POSITION OVERVIEWThe
Productivity Program Manager - Value Office drives productivity and value creation initiatives across Ascend's operations. The role is responsible for leading the productivity management system required to deliver year-over-year cost reduction commitments, including opportunity generation, project governance, execution support, and value realization across operations and support functions. This position requires a collaborative leader who can influence cross-functional teams, connect operational improvements to financial outcomes, and drive disciplined execution in a fast-paced environment.
TARGETED OUTCOMES- Build and sustain a productivity pipeline capable of supporting annual and future-year cost reduction targets.
- Drive recurring ideation efforts that generate measurable operational and financial improvements.
- Improve execution discipline and project governance using Ascend's recognition and continuous improvement processes.
- Deliver sustainable productivity improvements tied to operational efficiency, margin enhancement, and cost reduction.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIESProductivity and Program Leadership
- Drive productivity initiatives across our manufacturing facilities.
- Lead recurring ideation sessions to maintain a healthy pipeline of productivity opportunities.
- Coordinate the full productivity lifecycle from ideation through value realization.
- Partner with site and functional leaders to prioritize initiatives based on operational impact, financial value, feasibility, and strategic alignment.
- Ensure projects are properly chartered, resourced, governed, and executed using standardized continuous improvement methodologies.
Financial and Operational Alignment
- Perform initial financial evaluations of productivity opportunities using operational assumptions and projected value realization.
- Partner with finance teams to validate project assumptions, savings methodologies, and financial thresholds.
- Monitor pipeline health, project execution status, savings delivery, and sustainability of results.
- Support development of KPI dashboards and tracking systems that connect operational performance to financial outcomes.
Cross-Functional Collaboration
- Partner with operations, engineering, quality, procurement, logistics, supply chain, technology, and finance teams to remove execution barriers.
- Facilitate cross-functional communication and governance to improve accountability and decision-making.
- Drive a culture of continuous improvement, operational discipline, and value creation
Team and Interactions- Reports to: Director, Value Office
- Works closely with operations, production engineering, technology, quality, procurement, logistics, supply chain, finance, and site leadership teams.
LOCATIONPensacola, Florida or Decatur, Alabama
REQUIRED EXPERIENCE- Bachelor's degree in engineering, business, supply chain, or related discipline required.
- Minimum 5 years of experience in manufacturing, operations, operational excellence, productivity leadership, or business transformation roles within industrial or chemical manufacturing environments.
- Experience leading cross-functional productivity, continuous improvement, or cost reduction initiatives in complex manufacturing organizations.
- Strong understanding of manufacturing operations, operational cost drivers, and productivity management systems.
- Experience driving initiatives through structured governance, stage-gate, Lean, Six Sigma, or DMAIC methodologies.
- Experience working across matrixed organizations and influencing teams without direct authority.
- Demonstrated ability to connect operational initiatives to financial outcomes and realized business value.
REQUIRED SKILLS- Strong program and project management capabilities.
- Process discipline with strong execution and organizational skills.
- Ability to simplify complex operational challenges into actionable plans and measurable results.
- Strong analytical and problem-solving capabilities.
- Effective communication, facilitation, and stakeholder management skills.
- Ability to drive accountability and alignment across cross-functional teams.
- High level of initiative, ownership, and adaptability in fast-paced manufacturing environments.
- Proficiency with SAP, Microsoft Office Suite, business intelligence tools, productivity tracking systems, and AI-enabled tools.
At Ascend Performance Materials, we value transparency and fairness in our hiring process. We do not accept unsolicited resumes from third-party recruiters, search firms, or staffing agencies. Any resumes received from such entities will be considered the property of Ascend Performance Materials, and we will not be obligated to pay any fees for such submissions. Our Talent Acquisition Team actively engages with preferred recruitment partners who have established agreements with us. We encourage all interested candidates to apply directly through our official channels to be considered for any open positions. 
