OPEX Project Engineer

This is where  your work makes a difference. At Baxter, we believe every person—regardless of who they are or where they are from—deserves a chance to live a healthy life. It was our founding belief in 1931 and continues to be our guiding principle. We are redefining healthcare delivery to make a greater impact today, tomorrow, and beyond. Our Baxter colleagues are united by our Mission to Save and Sustain Lives. Together, our community is driven by a culture of courage, trust, and collaboration. Every individual is empowered to take ownership and make a meaningful impact. We strive for efficient and effective operations, and we hold each other accountable for delivering exceptional results. Here, you will find more than just a job—you will find purpose and pride.  Your role at Baxter As an Operational Excellence Engineer, you will support improvement projects across Baxter's Deerfield site by leading cross-functional teams, managing project timelines, and helping solve operational challenges. You will work with team members across the business to identify improvement opportunities, facilitate problem-solving activities, and ensure projects stay on track and deliver results. Success in this role will come from your ability to coordinate teams, drive project completion, improve processes, and implement practical solutions that enhance site performance.

Lead and coordinate cross-functional teams to achieve operational excellence and project objectives. Develop project plans, establish timelines, and monitor progress to ensure successful execution. Facilitate continuous improvement initiatives using Lean, Kaizen, Baxter Operating System (BOS), and structured problem-solving methodologies. Drive accountability by ensuring teams complete improvement charters, action plans, and project deliverables on schedule. Conduct root-cause analyses and support implementation of corrective and preventive actions to prevent recurrence of issues. Identify project risks and barriers, develop mitigation plans, and communicate status updates to stakeholders and leadership. Support process documentation, standardization efforts, and deployment of new operational solutions across the site. Serve as a key liaison between stakeholders, project teams, and leadership, providing regular communication on progress and outcomes.

Bachelor's degree in a STEM discipline required; Industrial Engineering preferred. 1+ years of experience in Operational Excellence, Industrial Engineering, Supply Chain, Logistics, Manufacturing, or a related field. Strong organizational, leadership, and interpersonal skills with the ability to influence and lead without direct authority. Experience organizing projects, managing timelines, and coordinating work across multiple teams. Strong analytical and problem-solving skills with the ability to identify issues and drive effective solutions. Excellent written and verbal communication skills. Proficiency with Microsoft Office applications, including Outlook, Teams, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. Preferred: Experience leading continuous improvement initiatives and utilizing Lean, Kaizen, root-cause analysis, or other operational excellence methodologies. We understand compensation is an important factor as you consider the next step in your career. At Baxter, we are committed to equitable pay for all employees, and we strive to be more transparent with our pay practices. The estimated base salary for this position is $76,000 - $104,000 annually. The estimated range is meant to reflect an anticipated salary range for the position. We may pay more or less than of the anticipated range based upon market data and other factors, all of which are subject to change. Individual pay is based on upon location, skills and expertise, experience, and other relevant factors.  This position may also be eligible for discretionary bonuses.  For questions about this, our pay philosophy, and