Lean Subject Matter Expert ( 2 years contract)

Key Responsibilities

• Lean & Productivity – Strategy Implementation
• Lead high value improvement initiatives that reduce TAT, boost productivity, and remove waste, acting as a hands on driver of operational change.
• Conduct deep dive process diagnostics, root cause analysis, and structured problem solving to identify issues and design practical, implementable solutions.
• Conduct regular Gemba walks and end to end productivity assessments to identify bottlenecks, quantify capacity gaps, and recommend targeted efficiency improvements
• Facilitate Kaizen events, advanced root cause analysis, and digital enabled problem solving sessions to unlock sustainable performance gains.
• Lean Capability Development & Operating Model
• Deploy and sustain daily huddles, visual management, tiered escalation, and standard work to strengthen real time performance management.
• Track and report benefits including capacity release, cost savings, service improvements, and waste reduction to ensure transparency and accountability.
• Work directly with business teams to implement changes, remove barriers, and embed improvements into daily operations.
• Coach leaders and frontline teams, deliver training, and build Lean skills that enable continuous improvement and organizational self-sufficiency.
• Develop and maintain SOPs, process maps, and governance frameworks to lock in new ways of working and support scale up
• Technology Enablement – Lean Digital
• Integrate digital tools, automation, dashboards, and workflow systems into Lean routines to enhance visibility, decision making, and operational control.
• Architect and deploy elements of the Lean Digital Core, including process mining insights, digital huddles, automated KPI reporting, and workflow automation.
• Digitize value stream maps and integrate data flows to enable real time visibility, faster decision making, and scalable improvement. decision-making
• Stakeholder Engagement & Change Management
• Act as a frontline change agent, influencing behaviours, driving adoption of new ways of working, and ensuring long term sustainability of improvements
• Lead change management efforts, ensuring successful adoption of process improvements and governance mechanisms
• Strengthen leadership capability by embedding Lean principles, disciplined problem solving, and a culture of continuous improvement and accountability
• Collaborate with C-level executives and business leaders to embed a process-centric culture within the organization
• Facilitate cross-functional collaboration to break down process silos and drive enterprise-wide integration & alignment
• Performance Measurement & Value Realization
• Define key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure process effectiveness, cost-to-serve and business value/impact
• Develop and track process maturity models to assess and enhance organizational process capabilities
• Use productivity, throughput, SLA, rework, and cost to serve data to diagnose performance gaps and validate improvement impact

Role Objectives and Key Results

• Deliver enterprise level productivity, efficiency, and TAT improvements across priority value streams
• Achieve % reduction in end-to-end TAT across top enterprise value streams.
• Improve productivity (output per FTE or equivalent) % across targeted functions.
• Identify and deliver validated capacity release opportunities, with % implemented and sustained.
• Reduce waste and non-value-added activities by X%, validated through Gemba based diagnostics and data analysis.
• Improve cost to serve or operational cost efficiency by % for priority areas
• Strengthen the enterprise performance operating model and embed disciplined daily workforce management
• Deploy daily huddles, tiered escalation, and visual management across 100% of targeted functions.
• Improve SLA adherence and throughput stability % through real time performance routines.
• Achieve % compliance with standard work, SOPs, and updated process controls.
• Reduce rework, defects, or process variation % across redesigned processes
• Build senior leadership capability and elevate Lean maturity across the organization
• Coach senior leaders and frontline leaders to adopt Lean leadership behaviors and structured problem solving.
• Conduct X strategic Gemba walks with leadership per quarter, with documented insights and action follow through.
• Improve Lean maturity scores by X levels across priority functions.
• Certify X Lean Practitioners structured capability building pathways
• Drive digital Lean enablement to enhance visibility, automation, and decision making
• Deploy digital huddles, automated KPI dashboards, and workflow tools across the organization.
• Digitize 100% of value stream maps for priority processes, enabling real time visibility and decision support.
• Implement process mining insights to identify improvement opportunities and validate impact.
• Launch digital A3/problem solving boards with X% adoption across targeted teams.
• Reduce manual reporting effort by % through automation and digital performance routines
• Ensure sustainability of improvements and drive organization wide adoption of new ways of working
• Achieve % adoption of new processes, digital tools, and performance routines within 90 days of rollout.
• Maintain performance sustainability by %
• Complete structured change readiness and sustainability assessments for 100% of major transformation initiatives.
• Achieve % positive feedback from teams and leaders on clarity, support, and effectiveness of Lean interventions

Experience and Qualifications

• Educational Qualifications:
• Bachelor’s degree in business administration, Process Management, Engineering, or a related field
• Experience:
• 8 to 10 years of extensive experience leading enterprise-wide Lean transformations, operational excellence programs, or large-scale productivity improvement initiatives in complex, multi-function environments.
• Professional certifications such as Lean Practitioner, Lean Coach, Lean Six Sigma Green Belt or Black Belt, Agile/Scrum certifications, and PMP or equivalent project management exposure are highly advantageous
• Experience in regulated industries (healthcare, insurance, financial services) preferred
• Certifications:
• Certified Lean Six Sigma Black Belt or Master Black Belt preferred
• Certification in BPM platforms or process / task mining tools advantageous

Skills and Competencies

• Core Competencies
• Operational Excellence – Deep expertise in Lean methodologies, value stream management, Kaizen, root cause analysis, structured problem solving, and performance operating model deployment.
• Performance Management – Demonstrated success delivering measurable improvements in productivity, TAT, cost, service quality, and operational stability through hands on project execution.
• Deep-dive Analysis & Insights – Strong capability in conducting Gemba walks, operational diagnostics, and end to end process assessments to identify bottlenecks, quantify capacity gaps, and recommend targeted efficiency improvements.
• Operating Model – Proven experience designing and embedding daily management systems, visual management, tiered huddles, and standard work across frontline and leadership levels.
• Capability Development – Skilled in coaching senior leaders and frontline teams to build Lean capability, strengthen operational discipline, and embed continuous improvement behaviors.
• Data-Driven Decision Making – Strong analytical capability with experience using operational data (productivity, throughput, SLA, rework, cost to serve) to diagnose performance gaps and validate improvement impact.
• Process Transformation – Hands on experience implementing digital Lean tools, workflow automation, dashboards, process mining insights, and digital performance routines.
• Lean Digital – Experience architecting or contributing to Lean Digital Core components such as digital huddles, automated KPI reporting, digital A3s, and digital value stream management.
• Change Management – Strong change leadership skills with the ability to influence behaviors, drive adoption, and sustain new ways of working across diverse teams.
• Stakeholder Engagement – Ability to influence senior executives and drive cultural transformation
• Collaboration – Break silos, partner cross-functionally
• Agility – Adapt in a fast-paced insurance environment.
• Technical Skills
• Lean Tools – VSM, 5S, Kanban, A3, Standard Work
• Insurance Knowledge – Core processes (preferred)
• Process Mining & Intelligence Tools (e.g., Mindzie, Celonis)
• Methodologies – Lean Coach, Lean Practitioner, Lean Six Sigma (Black Belt preferred)
• Strong knowledge of RPA & workflow automation solutions
• Data Visualization & reporting Tools (Power BI, Tableau)
• Expertise in BPM platforms (e.g., Mega HOPEX, Signavio, ARIS)