Business Improvement Specialist

Business Improvement Specialist

Mining Operations — Pilbara, Western Australia

Location: Pilbara, Western Australia

Employment Type: Fixed Term Contract – 3 Months Initially

Roster: 8 days on / 6 days off

Preferred Location: Western Australia

About Secora

Secora is a leading asset management improvement and implementation company, specialising in productivity enhancement and change across complex, asset-intensive industries including mining, resources, energy generation, and defence. We work alongside operational teams to translate reliability, standardised work, and continuous improvement principles into practical, measurable outcomes that improve safety, availability, and productivity.

The Opportunity

Secora has been engaged to lead a Business Improvement Programme running across multiple initiative streams simultaneously, spanning the full maintenance value chain. The problems are well-evidenced, the data environment is mature, and the work is time-critical. This is the job: go into a data-rich Pilbara mining operation, apply structured hypothesis-driven analysis to identify where value is leaking and why, design the path to resolution, put a number on it, and fix the problem.

We are seeking a Business Improvement Specialist to join our on-site team and contribute directly to this programme. You will not be working alone, a supportive Secora team is on the ground, but you will be expected to own your workstreams, operate with analytical rigour, and translate insight into action quickly.

The Work

Our client is a large-scale Pilbara mining operation with a mature data environment and a strong foundation of improvement activity already underway. The focus now is on converting that activity into structured, evidence-based outcomes. Areas of focus include:

•     Understanding and reducing reactive maintenance through structured root cause analysis and targeted improvement.

•     Identifying and reducing non-core cost to release value currently sitting outside the managed cost base.

•     Improving the rigour and evidence base behind sustaining capital allocation decisions.

•     Strengthening shutdown and maintenance scope control to reduce unbudgeted cost and hours.

•     Prioritising and actioning a backlog of improvement opportunities, determining what returns value quickly, what requires deeper change, and building a credible roadmap to get there.

The parallel workstreams are deliberate, the operation cannot afford to queue these problems sequentially. Secora's team structure means multiple fronts can progress without creating bottlenecks at handoff points.

What You'll Do

•     Apply structured, hypothesis-driven analysis to identify root causes of cost overruns, downtime, and performance variability across assigned workstreams.

•     Work within the SAP data environment to extract, interrogate, and interpret maintenance and cost data, turning data into insight, not just reports.

•     Develop prioritised, costed improvement roadmaps that distinguish between quick cash returns and longer-term change requirements.

•     Design and implement practical solutions that can be embedded by site teams, not just documented and filed.

•     Facilitate workshops, observations, and improvement sessions with frontline crews, supervisors, and site leadership.

•     Prepare clear, concise analysis and reporting for Secora and client stakeholders at all levels.

•     Collaborate closely with the broader Secora on-site team across parallel initiative streams.

•     Track initiative progress and report on outcomes, benefits realised, and performance metrics.

What We're Looking For

•     Demonstrated experience in business improvement, operational excellence, or management consulting roles within mining or heavy industry.

•     Strong analytical capability, comfortable working with large, complex datasets and able to derive clear, evidence-based conclusions.

•     Proven ability to translate improvement frameworks and analytical findings into practical, site-ready solutions with dollar values attached.

•     Exposure to maintenance value chain concepts, work order quality, backlog management, materials, shutdown scope control, or non-core cost reduction.

•     Strong interpersonal and communication skills, with the ability to influence and engage from operators through to senior leadership.

•     High-quality written communication and reporting capability.

•     Willingness and ability to work on site on an 8/6 roster in the Pilbara.

Essential Experience & Skills

•     Mining or resources industry experience, operations, maintenance, or management consulting context.

•     Experience in business improvement, CI, or analytical roles with demonstrable cost or productivity outcomes.

•     Competence working with SAP or equivalent ERP systems for data extraction and analysis.

•     Strong problem-solving capability with a structured, evidence-driven approach.

•     Ability to manage multiple workstreams simultaneously without losing rigour or pace.

Desirable Experience & Skills

•     Formal Lean, Six Sigma, or equivalent continuous improvement qualification.

•     Exposure to reliability tools, RCA, Pareto analysis, failure mode analysis.

•     Experience developing or implementing maintenance strategies or cost reduction programmes.

•     Background in management consulting, operational improvement, or turnaround environments.

•     Experience working directly with frontline crews and supervisors in operational settings.

Key Attributes for Success

•     Analytical rigour with a practical, delivery-focused mindset, comfortable going from raw data to boardroom-ready recommendation.

•     Pace. This is not a slow-burn engagement. The business needs results quickly and the team is structured to move.

•     Strong site presence and the credibility to engage meaningfully with operations and maintenance crews.

•     Ability to build trust quickly in remote and high-pressure environments.

•     Comfortable challenging existing practices constructively and backing conclusions with evidence.

•     Focused on achieving measurable, sustainable performance improvements.