Senior Manager, Supplier Development & Continuous Improvement, Global Mobility

Gates Industrial · Rochester Hills, MI

Level: Manager
Team: Lean / CI
Base pay: $160k–$190k
Degree: Required
Experience asked: 15+ years
Industry: Industrial
Posted: 17 days ago

The role in 30 seconds

A management continuous improvement role at Gates Industrial (industrial) in Rochester Hills, MI. You will be responsible for leading the development of new suppliers and the improvement of existing suppliers/products.

They ask for: 15+ years · degree required
Tools it names: Lean, Six Sigma, Kaizen, Root cause, APQP
Base pay: $160k–$190k

Read from the posting. The full description is below.

From the plant jobs report · week of November 2, 2026

Continuous Improvement roles in Michigan: typical posted base $90k–$145k. This one lists $160k–$190k.

Median of the low and high ends of 8 live postings that list pay, out of 22 continuous improvement openings in Michigan, read from manufacturers' own careers sites.

Michigan plant jobs report →Pay by team and state →What moves pay →

How this role compares

Against 21 other live lean / ci postings in Michigan.

Base pay: About 55% above similar roles
Experience asked: More than usual (15+ vs 5+)

Skills these teams ask for most

✓ Lean 95%
✓ Kaizen 64%
✓ Root cause 55%
Value stream mapping 50%
✓ Six Sigma 45%
5S 45%

✓ = this posting asks for it too. % = share of similar postings that mention it.

Stands out: this posting asks for APQP, which few similar roles mention. If you have it, lead with it.

It asks for 15+ years. If you're close, apply anyway: requirements are a wish list. Talk to someone doing this work there first.

At a glance

Training program

Pulled from the posting text. If it's not listed here, the posting didn't say.

How to get in at this plant

Five moves over a week or two. The first one takes ten minutes.

1
Pick 2–3 people on the Lean / CI team at Gates Industrial
Engineers who joined in the last year or two reply the most. Use the team search on this page to find them.
2
Send a short, curious note
One real question about their work. No favors yet. Each person gets a different note, written for this role.
3
Turn a reply into a short call
Questions worth asking about this team:
- What does a normal week look like on your team?
- Is CI run from the plant floor or from a corporate OpEx group?
- Which metrics does leadership actually watch: OEE, scrap, cost per unit?
- How did you land the job? What stood out in your interviews?
4
Apply with someone vouching for you
If the call went well, ask whether they’d pass your résumé to the hiring manager. Send your résumé link, apply that day, and let them know.
5
Bring proof to the interview
One page of before-and-after numbers from projects you led: scrap, OEE, cycle time, cost. Plant managers hire on results.

Full description from Gates IndustrialAs posted on their careers site.Show

requirements

and integrate them into process improvements and initiatives.

✓Apply Lean Principles of waste reduction to projects and ensure tools/processes are in place to ensure gains are sustained. Leads the design and implementation of process improvement strategies with measurable ROI.
✓Helps drive repeated use of Lean Principles for continuous improvement internally as well as externally with customers and suppliers.
✓Oversees the design and delivering of CI training programs to ensure team CI competence development e.g., training team members in the application of appropriate Lean Principles, equipping team members and process owners with CI tools in order to ensure project controls are sustainable, conducting training for employees on Lean Principles and Kaizen events.
✓Interfaces, as necessary, with entire business chain to educate and integrate Lean principles.

Experience

✓Bachelor of Engineering degree from an accredited institution required. MBA or other advance degree a plus.
✓15+ years of experience with 5+ in related supplier development, quality, or CI fields.
✓Experience in managing product development, new product introduction (NPI), and mass production (MP) processes.
✓Considerable experience working with global suppliers in Asia and can adjust quickly to be effective with cultural differences.
✓Broad technical knowledge in materials, part forming (metals, plastics, composites) and assembly processes.
✓Experience sourcing from a global supply base and managing sourcing phases from supplier research, supplier evaluation and selection, negotiations, and supplier onboarding.
✓Proven success working on cross-functional and new product introduction projects, cost models, benchmarking, and negotiations.
✓Familiarity with ERP systems and purchasing/planning functions.

Show full description ↓

Are you inspired by challenging the status quo? Do you thrive in collaborative environments that drive results? If so, Gates could be for you.

Gates is a leading manufacturer of application-specific fluid power and power transmission solutions. We push the boundaries of material science to engineer solutions that continually exceed customer expectations.

Let's simplify it, think belts and hoses. Found in motorcycles, conveyor belts, cars, tractors, blenders, vacuum cleaners, bicycles, & 3D printers just to name a few. Because why not do it all?

Long Description

At Gates, we welcome challenges, celebrate hard work, and continually seek new talent to join our global company. We are looking for a Senior Manager, Supplier Development and Continuous Improvement within our Global Mobility business. Our Mobility business is passionate about personal mobility and reinventing the way the world moves. The Gates Mobility business builds products for bicycles, motorcycles, powersports, and scooters applications. As a product organization leader, you will be responsible for leading the development of new suppliers and the improvement of existing suppliers/products. You will work with corporate and regional product development, quality and procurement teams to ensure enterprise goals are met. Ideally this person is located in the Southeast Asia region with the ability to travel freely to all applicable countries globally. This position will report to the Director of Product Strategy – Mobility. Please review below to see if this might be the right opportunity for you.

Supplier Development

•Lead and build direct and contract supplier development teams in India, China, and Southeast Asia. Develop and oversee suppliers in North America and Europe as necessary.
•Lead comprehensive supplier analysis to formulate a strategic sourcing plan that identifies new/suitable suppliers, optimizes cost structures, and proactively ensures continuity of supply per demand.
•Create sourcing strategies to reduce risk, enable continuous cost reduction, and align with company strategy on terms and conditions, cash targets, on-time delivery, and cost savings.
•Direct and execute initiatives that support aggressive improvements in supplier operations, total cost effectiveness, service levels, delivery, pricing, lead-times, payment, risk compliance, and other areas as identified.
•Develop strong relationships with internal stakeholders to best understand their needs and consult with them to build quality procurement strategies aligned to business requirements.

Product Quality

•Lead and build a product quality team to immediately support regional customers with sustainability of supply, containment, and corrective action in quality incidents.
•Coordinate with engineering and corporate quality organizations to determine cause of rejected material and to drive appropriate changes to ensure elimination/reduction of those quality issues.
•Build genuine relationships both internally, externally, and within cross-functional teams to achieve corrective action consensus.

Continuous Improvement

•Develop and implement a strategic roadmap of CI programs, 80/20, and resulting organization requirements.
•Provides leadership with project schedules and status updates monthly. Maintaining a record of internal KPIs and leverage to generate ideas for future focus areas.
•Facilitates the development, refinement and implementation of Standard Work in partnership with respective process owners and stakeholders. Facilitates cross-functional collaboration to understand business

Skills and Capabilities

•Formal training/education in Lean, 80/20, and CI Principles.
•Demonstrated knowledge of and experience in Root Cause Analysis, Statistical Analysis, APQP and Six Sigma tools and methodologies.
•Demonstrated ability to organize and prioritize in highly dynamic global environment.
•Able to work well under pressure while managing competing demands and tight deadlines.
•Ability to resolve quality issues with urgency, which require flex