Senior Business Analyst

Senior Business Analyst – Manufacturing Operations

Location: Minneapolis, MN or Cincinnati, OH Metro Preferred (Remote Considered)

IP Corporation is a leading manufacturer of specialty chemicals and composite materials used across a wide range of industries including transportation, construction, marine, and infrastructure. Through our operating companies — Interplastic Corporation, North American Composites, HK Research, and Molding Products — we deliver innovative resin systems, gel coats, and composite solutions to customers across North America.

With multiple manufacturing plants and distribution locations, IP Corporation combines deep technical expertise with a collaborative culture that empowers employees to innovate, solve complex challenges, and drive continuous improvement across the organization.

What you'll do as a Senior Business Analyst – Manufacturing Operations:

As a Senior Business Analyst, you will play a critical role in supporting and advancing IP Corporation's digital manufacturing initiatives. This role bridges manufacturing operations, engineering, and IT to improve processes, enhance manufacturing execution systems (MES), and drive operational efficiency across our manufacturing network.

You will partner closely with operations, quality, engineering, and IT teams to design and implement modern manufacturing capabilities that support scalable, compliant, and data-driven chemical manufacturing processes.

What you can expect to do as a Senior Business Analyst – Manufacturing Operations:

• Lead discovery, documentation, and prioritization of manufacturing operational processes across multiple plants.
• Translate production, quality, and engineering workflows into structured user stories, functional specifications, and process maps (BPMN / Visio).
• Partner with Operations, Quality, Engineering, EHS, and IT teams to design and enhance MES capabilities, including:
  • Dispatching & work execution / WIP tracking
  • PLC enhancements and integration support
  • Electronic work instructions
  • Recipe and parameter management
  • Traceability and genealogy (serial/lot lineage)
  • Inline quality monitoring and SPC
  • Deviation and NCR workflows
  • OEE and production performance monitoring
• Ensure MES capabilities meet data integrity standards, validation requirements, and regulatory compliance.
• Lead MES testing, training, and deployment readiness activities across manufacturing sites.
• Support integrations with enterprise systems including ERP (Infor M3), PLCs, historians, and labeling/serialization systems.
• Develop and maintain master data governance for materials, BOMs, routings/recipes, and equipment.
• Establish standardized manufacturing KPIs across sites including OEE, FPY, cycle time, yield, and downtime.
• Support organizational change management, SOP updates, and post-implementation hypercare activities.

What we are looking for in a Senior Business Analyst – Manufacturing Operations:

• Bachelor's degree in a related field or equivalent professional experience.
• 10–15+ years of experience as a Business Analyst or Manufacturing Operations professional in a manufacturing environment.
• Strong understanding of quality systems, validation requirements, and manufacturing data integrity.
• Experience collaborating with systems such as ERP, PLM, LIMS, SCADA/DCS, and historian platforms.
• Excellent communication and facilitation skills with the ability to work across technical and non-technical stakeholders.
• Experience with Infor Lighthouse and/or Rockwell Plex MES.
• Familiarity with Rockwell FactoryTalk ProductionCentre.
• SQL experience and familiarity with data visualization tools such as Power BI or Tableau.
• Exposure to AI-driven process improvement initiatives.
• Certifications such as CBAP, Lean / Six Sigma, APICS, PMP, or related credentials.
• Understanding of chemical batch processes and unit operations.

Why IP Corporation?

• Positive, challenging and supportive work environment.
• Competitive benefits, including dental, vision, generous PTO, 401(k) with company match and more.
• Freedom to innovate and make a difference in a vibrant, values-driven company that cares about its people.
• Opportunity to play a key role in modernizing digital manufacturing capabilities across multiple chemical manufacturing sites.

IP Corporation is an equal opportunity employer and encourages diversity in the workplace. If you are an experienced business analyst with a passion for manufacturing systems and process optimization, we encourage you to apply and join our team!