We are seeking a highly skilled Associate Operating Advisor – Lean & Process Improvement Specialist. This pivotal role focuses on driving operational excellence and enhancing value across our diverse portfolio companies, with a strong emphasis on service-based industries and business processes. You will be instrumental in identifying, analyzing, and eliminating waste, streamlining workflows, and optimizing service delivery to boost efficiency, improve quality, and elevate overall client satisfaction. This involves challenging existing norms, collaborating with leadership and cross-functional teams, and implementing impactful lean methodologies to achieve tangible results.

THIS ROLE REQUIRES 85% TRAVEL (4 DAYS A WEEK)

Key Responsibilities:

The Lean & Process Improvement Specialist will be a hands-on leader responsible for improving operational systems and efficiency within our portfolio companies. Your core responsibilities will include:

• Improving Operational Systems and Efficiency: Proactively identify opportunities to enhance service delivery and back-office processes, ensuring optimal performance and resource utilization.
• Waste Reduction and Optimization: Oversee service operations to pinpoint and reduce waste across various dimensions, including process steps, information flow, time, and resource allocation.
• Quality Control Design and Implementation: Design and embed robust quality controls directly into service processes to minimize errors, improve consistency, and enhance the overall customer experience.
• Process Design and Planning: Contribute to the strategic design and detailed planning of optimized service delivery processes, ensuring they are efficient, scalable, and client centric.
• Leading Continuous Improvement Initiatives: Spearhead the deployment of best practices by supporting continuous improvement across diverse service processes. This includes optimizing workflow, enhancing information exchange, reducing service lead times, and streamlining administrative functions.
• Project Leadership and Management: Lead, facilitate, execute, and manage complex projects aimed at significantly improving service quality, efficiency, and cost-effectiveness through the implementation of Lean, Six Sigma, and other relevant methodologies.
• Feasibility Studies and Value Analysis: Utilize Lean and Six Sigma tools to conduct thorough feasibility studies and value analyses, ensuring that all proposed improvements in service processes are financially justified and deliver a clear return on investment.
• Collaborative Design and Problem Resolution: Work closely with senior management and other stakeholders to design optimized service processes and effectively resolve any related operational issues that arise.
• Process Documentation and Mapping: Provide expert direction in preparing detailed process maps, value stream maps, and workflow diagrams essential for understanding and improving operational processes within service organizations.
• Cost Reduction without Quality Compromise: Develop innovative methods to reduce operational costs within service environments without sacrificing critical quality standards, ensuring both efficiency and client satisfaction.
• Training and Mentorship: Train teams on incorporating quality checks, balancing workloads, and embracing new, improved processes to enhance service productivity and client satisfaction. Determine root causes for system inefficiencies and failures within service processes, making data-driven recommendations for design changes and processing methodologies.

THIS ROLE REQUIRES 85% TRAVEL (4 DAYS A WEEK)

Essential Skills and Abilities:

• Adaptability and Continuous Learning: A strong ability to adapt to new changes in service delivery models and a commitment to staying abreast of the latest developments in lean and process improvement.
• Problem-Solving Prowess: Exceptional skills in identifying complex problems within service environments and developing quick, effective resolutions.
• Communication Excellence: Strong oral and written communication skills, coupled with excellent presentation and facilitation abilities to effectively convey ideas and drive change.
• Organizational and Implementation Skills: Superior organizational, planning, and implementation skills, enabling successful execution of improvement initiatives.
• Self-Driven and Results-Oriented: A proactive, self-motivated individual with a positive attitude and a demonstrated track record of achieving measurable results.
• Analytical and Interpersonal Skills: Excellent analytical capabilities combined with strong negotiation and conflict management skills.
• Technological Proficiency: High proficiency in computer applications relevant to process improvement and data analysis.

THIS ROLE REQUIRES 85% TRAVEL (4 DAYS A WEEK)

Educational Background and Qualifications:

• Bachelor's Degree: Required in Industrial Engineering, Business Process Management, Operations Management, or a closely related engineering or business discipline.
• Lean & Six Sigma Certification: Lean Black Belt and Six Sigma Black Belt certification strongly preferred.
• Experience: Minimum of 6 years of applicable work experience. This should include a demonstrated working knowledge of Lean/Six Sigma principles applied to service operations or business processes.
• Problem-Solving Methodologies: Familiarity with structured problem-solving methodologies for effective investigation and resolution of issues in service contexts.
• Process Tools Knowledge: Working knowledge of key lean and process improvement tools
• Ability to use statistical analysis software (e.g., Excel, Minitab), proficiency with process modeling software (e.g., Visio, Lucidchart) preferred and proficiency with Microsoft Suite, including Excel, PowerPoint, Word, and Visio.

THIS ROLE REQUIRES 85% TRAVEL (4 DAYS A WEEK)

Tenex Capital Management:

Tenex Capital Management is a private equity firm that invests in middle-market companies. Tenex uses an in-house team of hybrid investment professionals skilled in operational leadership, investing and capital markets structuring to maximize long-term value creation. Tenex’s deep operating experience allows the firm to collaborate with management teams to capitalize on business and market opportunities. Tenex has successfully invested in a diverse range of industries, including industrials, business services, healthcare, building products, and auto aftermarket, among others. Learn more at www.tenexcm.com