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Manufacturing Excellence Manager

Location: 

Takasaki, JP, 370-1202

At Barry Callebaut, we are on a journey to transform the cocoa and chocolate industry. As the world’s leading manufacturer of high-quality chocolate and cocoa products, our actions truly shape the future of our industry. We are a business-to-business company, serving the entire food sector, from the cocoa bean to the finest chocolate product. We are a company with a purpose, we believe in doing well by doing good and reinvesting in the communities we operate. We have a long-standing commitment to sustainability and our goal is to shape a sustainable cocoa and chocolate future. We are headquartered in Zurich, and have more than 12,000 passionate Employees working in more than 40 countries worldwide. We are very proud of who we are and what we do. And of course, we are always looking for talented people to help us have a positive impact on our industry and beyond!

Manufacturing Excellence Site Manager

About the Role

Barry Callebaut is seeking a Manufacturing Excellence Site Manager to lead the continuous improvement and operational excellence journey at our Takasaki manufacturing site in Japan.

This role will partner closely with the Plant Manager and site leadership team to strengthen manufacturing capabilities, improve operational performance, and build a culture focused on safety, quality, productivity, and sustainability. The successful candidate will drive the implementation of continuous improvement methodologies, support digital transformation initiatives, and ensure alignment with regional and global operational excellence strategies.

The position offers an exciting opportunity to influence site-wide performance, develop organizational capabilities, and play a key role in delivering world-class manufacturing results.

Key Responsibilities Include

  • Lead and coordinate continuous improvement and operational excellence initiatives across the manufacturing site.
  • Support site leadership in developing a culture focused on loss elimination, problem solving, and continuous improvement.
  • Facilitate target setting, performance management, and strategy deployment activities.
  • Drive root cause analysis and corrective action processes to improve site performance.
  • Coordinate KPI reviews and ensure timely reporting of operational performance metrics.
  • Identify productivity improvement opportunities and support implementation of improvement projects.
  • Coach and develop leaders and cross-functional teams in continuous improvement methodologies and best practices.
  • Support implementation and adoption of digital manufacturing and Industry 4.0 solutions.
  • Conduct regular operational excellence assessments and develop action plans to address identified gaps.
  • Promote internal and external benchmarking activities to identify best practices and improvement opportunities.
  • Collaborate with regional and global operational excellence teams to ensure alignment with company standards and strategic objectives.
  • Support delivery of site goals related to safety, quality, delivery, cost, people engagement, and sustainability.

About You

  • Bachelor's or Master's degree in Engineering, Industrial Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Food Engineering, or a related discipline.
  • Demonstrated experience in Manufacturing, Operations, Engineering, Supply Chain, Continuous Improvement, or Operational Excellence roles.
  • Strong knowledge of Lean Manufacturing, TPM, Operational Excellence, Continuous Improvement, or equivalent methodologies.
  • Experience leading cross-functional projects and organizational change initiatives.
  • Proven ability to analyze complex operational challenges and implement sustainable solutions.
  • Strong communication, coaching, stakeholder management, and leadership skills.
  • Experience working within multicultural and international business environments.
  • Advanced English communication skills, both written and verbal.
  • Ability to influence and lead without direct authority.
  • Results-driven mindset with strong project management and execution capabilities.
  • Experience with manufacturing systems, ERP platforms, data analysis tools, and digital transformation initiatives is highly desirable.

Additional Information

Location: Takasaki, Gunma, Japan

Work Arrangement: Primarily site-based

Travel Requirement: Occasional domestic and international travel for benchmarking, training, and regional meetings

At Barry Callebaut, we are committed to Diversity & Inclusion. United by our strong values, we thrive on the diversity of who we are, where we come from, what we’ve experienced and how we think. We are committed to nurturing an inclusive environment where people can truly be themselves, grow to their full potential and feel they belong. #oneBC - Diverse People, Sustainable Growth.

If you want to learn more about Barry Callebaut, please find further information here.

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