Jennifer King Sherman

Combined business acumen and operational, engineering, and program leadership experience with Six Sigma and Lean methodology to enhance productivity and efficiency through development and implementation of work process management systems.

• Facilitated Lean Work Process Implementation across multiple US sites at Dow Consumer Solutions Business, driving operational transformation.
• Developed roadmap for long-term asset reliability program at Lubrizol, aligning maintenance strategies with operational goals.
• Results: Reduced the 2026 capital budget by $6mil and realized cost savings of approximately $2mil over the course of 4 months of pilot.
• Tools: Value Stream Mapping, DMAIC methodology and Kaizen, Six Sigma and Root Cause Failure Analysis.

Consulted for large industrial partners to enhance operational strategies.

Focus areas: Operational Excellence, Six Sigma Project Management, Engineering and Business Development. Leveraging Lean Six Sigma, Strong Manufacturing and Engineering background in combination with my business and leadership experience to provide unique solutions to a wide array of clients.

(Role eliminated as part of corporate wide restructure).

Responsible for full P&L, Manufacturing and Warehouse Operations of a newly established North and South American headquarters for a German based, PE owned enterprise. Established and built an Operations Production System using Lean Methodology and High Performance Work Systems. Fostered a strong innovative culture and led a team of Directors (Sales, Operations, Continuous Improvement, Supply Chain, Finance, Administration) as well as a staff of 56 operators. Implemented a 3-year strategy that included a restructure of the organization and the execution of a major capital expansion of the manufacturing operation.

• Results: CI and Operational Production System leveraged across global sites, 20% revenue growth; Gross margin increased from 34% to 48%. Eliminated 3 months of backorders releasing $6 mil of revenue, delivered $400K+ in productivity savings over 18 months, Implemented Supply Chain Work Process and Methodology reducing inventory levels by 40%. Implementation of ISO 9001 and Safety Management System that reduced quality events by 50% and safety incidents by 90%.
• Tools: Lean Manufacturing, Value Stream Mapping, Kanban, 5S, Kaizen, Hoisin Matrix, Just-in-Time and Six Sigma Principles.

(Temporary departure from workforce to care for immediate family member during cancer treatment).

Managed blending and packaging operations for the Richmond, VA sites.

• Results: Achieved 2X production volume increase, 4X OEE improvement, and reduced cost/lb. in first 2 months; significantly boosted gross margin/FTE.
• Tools: Standard Work, A3 Analysis, Kaizen, and 5S to enhance operational efficiency.

Led union-represented Tyvek manufacturing unit, overseeing engineers, maintenance, planning, and continuous improvement efforts.

• Results: Reduced unplanned down days from 132 in 2019 to 39 in 2020, delivering 7.9 million pounds of capacity release in 2020 or $35 million of profit. OEE increased 30% between 2019 and 2020. Improved yield by 13% equating to capacity release of 3.25 million pounds in 2020 ($14 million profit) while reducing overtime by 25%. Spearheaded and led a PMO to enable ability to sustain 4-line operation in Tyvek resulting in generation of $7 million of profit within a 20-day period in 3Q2021.
• Tools: Applied Lean Six Sigma and other methodologies to optimize manufacturing processes.

Led Project Management Office (PMO) for Kevlar and Nomex business units at Spruance site, tracking and delivering capacity release and cost productivity through capital projects, lean manufacturing programs, and Six Sigma initiatives while applying lean project management and portfolio management methodologies to ensure execution and delivery of business objectives.

Results:

• Achieved additional $23 million in earnings contribution beyond plan, increasing Kevlar gross margin from 17% to 41%. Eliminated bottleneck in Nomex paper production, improving OEE by 15% and retaining key client.
• Managed cross-functional teams to ensure project alignment and execution.
• Developed program schedules to streamline project timelines and deliverables.
• Coordinated safety initiatives to enhance workplace compliance and culture.

Responsible for governance and implementation of strategic capital plans, driving key front-end loading and gated capitalization project processes for all early investment opportunities, and ensuring business objectives are met opposite capital investment. Managed $100mil portfolio of capital projects for 26 sites. across the globe. Member of Global Six Sigma Decision Board for governance over entire Six Sigma program for Crop Protection business.

• Results: Liberated 15% ($16mil) of 2014 capital budget through lean productivity initiatives as the lead. Fast tracked high priority project to close a $40MM gap in 2015.
• Tools: Lean Six Sigma, Kaizen, Value Stream Mapping, DMAIC and DMADV.

Six Sigma® Black Belt and Lean Manufacturing Consultant for DuPont Global Engineering and Capital Projects

• Results: Met Black Belt certification requirements within 11 months – project resulted in $560,000 recurring hard savings for Engineering. Leader of cross-functional Six Sigma project team comprised of external partners, DuPont Engineering and Integrated Operations within the Corporate Global Engineering Department delivering over $10 mil in savings through creation of a faster, leaner early front end loading process for small, low risk capital projects - implemented across all of DuPont.
• Led transformation of engineering contract partners (KBR) by streamlining capital project front end loading process and defining new work process for DuPont Engineering and Contractors for capital projects >$10 mil, supporting global corporate engineering redesign and optimizing resource allocation.
• Executed the DuPont Production System in Corporate Engineering, improving operational processes to meet industry standards.
• Tools: Six Sigma, Lean Manufacturing, Kaizen, Value Stream Mapping and DuPont Operations Production System, DMAIC & DMADV.

Project Team Leader and Lead Technical Engineer for Kevlar® Expansion Project effluent treatment facility - $20MM portion of the $500MM project. Lead Technical Engineer for major portions of the overall project including neutralization systems and the wet laboratory. Responsible for new process development, basic data generation, implementation of design, prepare to operate, training of operator training and development of standard work and operating procedures, start-up & commissioning of new assets and process prove out for the new spinning machines, Effluent Treatment and Wet Lab.

• Directed project for new technology pilot plant in Northern Ireland, overseeing construction and operations within tight timelines.
• Led environmental project initiatives from May 2007 to December 2011.
• Conducted training sessions for high performance work system operations team to enhance operational effectiveness.
• Results: Project team awarded DuPont Engineering Excellence award 2011. Cooper River was a standard of excellence for HPWS and Lean Manufacturing in the region and the US. Project was finished ahead of schedule and under budget.
• Tools: Lean Six Sigma and DuPont Production System tools to streamline processes and improve workflow efficiency.

• Led new product development, executed data generation, established standard work and operating procedures, designed implementation, and managed the start-up and commissioning of new assets and product validation for the new spinning machines.
• Results: Secured Engineering Excellence Award nomination in 2007 by completing project ahead of schedule and under budget; trained in DuPont Production System and HPWS at pilot manufacturing site.
• Tools: Utilized Lean Six Sigma, HPWS, 5S, Kanban, Value Stream Mapping, Regression Analysis, and DOE to drive project initiatives.

Technical support for the Kevlar® Spinning Organization at DuPont's largest manufacturing plant. Process Safety Management lead for the Kevlar® Spinning - 2002. Participated in product development and process optimization.

• Results: First Six Sigma project identified calibration and repair method failure on a critical piece of equipment associated with Kevlar spinning. Improved yield by 5%, resulting in >$5million in revenue. Solution leveraged across all Kevlar facilities globally, resulting in additional revenue and waste reduction.
• Tools: Six Sigma Green Belt

GPA: 3.678

• Graduated summa cum laude

• Graduated cum laude