As the Operational Excellence & Consulting Principal, you will work alongside cross-functional teams to significantly improve business models and end-to-end processes that start and end with the customer. During an engagement, you will successfully lead activities that diagnose issues, design solutions, help the business implement the solutions and support measuring the business outcomes. In addition to leading a variety of reengineering activities, you will also act as a change agent to ensure solutions are implemented and expected business results are achieved. This individual must have strong leadership, problem solving and communication skills.

Primary responsibilities include:

Continuous Improvement & Process Reengineering Execution

• Successfully lead teams through all phases of complex, cross functional improvement initiatives using Lean, Six Sigma, Reengineering or similar business transformation methodologies.
• Lead high impact diagnostic engagements to evaluate current-state processes, performance gaps, and improvement opportunities.
• Champion a structured approach to problem solving, root cause analysis, and process redesign.
• Establish, monitor, and report measurable KPIs, ensuring improvement initiatives deliver sustainable outcomes.

Strategic Leadership & Executive Partnership

• Serve as a trusted advisor to senior leaders, assessing business challenges and identifying opportunities for operational excellence.
• Demonstrate the ability to develop, scope and oversee complex engagements that deliver meaningful results and realized business value.
• Present findings, recommendations, and business cases to executive stakeholders with clarity and influence.

Program Management & Governance

• Oversee project pipelines, prioritization processes, and execution governance to align with enterprise strategy.
• Identify and mitigate risks, remove barriers, and ensure initiatives remain on time, on budget, and on scope.
• Develop and deliver executive ready reporting, insights, and updates

Operational Excellence Framework Development

• Advance the organization’s maturity in continuous improvement by developing standards, toolkits, and best practices.
• Drive adoption of operational excellence principles across business units through coaching, training, and structured change management.
• Stay abreast of the latest trends and best practices within the operational excellence practice and across other companies and industries

Qualifications, Education, Certifications and/or Other Professional Credentials

• Required Qualifications
  • Education: A BS/BA is required (science/engineering preferred); A Master’s degree or equivalent experience is required in operations or process reengineering.
  • Experience: You have 7-10 years of experience in operational improvement, financial services, banking and/or consulting with a record of accomplishment of leading cross-business, cross-function initiatives that resulted in significant value-add.
• Preferred Qualifications
  • Process Transformation: You demonstrate a breadth and depth of knowledge in operational improvement frameworks, methodologies, and toolkits; experience with Lean, Six Sigma, Hammer Process Reengineering, Change Management and Organizational Design.
  • Strategic Thinking: You can link strategy to execution and have experience in taking risks and learning from failures.

  • Leadership: You are a self-starter and can challenge the status quo, take risks, envision the future, enable, empower, and motivate others.

  • Problem Solving: You are comfortable with ambiguity and can understand complex problems; can identify, analyze, synthesize, and resolve critical business issues; can offer creative insights that result in practical solutions and significant value-add.

  • Communication You are a strong communicator and comfortable speaking with and presenting to senior leadership using a variety of tools, strategies, and media that foster transparency, collaboration and most importantly, trust.

  • Change Management: You can independently influence others using a variety of tactics. You can develop and maintain relationships that are comfortable facing adversity and addressing conflict. You can empower others to turn ideas into business results by utilizing standard programs and project management tools.

  • Facilitation: You are an expert who is able to lead process improvement sessions that document current and future state processes and identify issues and pain points.

Hours & Work Schedule

• Hours per Week: 40 hours
• Work Schedule: Hybrid model (4 days in office/1 day remote)

The salary range for this position is $140,000- $160,000 per year, plus an opportunity to earn an annual discretionary bonus. Actual pay is based on various factors including but not limited to the work location, and relevant skills and experience.

We offer competitive pay, comprehensive medical, dental and vision coverage, retirement benefits, maternity/paternity leave, flexible work arrangements, education reimbursement, wellness programs and more. Note, Citizens’ paid time off policy exceeds the mandatory, paid sick or paid time-away policy of every local and state jurisdiction in the United States. For an overview of our benefits, visit https://jobs.citizensbank.com/benefits .

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Citizens, its parent, subsidiaries, and related companies (Citizens) provide equal employment and advancement opportunities to all colleagues and applicants for employment without regard to age, ancestry, color, citizenship, physical or mental disability, perceived disability or history or record of a disability, ethnicity, gender, gender identity or expression, genetic information, genetic characteristic, marital or domestic partner status, victim of domestic violence, family status/parenthood, medical condition, military or veteran status, national origin, pregnancy/childbirth/lactation, colleague’s or a dependent’s reproductive health decision making, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, or any other category protected by federal, state and/or local laws. At Citizens, we are committed to fostering an inclusive culture that enables all colleagues to bring their best selves to work every day and everyone is expected to be treated with respect and professionalism. Employment decisions are based solely on merit, qualifications, performance and capability.

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