Jim Strickland
Director of Lean Enterprise, Raytheon Missile Systems

Leveraging Strategic Human Resource Management Practices in Support of the Lean Enterprise

Mr. Jim Strickland is currently the Lean Enterprise Manager for Raytheon Missile Systems in Tucson, Arizona. He has spent his last 36 years in all aspects of manufacturing operations and currently oversees 3,300 employees who are driving improvement to the next level. Jim transitioned the Tucson plant from traditional manufacturing into an award-winning Lean facility. Several of Tucson’s awards include Industry Week’s “Best Plant” Award, the Pioneer Award, and a 2004 Shingo Prize.

Jim has managed projects in Europe, South America, and in numerous locations across the U.S. Jim helped create the Raytheon Production System and led the team that revolutionized Tucson’s manufacturing processes. He also helped develop and lead the Raytheon Six Sigma (R6S) activities that have been recognized nationally as one the best models for the “melding of Change Management, Lean, and 6Sigma in the country.” In 1986, Jim developed a "pay for skill/knowledge" program for 2000 touch labor employees at the Tucson facility. That program is still in place today and has produced one of the country's highest college educated labor force.

Mr. Strickland will discuss how human resource practices support the Lean pursuit, and he will explain how having an educated workforce can help your company achieve its goals. Jim will present the Raytheon Career Enrichment Program (CEP) from concept to reality. The CEP allows an organization to decrease the number of occupations while increasing the flexibility of the workforce. Jim will also discuss the role of union relations and academic partnerships. He will present Raytheon’s philosophy of hourly employees training hourly employees, paying for hourly education, testing incoming employees, and providing career development counseling.