Process Excellence Manager

Consumers Energy is Michigan’s largest energy provider, providing natural gas and/or electricity to 6.8 million of the state’s 10 million residents in all 68 Lower Peninsula counties. Consumers Energy knows job number one is to keep the lights on for customers. We are committed to delivering reliable, clean, and affordable energy to our customers 24/7.  

This position is not eligible for immigration sponsorship, e.g., H-1B, TN, etc. Please do not apply if you will need immigration sponsorship for a work visa now or in the future, including sponsorship for H-1B, TN, etc., now or in the future. We are unable to hire individuals with CPT, OPT, or STEM OPT for this position as the position is not eligible for participation in the H-1B lottery program and is not eligible for current or future immigration sponsorship for a work visa.

Location

This is a hybrid (virtual/onsite) position with required onsite days on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday and may be assigned to any Consumers Energy Service Center or Headquarters located in Jackson, MI.  The selected candidate must be within a commutable distance or willing to relocate (relocation package is available for those that qualify). 

This posting is to fill six open positions.

General Summary of Job Responsibilities

The Process Excellence Manager will be responsible for driving and deploying the lean operating system in cross-functional, highly complex, critical company goals. The role will lead workshops, integrate Lean methodologies, present outcomes to executive leadership and be an integral member of an established team that will drive continuous improvement towards our strategic growth outlook.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

• Roadmap: Responsible for the ownership, maintenance, and execution of the Accelerator CE Way Roadmap. This includes ensuring the roadmap is up to date, aligns with our current goals, and is effectively communicated across the organization.
• Playbook: Own revamping and overhauling the CE Way Playbook. This will involve integrating insights from our current operating system and aligning it with our future roadmap aspirations. The goal is to create a comprehensive and dynamic playbook that supports our evolving needs and strategies.
• Training: Own and partner directly with the Learning & Development (L&D) team to develop a CE Way training curriculum. This will involve understanding the content and curriculum our co-workers need, ensuring it aligns with the CE Way roadmap, and meets the needs of our operating system.
• Collaborate closely with cross-functional teams—including Operations, Engineering, Safety, Customer Experience, and Regulatory—to integrate best practices and benchmarking insights into daily operations.
• Lead and support the design, development, and deployment of the lean operating system, leveraging insights from the Rally Room, as well as best practices and benchmarking data.
• Work with key stakeholders across the enterprise to guide change management strategies and support the adoption of new procedures, policies, or processes.
• Analyze process gaps and inefficiencies related to complex, high-level organizational goals, driving improvements and fostering a culture of continuous learning and growth.
• Utilize data analysis to identify focus areas for process enhancements, incorporating digital solutions to drive performance improvements.
• Facilitate cross-functional collaboration to ensure alignment on common objectives, emphasizing shared business goals and engaging leadership across the organization.
• Prepare, lead, and present key metrics and results to executive leadership.
• Identify, evaluate, and implement industry best practices to enhance operational efficiency, safety, and performance. Actively engage in industry programs and collaborate with peer utilities and vendors to discover and develop new opportunities. Conduct comprehensive research to identify industry leaders, best practices, and emerging trends, utilizing sources such as industry reports, case studies, market research, and competitor analyses.
• Perform other duties as assigned or as necessary.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

• Demonstrated ability to apply Lean tools, ensuring their use is evident in all workshops and process visualizations.
• Strong communication skills to effectively engage with leaders at all organizational levels.
• Proven capability to influence stakeholders throughout the organization, securing buy-in and fostering strong relationships across the enterprise.
• Ability to view individual processes as essential parts of a broader enterprise-wide system.
• Flexibility to adjust priorities based on dynamic business needs.
• Skill in objectively evaluating and interpreting data by questioning assumptions, identifying biases, and making logical connections to derive meaningful insights.
• Demonstrated capacity to work independently, establishing methods and procedures for new tasks with minimal supervision.
• Extensive experience in change management and project oversight.
• Excellent presentation skills.
• Strong analytical abilities to assess performance data and uncover opportunities for improvement.

Education and Experience

• Bachelor's degree in engineering, business administration, or a related field with a minimum of seven (7) years of experience with project management, lean tools, data analysis, and metrics.
• (OR) Associate’s degree in engineering, business administration, or a related field with a minimum of nine (9) years of experience with project management, lean tools, data analysis, and metrics.
• (OR) High school diploma with a minimum of eleven (11) years of experience with project management, lean tools, data analysis, and metrics.

#LI-JH1

Why should you join our team?

At Consumers Energy, we offer more than just a place to work. We foster a culture that supports career development, growth, and stability, and we take pride in offering our co-workers excellent benefits and compensation packages. We are deliberately creating an inclusive culture that makes our diverse team of co-workers feel valued, supported, and empowered every day. We're a company made up of thousands of people, all with different stories to share and work to do, but we stand united in our company purpose: world class performance delivering hometown service.

What we offer:

• Competitive compensation packages
• Medical, Dental and Vision
• 401k with company match
• Paid parental leave
• Up to 13 paid Holidays
• Paid time off
• Educational Assistance Program

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion: 

We, at CMS Energy, value Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion. It is part of our DNA. We treat our employees with respect, we treat each other fairly and we value the opinions of others. We are passionate about building and nurturing an environment where everyone feels included. We don’t discriminate. We seek to learn about each other and better understand our unique differences. Our uniqueness makes us authentic. We create safe spaces where everyone can be who they truly are. We invite difficult conversations and uncomfortable topics. We value diverse perspectives; this is what makes us great together. We harbor an inclusive environment where employees feel empowered to share their backgrounds, experiences, and ideas. Our Employee Resource Groups, Women in Energy (WE), Minority Advisory Panel (MAP), Pride Alliance of Consumers Energy (PACE), GENERGY, capABLE, Interfaith and Veterans Advisory Panel (VAP) are key enablers to living the values of our company culture: Caring, Empowered, Deliberate, Agility, and Ownership.

All qualified applicants will not be discriminated against and will receive consideration for employment without regard to protected veteran status, disability, race, color, religion, sex, age, sexual orientation, gender identity or national origin.