At Corbion, we exist to champion preservation in all its forms, preserving food and food production, health, and our planet.
Our Manufacturing Performance Excellence Leader can be based at one of our factories in Totowa, NJ or Blair, NE. In this role, you will play a hands-on, highly visible role in strengthening operational performance across multiple manufacturing sites in The Americas. You support and coach site leadership teams in deploying Corbion’s DRIVE operating system (Do it Right, Improve Value Every day), translating strategy into daily operational discipline on the shop floor.
The role follows a clearly defined travel rhythm: you typically will spend one full week per one or two months at each of your supported manufacturing sites (including, but not limited to: Totowa, NJ, Blair, NE, Montgomery, AL and Querétaro-Mexico), amounting to approximately 70% travel, domestically and internationally.
Key Responsibilities
Support and coach multiple manufacturing sites in the region in deploying and sustaining the DRIVE operating system, based on TRACC methodology.
Help sites establish and mature the governance between Run & Improve, including daily management routines, effective shift handovers, production and site management meetings.
Drive effective visual performance management by translating global PE standards into practical, site-specific applications.
Act as a facilitator and coach for problem solving, helping sites identify when structured root-cause analysis or loss-and-waste analysis is required and coordinating the right resources.
Build continuous improvement capability by coaching site management teams, local CI/PE managers and operators, and by delivering or supporting training and workshops where needed.
Support sites in preparing and executing annual plans, improvement roadmaps and Cost-to-Value (C2V) initiatives.
Promote operator-led improvement, ownership and engagement on the shop floor, removing barriers that prevent teams from improving their own performance.
Balance short-term operational priorities with long-term capability building, ensuring improvements are sustainable over time.
Act as a key connector between sites and central Performance Excellence teams, ensuring alignment on standards, best practices and learning.
Travel frequently to sites and work closely with local leadership teams to support change, adoption and cultural transformation.
You Bring
A Bachelor’s or Master’s Degree in Engineering, Supply Chain, Business Administration or a related field.
8+ years of experience in a manufacturing environment, with exposure to complex production sites.
Practical experience with Lean, TPM, Continuous Improvement or Performance Excellence concepts (e.g. Lean / Six Sigma; Green Belt level or equivalent).
Demonstrated experience supporting or leading change and culture transformation.
Strong coaching and facilitation skills, with the ability to influence site managers and leadership teams without formal authority.
The ability to operate at both strategic and shop-floor level: comfortable on the production floor, but focused on process, governance and people rather than technical detail.
A collaborative, open and resilient personality, able to challenge leaders constructively and build trust across levels and functions.
Willingness and flexibility to travel extensively (up to ~70%), including frequent international travel.
Strong communication skills in English and preferably Spanish.
You are based in the USA at one of our factories in Totowa, NJ or Blair, NE.
The Possibilities
A key role in shaping how Corbion manufacturing sites operate today and in the future.
High exposure to site leadership and central teams, with the opportunity to influence performance, culture and ways of working at scale.
The chance to build and leave a lasting legacy through capability development and sustainable improvement.
A dynamic, international working environment with significant autonomy and trust.
Clear opportunities for long-term growth within operations, supply chain or broader leadership roles at Corbion.
About Corbion
Corbion is a sustainable ingredients company dedicated to preserving what matters, including food and food production, health, and the planet. We specialize in lactic acid, lactic acid derivatives, food preservation solutions, functional blends, and algae ingredients, using our deep application and product knowledge to propel nature’s ingenuity through science. With more than a century of experience, we continue working side-by-side with our customers to make our cutting-edge technologies work for them. Leveraging our advanced capabilities in fermentation and preservation technology, we help customers differentiate their products in diverse markets ranging from food and animal nutrition to home & personal care, pharmaceuticals, electronics, medical devices, and bioplastics. In 2025, Corbion generated annual sales of € 1,267.4 million with a workforce of 2,408 FTEs. Corbion is listed on Euronext Amsterdam. For more information: www.corbion.com
Corbion is an equal opportunity employer and committed to a diverse workplace. All applicants will be considered equally without regard to race, color, ethnicity, veteran status, religion, national origin, marital status, political affiliation, age, sex, sexual orientation, handicapping condition, membership in an organization or any other non-merit factors.
Corbion provides reasonable accommodation to applicants.
EOE/M/F/Vet/Disabled
Corbion does not accept unsolicited resumes from individual recruiters or third party recruiting agencies in response to job postings. No fee will be paid to third parties who submit unsolicited candidates directly to our hiring managers. All candidates must be submitted by approved Corbion vendors who have been expressly requested to make a submission by our Talent Acquisition team for a specific job opening. No placement fees will be paid to any firm unless such a request has been made by the Corbion Talent Acquisition team and such candidate was submitted to the Corbion Talent Acquisition Team.
