any of our job openings. All resumes or profiles submitted by search firms to any employee at Curia, in any form without a valid, signed search agreement by an authorized signatory in place for the specific position, approved by Talent Acquisition, will be deemed the sole property of Curia. No fee will be paid in the event the candidate is hired by Curia because of the unsolicited referral.

All interested applicants must apply online. Please be aware of scammers. Curia will only send offer letters and requests for sensitive personal information from a curiaglobal.com email address. Curia is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, or protected veteran status and will not be discriminated against on the basis of disability. Curia is an E-Verify employer.