Process Engineer III, Operational Excellence

Harris Health System is the public healthcare safety-net provider in Harris County, Texas, focused on improving health for the community. The Process Engineer III drives operational improvements by applying Lean Six Sigma methodologies and collaborates with various stakeholders to enhance patient flow and optimize healthcare operations.

Responsibilities:

• Drives system-wide operational improvements across inpatient, ambulatory, and support services by applying Lean Six Sigma methodologies and discrete event simulation
• Collaborates with clinicians, administrators, and IT to map value streams, quantify baselines, and design data-driven interventions
• Builds and validates simulation models of patient flow, capacity, staffing, and scheduling to test scenarios and forecast impacts on throughput, wait times, length of stay, utilization, and cost
• Manages DMAIC and Kaizen projects from problem framing through control, with emphasis on standard work, error-proofing, and statistical process control
• Translates analytics into practical workflows, training, and adoption plans, and develops business cases, KPIs, and dashboards to sustain gains
• Delivers measurable outcomes such as reduced emergency department boarding, optimized operating room block allocation, improved bed management, and higher first-time-right rates
• Mentors teams to strengthen a continuous improvement culture and maintains model repositories and control plans to ensure compliance with quality and regulatory standards

Requirements:

• Bachelors: Industrial and Systems Engineering, Business, Healthcare Administration
• Project Management Professional: required within 2 years of hire
• Certified ASQ Six Sigma Black Belt: American Society for Quality required within 2 years of hire
• Certified ASQ Six Sigma Green Belt: American Society for Quality
• Eight (8) years of experience: Required areas of expertise include Lean Six Sigma methodologies, discrete event simulation, and healthcare operations improvement
• Proficiency in value stream mapping, statistical process control, and simulation modeling of patient flow, capacity, and scheduling is essential
• Experience collaborating with clinical and administrative teams to design, implement, and sustain data-driven interventions is required
• Above average Verbal Communication (Heavy Public Contact)
• Exceptional Verbal (Public Speaking)
• Writing/ Correspondence
• Writing/ Reports
• Analytical
• Design
• Mathematics
• Research
• Statistical
• Masters: Industrial and Systems Engineering, Business, Healthcare Administration