Principal Systems Engineer - Cedar Rapids Plant

OVERVIEW

The Principal System Engineer provides technical leadership and serves as a system and product specialist. They are responsible for building the team's packaging and processing technical skills through a hands-on approach. They are accountable for the operational foundational systems across their system, plant, and business platform to secure basic conditions and drive out losses. The System Engineer plays a critical role to continuously improve by optimizing system performance and product quality while driving strategic productivity and capacity solutions for the platform and ultimately the business. They are the system, product, and process expert for their peers and business team.

Performing at this level will have accountability for the Center of Excellence, Community of Practice, or similar for a technology, tool, etc. The role will work beyond the site and may include partnering with Innovation, Technology & Quality (ITQ), Corporate Engineering functions, External Supply Chain (ESC), and business for strategic future technologies, improvements, investments, or transformations. This role leverages skills across local and network levels, either plant-focused with network responsibilities or corporate-based, focused on key business platforms. A significant portion of time (25%) supports broader technical needs while maintaining strong local plant connections. This role provides platform expertise and leadership, expanding beyond the home facility to collaborate with business and plant leaders on key metrics (Spring Plan, CPC, etc.) and improvement deliverables (Growth, HMM, Flexibility, etc.). The role includes mentoring and developing team members and assessing System Engineering (SE) talent.

To learn more about our Cedar Rapids plant and the surrounding area, CLICK HERE!

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES:

Safety:

• • Lead food and human safety through Safety 2.0 leadership principles and standards.
    • Cultivate Human Safety Culture that reduces risk to our people and communities by increasing capability to proactively discuss, identify and control risk.
    • Cultivate Food Safety Culture that is committed to manufacturingsafe food that iscompliant with policyand regulatory requirements.

People Leadership & Capability Building:

• • Coaching to build capability of others within and outside the plant through loss elimination tasks to improve system and equipment reliability.
    
  • Actively contribute to connections and networking across platforms on SE Calls, O&T calls, SEAT membership, connections with SCD program, etc.
    
  • Regularly guide and develop SEs, Maintenance, Project Engineers, Operations Leaders and other peers at the site.
    
  • Actively assess and support SE talent. Be the lead resource for site and platform wide initiatives by plant operations, finance, corporate engineering, R&D and business teams

Process Leadership and Ownership:

• • Driving System Utilization:
    • Responsible to facilitate and coach execution of Loss Tree and Glidepath efforts, building skills of the broader site team around glidepath development and impact on the improvement plan.
    • Lead and execute HMM initiatives and strategy at site and at platform level.
    • Deliver industry leading data and information efforts and are partnered with organizational experts to develop broad strategic improvements (performance metrics, financial information, data historian, maintenance management system, system and network capabilities).
  • Operations Foundational Systems:
    • Accountable for the operations foundational systems across the platform to secure basic conditions and drive out losses (Clean-Inspect-Lubricate CIL, Centerlines CL and Theory of Operation TOO).
  • Vertical Start-Up (VSU) and Project Management (PM):
    • Lead improvement, HMM and broader strategic initiatives.
    • Provide project support (planning, startup)

Know your Technology, Data and Operation:

• • Mastery with the 4M's (machine, materials, methods, human) and seen as a key decision maker in partnerships into the R&D and Sourcing communities.
    
  • Actively showcase system mastery via application and understanding of system, food and material science, providing technical expertise to others.
    
  • Secure material balance and unit operation expertise of the system(s) to ensure optimal production rates, parameters, and formulas. Engage with R&D partners on impacts of formulations, HMM efforts, etc. to optimize 4M interface.
    
  • Be the technical leader and communicator across the full site. An essential partner with corporate engineering, R&D and business teams to advocate for system and platform current and future state across technologies, OEMs and manufacturing processes.
    
  • Clearly articulate financial impact to the plant/platform based on business and plant decisions in support of annual financial, capital and capacity planning.

Back-Up Support

• • This position will provide backup support as needed, ensuring business continuity and operational efficiency.
    • Technical partners on platform team (PLT, SE, QE, Maintenance)

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

• Bachelor of Science degree in Engineering or related degree with applicable experience or extensive relevant work experience
• 16+ years of related work experience in system engineering, processing/packaging/system development or manufacturing improvement-focused engineering roles across multiple manufacturing systems
• Recognized technical leader with practical experience and strong capabilities in the following areas:

• • Theory/functionality of manufacturing systems and unit operations
  • Data and manufacturing performance metrics analysis
  • Continuous improvement techniques TPMan, TPM, Kaizen)
  • Loss Prioritization/Quantification and Elimination
  • Coaching and Training capability
  • Process measurement and controls to optimize system and unit operation performance
  • Mechanical aptitude
  • Problem Solving and Root Cause Analysis
  • General engineering principles

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• Consumer Products or Process Industry experience
• Food science or packaging science experience
• Statistical analysis and analytical methods
• Demonstrated:
  • Leadership
  • Influence management
  • Collaborative team player
  • Self-Starter

ADDITIONAL CONSIDERATIONS

• International relocation or international remote working arrangements will not be considered
• Applicants for this position must be currently authorized to work in the US on a full-time basis. General Mills will not sponsor applicants for this position for work visas

We exist to make food the world loves. But we do more than that. Our company is a place that prioritizes being a force for good, a place to expand learning, explore new perspectives and reimagine new possibilities, every day. We look for people who want to bring their best - bold thinkers with big hearts who challenge one other and grow together. Because becoming the undisputed leader in food means surrounding ourselves with people who are hungry for what's next.

Salary Range

The salary range for this position is $124200.00 - $186400.00 / Annually. At General Mills we strive for each employee's pay at any point in their career to reflect their experiences performance and skills for their current role. The salary range for this role represents the numerous factors considered in the hiring decisions including, but not limited to, educations, skills, work experience, certifications, etc. As such, pay for the successful candidate(s) could fall anywhere within the stated range. Beyond base salary, General Mills offers a competitive Total Rewards package focusing on your overall well-being. We are proud to offer a foundation of health benefits, retirement and financial wellbeing, time off programs, wellbeing support and perks. Benefits may vary by role, country, region, union status, and other employment status factors. You may also be eligible to participate in an annual incentive program. An incentive award, if any, depends on various factors, including, individual and organizational performance.