Continuous Improvement Managers

Managers typically need at least three years of experience in continuous improvement, operations management, or logistics.

Communication and interpersonal skills are extremely important in this profession. Continuous improvement managers must be able to interact with people at various levels of the organization (from CEOs, to department managers, to production line workers), and they need strong writing skills in order to prepare reports and presentations. Other important traits include creativity; the ability to facilitate and motivate teams; good project management, problem-solving, and organizational skills; a detail-oriented and data-driven personality; skill at seeing the “Big Picture,” and the ability to learn new concepts. Finally, CIMs should have experience with statistical tools such as Minitab, Microsoft Office applications (Excel, PowerPoint, and Word), process mapping tools such as Visio and SmartDraw, and reporting tools and dashboards such as Tableau and Domo.