Lead Process Engineer

About Dispatch Goods

Dispatch Goods is building the smart infrastructure that makes reuse work at scale. We partner with foodservice operators, workplaces, universities, hospitals, and other institutions to collect, wash, inspect, and redistribute reusable food packaging. Our operations combine industrial washing, technology, logistics, and hands-on problem-solving to replace single-use packaging with a reliable, cost-effective reuse system.

The Role

TLDR: You LOVE breaking down processes and rebuilding them more efficiently. Saving pennies is your drug of choice.

We are looking for a hands-on Process Lead to make our packaging-cleaning operations faster, more consistent, and less labor-intensive, without compromising food safety, product quality, or employee safety.

Your primary objective will be to reduce labor cost per unit washed. You will spend most of your time on the production floor observing work, measuring where time is spent, identifying bottlenecks, testing improvements, and helping frontline teams adopt better ways of working. You are willing to roll up your sleeves to test hypotheses. The opportunity may involve changes to staffing models, line balancing, workstation layout, standard work, scheduling, training, equipment settings, automation, or upstream decisions that affect how difficult packaging is to clean.

This is not a “desk-only” continuous improvement role.

You will understand the heartbeat of the plant. The right person is equally comfortable analyzing operating data, working side by side with hourly employees, and making practical changes in a fast-moving facility.We have 3 facilities, so 50% travel will be needed to ensure each facility is optimized (Hayward, Orange County, and Baltimore).

Our Process-Improvement Approach

Dispatch Goods follows a first-principles manufacturing approach inspired by the five-step algorithm used at Tesla and SpaceX, and we strongly believe the order is critical.

Question every requirement. Understand why each constraint, specification, or process exists, and who owns it, rather than treating current practice as fixed.

Delete unnecessary parts and steps. Remove work, touches, handoffs, inspections, movements, and requirements that do not create value or protect safety and quality.

Simplify and optimize. Once unnecessary work is removed, make the remaining process easier, more reliable, and more ergonomic.

Accelerate cycle time. Increase throughput and shorten feedback loops only after the process itself is sound.Automate last. Use automation to scale a process that has already been challenged, reduced, and simplified, not to hardwire waste or complexity.

The Process Lead will apply this sequence rigorously to packaging cleaning. The goal is not merely to make the existing process incrementally faster; it is to continually reconsider what work should exist at all.

What You’ll Own

Improve labor productivity

Validate current baselines for labor hours, units per labor hour, and labor cost per unit across each step of the cleaning process.

Identify the biggest sources of lost labor productivity, including bottlenecks, rework, downtime, unnecessary motion, changeovers, poor line balance, and inconsistent work methods.

Design and run rapid improvement experiments, measure results, and scale the changes that work.Apply Dispatch Goods' five-step improvement sequence (question, delete, simplify, accelerate, automate) to each major labor and throughput constraint.

Develop staffing models and line configurations that match labor to volume, product mix, and operating conditions.

Partner with site leaders to achieve sustained reductions in labor cost per unit, not just one-time improvements.

Consistencys is key.

Build repeatable operating processesCreate and maintain standard work for sorting, de-lidding, pre-processing, washing, drying, inspection, packing, and material movement.

Improve workstation layout and material flow to reduce touches, travel, waiting, and ergonomic strain.Build simple visual management tools that make daily performance, bottlenecks, and abnormalities easy to see.

Develop practical training and certification methods so new and existing employees can perform consistently.Ensure improvements can be replicated across Dispatch Goods facilities.

Use data to drive daily decisions

Create reliable methods for tracking throughput, labor utilization, downtime, rewash, quality, and yield by line, shift, and product type.

Translate floor observations and operating data into a prioritized improvement roadmap.

Review performance with operations leaders and frontline teams, identify root causes, and drive corrective actions.

Help evaluate the labor and financial impact of new equipment, automation, packaging designs, cleaning chemistry, and process changes.

Lead change on the floor

Work directly with operators and supervisors to understand problems and co-design workable solutions.

Facilitate time studies, process mapping, root-cause analysis, kaizen events, and structured trials.Build trust with frontline employees and incorporate their knowledge into process improvements.

Support implementation until new processes are stable, understood, and consistently followed.

How Success Will Be Measured

Reduction in direct labor cost per unit cleanedIncrease in units processed per labor hour

Reduced downtime, rework, and repeat washingStable food-safety and finished-product quality performance

Improved process adherence and speed to proficiency for new employees

Documented improvements that can be sustained and replicated across sites

What We’re Looking For

• EXTREME OWNERSHIP! You will own the process. There is no playbook from legacy companies. If that excites you, we’d love to chat. If you like permission, this may not be the right place for you.
• BS/MS in Industrial/Manufacturing Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Chemical Engineering or similar fields.
• Minimum 4 years of experience improving processes in manufacturing, food processing, industrial laundry, packaging, or another labor-intensive operating environment.
• Success in an early development (0—>1 or 1—>2) environment
• Demonstrated success reducing labor content, increasing throughput, or improving unit economics in a frontline operation. We will validate this via references.Experience applying first-principles thinking to redesign a process, rather than only optimizing the process already in place.
• Strong working knowledge of Lean practices such as standard work, line balancing, time studies, 5S, visual management, root-cause analysis, and continuous improvement.
• Ability to analyze operational data using spreadsheets and translate findings into concrete floor-level changes.
• Experience working effectively with hourly employees, leads, and site leadership.
• Willingness to spend most of your time in the operation and work across shifts when needed to understand and improve the full process.
• Strong bias toward action: you test, learn, refine, and follow through.
• Commitment to food safety, employee safety, and respectful change management.

Nice to Have

• Early stage start-up experience.
• Experience evaluating or implementing automation and semi-automated equipment.
• Familiarity with industrial engineering methods, labor standards, capacity modeling, OEE, or value-stream mapping.
• Spanish fluency or professional working proficiency.Bachelor’s degree in industrial engineering, manufacturing engineering, operations, or a related field; equivalent hands-on experience is equally valued.
• Six Sigma Certification

Who Thrives at Dispatch Goods

You are curious, practical, and persistent. You ask the dumb question, dig into the details, and do not assume the current process is the best process. You respect the people doing the work and know that lasting improvement is built with them, not handed down to them. You are energized by measurable progress and comfortable operating in an environment where the playbook is still being written.

Dispatch Goods is an equal opportunity employer. We value diverse perspectives and are committed to building an inclusive workplace.

Salary Range : $120,000-$160,000 + Equity & Benefits