Operational and Process Excellence Lead at Roche

The Position

• We are seeking a highly experienced and results-oriented Operational and Process Excellence Lead to join the affiliate leadership team of our Diagnostics Affiliate in Johannesburg. This strategic role will be pivotal in shaping, implementing, and sustaining a culture of operational excellence within the organization. By leveraging industry best practices, continuous improvement methodologies, and your ability to lead diverse teams, you will drive transformation across business-critical processes to deliver significant business value.
• You will work closely with cross-functional stakeholders within the affiliate, regional teams, and global functions, ensuring alignment with the organization's broader strategic objectives. This role holds direct responsibility for a team of professionals whose aim is to deliver process improvements, enhance operational efficiencies, and support large-scale change initiatives.

Key Challenges

Strategic Leadership

• Serve as a critical member of the affiliate leadership team, providing strategic direction on operational and process excellence initiatives.
• Develop and implement an affiliate-wide operational excellence roadmap aligned with the organization's overall business strategy and goals.
• Actively contribute to affiliate strategy discussions by integrating process excellence with organizational objectives.

Operational Excellence & Continuous Improvement

• Lead the design, execution, and governance of affiliate-wide process improvement programs to optimize efficiency, performance, and customer satisfaction.
• Design and implement frameworks, tools, and metrics to monitor and evaluate operational performance.
• Oversee deployment of Lean & Agile or other relevant methodologies to drive continuous improvement.
• Partner with functional and regional leaders to analyze, re-engineer, and optimize key workflows and business processes.
• Drive the adoption of digital tools and technologies to enhance operational agility and performance.

Change Management & Leadership Development

• Be a change ambassador within the affiliate, championing operational excellence and fostering an innovation-driven mindset.
• Establish coaching and training programs to build capabilities in process excellence across all levels of the organization.
• Drive cross-functional alignment to ensure successful adoption of new processes, systems, and tools.

Team Leadership

• Lead, mentor, and develop the Operational and Process Excellence team to deliver high-impact initiatives.
• Foster a collaborative and innovative team culture to enhance individual and collective performance.
• Allocate resources effectively to support strategic projects, ensuring alignment with business priorities.

Performance Management & Reporting

• Develop and maintain key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure success of process improvement initiatives and operational efficiency goals.
• Provide regular reports and data-driven insights to the affiliate leadership team to guide decision-making.
• Act as the key point of contact with regional/global operational excellence forums and input into global best practices.

BBBEE

• Develop sustainable and fit for purpose BBBEE strategy for the organization
• Synchronize and monitor all functions responsible for being compliant with BBBEE
• Provide regular reports and data-driven insights to the affiliate leadership team to guide decision-making.
• Implementation of agreed programs

Who you are as our ideal candidate

• You hold a Bachelor’s degree in Business, Finance, Operations Management, or a related field (Master’s degree preferred).
• You have 10+ years of relevant experience in process excellence, operations, or a related field, with at least 5 years in a strategic leadership role.
• Proven track record of implementing operational excellence frameworks in highly matrixed organizations.
• Strong experience with Lean, Agile and other continuous improvement methodologies.
• Hands-on experience leading large-scale process transformation initiatives.
• Strong experience in BBBEE Management controls and implementation is an asset

Skills & Competencies - 

• Exceptional leadership skills with the ability to influence cross-functional teams and stakeholders at all levels.
• Strong problem-solving and analytical skills, with the ability to derive insights from complex data.
• Excellent communication, presentation, and interpersonal skills to engage stakeholders and inspire teams.
• Deep understanding of digital transformation trends and their implications for operational excellence.
• Capable of thriving in a fast-paced, high-change, and collaborative business environment.