Ed C. Gardner

ac04yh@r.postjobfree.com 770-***-**** Roswell, Georgia

QUALITY/SIX SIGMA LEADER

Quality/Continual Improvement leader with over 20 years of experience and a proven track record of delivering significant organizational performance. Education/development includes a B.S., M.B.A. and Six Sigma Master Black Belt certification. Experience includes successful leadership of global Quality and Continuous Improvement resources, strategies, initiatives and Quality Managements Systems for large multi-site manufacturing organizations. Global, multi-site Quality Management

Lean Six Sigma Deployment/Management

Business Process Management

Customer Experience Improvement

Global Supplier Quality Management Quality Engineering/SPC New Product Quality/APQP/DFSS Quality Management Systems Problem Solving/Corrective Action PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Serta Simmons Bedding, Atlanta, GA (consumer products) 2013 – 2017 Sr. Director of Total Quality ($3.5B, 40 plants)

Create corporate Quality vision/strategy and direct the Quality execution for a $3.5B consumer products organization. Lead Quality system development and Quality improvement efforts for two major brands. Scope of responsibility includes Quality performance for new products, manufacturing processes and supplied components...with primary focus and accountability for customer satisfaction.

Led product design and process quality improvements and reduced warranty by 25% ...improvement drove record sales

Improved the new product quality processes and achieved significant improvements in new product quality metrics

Established a QMS/corporate Quality Dashboard and long-term Quality Strategy with supporting Quality initiatives

Established program for improving First Pass Yield, drove 20% improvement across the manufacturing network Jarden Corporation, Erlanger, KY (consumer products) 2010 - 2013 Division Director of Quality ($1B, multiple business units, 8 plants) Direct the Quality and Six Sigma strategy for a $1B consumer products design and manufacturing division with multiple business units. Oversee and establish Quality Management and Quality Engineering strategies and resources across business groups to drive improvement in consumer, new product and process Quality. Lead the Six Sigma strategy and initiatives including organizational development, project selection, project review and mentoring.

Executed team-based problem solving across business unit and reduced critical customer Quality issues by 90%

Led cross-functional process improvement teams and improved First Pass Yield to achieve record levels for the division Thermadyne, St. Louis, MO (welding and cutting equipment) 2008 - 2010 Vice President, Global Quality and Continual Improvement ($800M, 6 global plants) Directed the worldwide Quality and Continual Improvement operations and staff for a global industrial equipment design and manufacturing company. Provided vision and strategy to build an effective Quality organization and a supporting QMS designed to deliver significant improvements in product reliability & quality.

Led cross-functional effort to reengineer and improve corporate warranty claims/repair and analysis process

Assembled and mentored warranty reduction teams resulting in rapid 50% reduction in claims rates Greene Tweed, Kulpsville, PA (aerospace, semiconductor, medical, oil field, fluid handling) 2005 - 2008 Director, Corporate Quality and Lean Six Sigma ($300M, 8 global plants) Directed the global Quality, Lean Six Sigma and Business Process Improvement function for an engineered products organization (aerospace, oilfield, medical, semiconductor). Led a team of Quality Engineering/ Quality Management resources through a customer focused Quality strategy and dramatically improved customer Quality results. Led Master Black Belts, Black Belts and Lean Leaders. Provided strategic planning, project identification, communication and objective setting for Quality and Continual Improvement. Delivered Quality/Continual Improvement training and competency development programs and installed and managed Continual Improvement steering teams and a Quality/CI performance score card.

Planned and executed a customer-centric global Quality improvement organization, upgraded resources, developed improved competencies and reengineered supporting processes. Achieved 40% improvement in customer Quality performance – highest Quality performance levels in the organization’s history

Designed and delivered organization-wide Continual Improvement initiatives, developed and deployed CI resources

(LSS/Process Management) resulting in significant and sustained improvements in customer Quality performance and operating efficiencies, providing over $20M of cost savings Owens Corning, Toledo, OH (automotive – Tier 1, appliance, building products/materials) 2000 - 2005 Corporate Quality Systems Leader ($6B, 125 global plants, multiple divisions) 2003 - 2005 Division Quality Manager ($500M, 13 plants) 2000 - 2003 Directed the worldwide Quality Management System development and implementation for a $6B global organization. Directed a team of Quality and LSS professionals accountable for world-wide Corporate Quality Systems and Metrics. Managed programs to drive Quality performance improvement and waste elimination across the corporation. Led the Quality Management function for a multi-site division. Designed and implemented a division-wide Quality System certified to TS16949/ISO 9000. Drive continual improvement in customer satisfaction, Quality, and financial performance. Lead a team of Quality Engineers/Managers.

Lead the design and implementation of an organization-wide Quality Management System across a Fortune 500, 125-site, global organization

Redesigned and executed a new process-based Business Management System across a 13-site organization resulting in TS 16949 certification and 75% reduction in customer PPM

Division recognized as best Quality performance in Owens Corning Holley, Bowling Green, KY (automotive - aftermarket) 1996 - 2000 Quality and Product Engineering Manager ($250M, 2 plants) Led the Quality Management, Current Engineering and Document Control functions for an automotive aftermarket products corporation. Managed a team of Design Engineers, Quality Engineers and Document Control professionals. Allied-Signal, Gallatin, TN (automotive - Tier 1) 1995 - 1996 Quality Manager ($200M, 1 plant)

Managed a 40-person Quality department for an OEM automotive plant. Managed new product launch activities, provided primary customer interface and coordinated Six Sigma improvement projects. Directed strategic planning on division-wide Quality initiatives. Developed and installed a certified QS9000 automotive Quality Management System. Warn Industries, Milwaukee, OR (automotive - Tier 1) 1991 - 1995 Business Development Leader ($65M, 1 plant) 1993 - 1995 Product Team Leader ($30M, 1 plant) 1991 - 1993

Led the design, development, testing, marketing and implementation of new OEM products and technologies for a Tier 1 automotive business segment. Led a 100-person, $30M design & manufacturing business unit including the Design, Manufacturing, Quality, Purchasing and Customer Service functions within a world-class team managed organization. Improved delivery, cost and product designs leading to new OEM automotive business. Early Quality Career: 1983 - 1991

Supplier Quality Manager, Siltec Silicon, Salem, OR (semiconductor) 1988 - 1991 Quality Engineer, Delbar Products, Perkasie, PA (automotive - Tier 1/aftermarket) 1986 - 1988 Quality Engineer, Koppers Company, Baltimore, MD (automotive - Tier 1) 1983 - 1986 EDUCATION

Master of Business Administration Willamette University, Atkinson Graduate School of Management, Salem, OR Bachelor of Science, Forestry Utah State University, Logan, UT PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Six Sigma Master Black Belt Six Sigma-US, Austin, TX Business Process Management BPM Group, Toronto, ON Leadership in Plant Operations University of Michigan, Ross School of Business, Ann Arbor, MI Creating World Class Quality Northwestern University, Kellogg Graduate School of Management, Evanston, IL Strategic Alliances University of Pennsylvania, The Wharton School, Philadelphia, PA Reliability Engineering American Society for Quality

Contact this candidate