Continuous Improvement Lead

Salary: £29,700 - £38,550 per annum

Location: Whittlesford, UK/Hybrid

Contract: 1 Year Fixed Term Contract

Hours: Full Time - 35 hours per week

Are you passionate about driving operational excellence and shaping a culture of continuous improvement across a fast moving organisation?

We are Cambridge University Press & Assessment, a world-leading academic publisher and assessment organisation and a proud part of the University of Cambridge.

We are looking for a Continuous Improvement Lead to join the Operations Excellence Team where you will support Continuous Improvement initiatives and Lean six Sigma projects within Group Print and Operations and the wider Cambridge organisation.

About the role

As a Continuous Improvement Lead, you will play a key role in driving operational excellence across Cambridge University Press & Assessment. You will champion best practice methodologies, coach Lean Six Sigma practitioners and help embed a culture of continuous improvement that delivers real results.

Key responsibilities

• Drive CI projects through the full DMAIC lifecycle, using Agile or Waterfall approaches where appropriate.
• Design and deliver engaging CI training, including Innovation & CI, 5S, and Value Stream Mapping.
• Build and maintain a strong CI and innovation network across the organisation, enabling collaboration and knowledge sharing.
• Coach and develop Lean Six Sigma Belts and CI enthusiasts, supporting them to deliver impactful projects and positive change.
• Embed a culture of continuous improvement by equipping teams with Lean tools and methodologies to improve safety, quality, delivery, cost, and efficiency.
• Support the development and rollout of standardised Operations Excellence and Lean Six Sigma ways of working.
• Grow capability within the team, inspiring new members to develop best practice skills and contribute to a thriving CI culture.
• Recognise and celebrate excellence, highlighting great behaviours, outcomes, and Lean Six Sigma achievements.

This position has been classified as a hybrid role, requiring the selected candidate to typically spend 40-60% of their time collaborating and connecting face-to-face at their dedicated location. Aside from our hybrid principles, other flexible working requests will be considered from the first day of employment, including other work arrangements should you require adjustments due to a disability or long-term health condition.

About You

You are a proactive communicator with a strong customer focus and a passion for driving meaningful change. You bring a can do attitude, learn quickly from experience, and thrive in a collaborative environment where innovation and continuous improvement are encouraged.

With hands on experience in Lean, Six Sigma and wider CI tools, you are confident simplifying complex processes, coaching others, and supporting teams to adopt best practice ways of working.

You build strong relationships, influence effectively, and take pride in delivering high quality outcomes.

What You Will Bring

• Proven experience using Lean, Six Sigma, Lean Daily Management, 5S and CI tools
• Ability to map processes, write clear procedures and deliver structured workshops
• Strong verbal and written communication skills with a customer centred approach
• Confidence producing reports and presenting to varied audiences
• Experience working across diverse teams and stakeholder groups
• Ability to collaborate, share best practice and support knowledge transfer
• A positive, results driven mindset aligned to organisational goals
• Confidence in using digital collaboration tools such as Miro and Microsoft Teams

If you meet the above minimum requirements, we encourage you to apply. Your application will be even stronger if you can also demonstrate the following desirable criteria:

• Six Sigma Black Belt or advanced Lean training
• Project Management or Train the Trainer certification

For a detailed job description, please refer to the link at the bottom of the advert on our careers site.

We are a Disability Confident (DC) employer that is committed to equality and inclusion ensuring our recruitment process is accessible to all. The DC scheme's Offer of an Interview commitment applies to applicants who opt in, and disclose a disability or a long-term health condition, and best meet the minimum criteria for the role. In instances where interviewing all qualifying candidates is not practicable, we prioritise those who best meet the minimum criteria, as we would for applicants who do not have a disability or long-term health condition.

Please note, Cambridge University Press & Assessment is unable to sponsor this role under the Skilled Worker Visa route as it does not meet the minimum skill requirements.

Rewards and benefits

We will support you to be at your best in work and to live well outside of it. In addition to competitive salaries, we offer a world-class, flexible rewards package , featuring family-friendly and planet-friendly benefits including:

• 28 days annual leave plus bank holidays
• Private medical and Permanent Health Insurance
• Discretionary annual bonus
• Group personal pension scheme
• Life assurance up to 4 x annual salary
• Green travel schemes

Ready to pursue your potential? Apply now.

We aim to support candidates by making our interview process clear and transparent. The closing date for all applications will be 2 February 2026. We will review applications on an ongoing basis, and shortlisted candidates can expect interviews to take place week commencing 9 February 2026.

If you are shortlisted and progressed through the stages, you can expect:

• Interviews to take place in person at our office in Whittlesford, UK.

If you require any reasonable adjustments during the recruitment process due to a disability or a long-term health condition, there will be an opportunity for you to inform us via the online application form. We will do our best to accommodate your needs.

Please note that successful applicants will be subject to satisfactory background checks including DBS due to working in a regulated industry.

We are committed to an equitable recruitment process. As such, applications must be submitted via our official online application procedure. Please refrain from sending your CV directly to our recruiters. If you experience technical difficulties or require additional support with submitting your online application, contact the Recruiter.

Why join us

Joining us is your opportunity to pursue potential. You'll belong to a collaborative team that's exploring new and better ways to serve students, teachers and researchers across the globe - for the benefit of individuals, society and the world. Sharing our mission will inspire your own growth, development and progress, in an environment which embraces difference, change and aspiration.

Cambridge University Press & Assessment is committed to being a place where anyone can enjoy a successful career, where it's safe to speak up, and where we learn continuously to improve together. We welcome applications from all candidates, regardless of demographic characteristics (age, disability, educational attainment, ethnicity, gender, marital status, neurodiversity, religion, sex, gender identity and sexual identity), cultural, or social class/background.

We believe better outcomes come through diversity of thought, background and approach. We welcome applications from people from all backgrounds and communities, actively seeking to employ people from a wide range of different communities.