Lead - Process Excellence

About Banyan Nation

Banyan Nation is India's most trusted plastic recycler, recognized for pioneering a circular economy for plastics. Headquartered in Hyderabad, we are a leading player in the FMCG bottle-to-bottle recycling industry. In the last three years alone, we have enabled the manufacturing of over 2 billion sustainable bottles.

We believe in ethical sourcing and ensuring that every bottle we recycle is traceable for years. Additionally, our integration of 10000+ informal waste collectors into formal value chains reflects our commitment to social responsibility.

Here's our video to know more: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AXCjo1iWIL8

Our Top Clients:

- Hindustan Unilever Limited

- Shell, HPCL, IOCL

- Valvoline

- Reckitt

- ITC Limited

- Godrej

Position Overview:

Banyan Nation is implementing a Gemba-based Process Excellence system covering Daily Management, OEE, and a three-tier maintenance framework comprising Autonomous, Preventive, and Predictive Maintenance, in partnership with an external Process Excellence partner.

The Lead - Process Excellence will be the internal owner responsible for implementing, integrating, and sustaining these systems across the plant. The role will drive operational excellence across the end-to-end value stream, from bale intake, sorting, washing, and extrusion through quality, packing, and dispatch.

The role will work closely with plant leadership, functional teams, operators, and the external partner to establish standardized operating practices, performance management routines, structured problem-solving, and continuous improvement mechanisms, ensuring that these systems become embedded in the plant's daily way of working and remain sustainable beyond the external consulting engagement.

Lead - Process Excellence

Function

Process Excellence Level

Lead Location

Hyderabad, with regular travel to Bangalore, Karnataka

Openings

1 Position Reports To

Co-Founder & COO Type

Full-time

WHAT YOU'LL OWN

End-to-End Value Stream Ownership

- Own and drive continuous improvement across the end-to-end value stream, covering bale intake, sorting, washing, extrusion, quality, packing, and dispatch.

- Identify process constraints, eliminate waste, and improve flow, productivity, and overall value-stream performance.

OEE & Loss Accounting

- Establish and maintain a standardized OEE framework based on Availability Performance Quality, with clear definitions, data integrity, and monthly reconciliation with production and financial MIS.

TPM & Maintenance Systems

- Drive Autonomous Maintenance with operators, strengthen Preventive Maintenance discipline, and progressively build Predictive Maintenance capabilities.

- Lead breakdown analysis and improvement initiatives using MTBF, MTTR, and root-cause analysis to reduce equipment downtime and recurrence.

Daily Management System

- Establish and sustain tiered daily management meetings, SQDC boards, standard work, 5S, visual management, and structured escalation mechanisms across the plant.

Structured Problem-Solving & Kaizen

- Drive structured problem-solving using A3, 8D, and DMAIC methodologies, supported by a robust Kaizen pipeline with improvement benefits tracked and savings validated by Finance.

Changeover, Yield & Energy

- Drive changeover reduction using SMED, improve material yield, strengthen loss accounting across each process stage, and optimize energy consumption per tonne.

Capability Building

- Build Lean and TPM capabilities among supervisors and operators and develop internal Kaizen leaders to sustain continuous improvement practices.

Greenfield Readiness

- Standardize and deploy the Process Excellence playbook to support commissioning and operational readiness of the new plant.

WHAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR

Must-Have

Qualifications

- Education - B.E. / B. Tech in Mechanical, Industrial, Production, Chemical or Polymer Engineering, or an equivalent engineering degree. A postgraduate qualification in Operations or Industrial Engineering is an advantage.

- Experience - 6-12 years in manufacturing, including at least 3-4 years of hands-on experience leading Lean, TPM or Operational Excellence initiatives on the shop floor in continuous-process or high-throughput environments such as plastics, packaging, chemicals, FMCG, automotive components, textiles, paper or metals.

- Certification - Lean Six Sigma Green Belt at minimum (Black Belt preferred), or formal TPM training (for example, a CII or JIPM-recognised TPM programme), backed by demonstrated improvement results.

- Proven Results - Before-and-after data for improvements you personally led, with the baseline, the result, the period and how the benefit was measured.

Technical Skills

- Hands-on application of Lean / TPS methodologies in a manufacturing environment, with demonstrated implementation on the shop floor.

- Strong expertise in OEE, loss accounting, and structured problem-solving methodologies, including A3, 8D, and DMAIC.

- Strong understanding of TPM, including Autonomous Maintenance, Preventive Maintenance, and breakdown analysis using MTBF and MTTR.

- Hands-on experience in SMED and changeover reduction initiatives.

Functional Skills

- Experience implementing and sustaining daily management systems, including tiered meetings, SQDC boards, standard work, 5S, visual management, and escalation mechanisms.

- Experience managing Kaizen pipelines and tracking improvement benefits with financial validation.

- Demonstrated capability-building experience, including training supervisors and operators and developing internal Kaizen leaders.

- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to independently build and interpret Excel-based performance and improvement models.

Nice-to-Have

- Experience working in a Toyota Production System (TPS) environment.

- Experience supporting or leading a plant through a structured TPM implementation or TPM award journey.

- Hands-on experience with extrusion, washing, recycling, or similar process manufacturing operations.

- Exposure to digital OEE platforms, IoT-enabled machine monitoring, or manufacturing analytics systems.

THE MINDSET WE HIRE FOR

- Ownership & Bias for Action - Takes end-to-end ownership, follows through on commitments, and drives initiatives to closure with minimal supervision.

- Shop-Floor Orientation - Maintains a strong shop-floor presence and uses data, facts, and direct observation to identify and resolve operational issues.

- Influence Without Authority - Effectively influences cross-functional stakeholders and drives adoption of new ways of working without relying solely on formal reporting relationships.

- Grit & Resilience - Demonstrates persistence in addressing complex operational challenges and takes accountability for both outcomes and setbacks.

- Integrity & Safety - Maintains data integrity and safety standards, ensuring that operational performance is reported accurately and that safety is never compromised for productivity.

- Learning Speed - Learns new processes and domains quickly, stays curious and teaches themselves new tools and methods.

WHAT WE OFFER

- Direct access to the COO and end-to-end ownership of the Process Excellence function.

- An opportunity to establish and scale Process Excellence systems as part of a new plant's operational foundation.

- The opportunity to deliver measurable improvements in productivity, cost, yield, and safety.

- Competitive compensation aligned with experience and impact.