Portfolio Optimization Leader (SKU Rationalization | 80/20)

Your Role At Baxter

The Portfolio Optimization Leader is a strategic member of the Baxter GPS office and is responsible for driving enterprise-level focus and value creation through Portfolio Optimization, which includes projects that improve processes and accelerate transformation, as well as product portfolio rationalization using 80/20 capabilities. A core responsibility of this role is governing a large, cross-functional portfolio of 800+ projects to simplify complexity, improve business performance, and ensure resources are concentrated on the highest-value opportunities. This leader establishes governance, prioritization, and review mechanisms that enable disciplined decision making, strong accountability, and elimination of low-value work and offerings. They also provide enterprise visibility into benefit tracing across Operating Income, Revenue Growth, ROIC, Free Cash Flow, cost avoidance, productivity and customer satisfaction, while highlighting risks to achieving targets and providing regular updates to Senior Leaders. They challenge the status quo, articulate the "why," and help teams focus on the initiatives that matter most.

What Will You Be Doing

• Strategic Prioritization: Apply the Pareto Principle to identify the "vital few" tasks, customers, and SKU/product lines that generate the highest returns.
• Portfolio Optimization & Governance: Govern a portfolio of initiatives focused on process improvement, business transformation, and product portfolio rationalization using 80/20 capabilities; establish governance forums, decision rights, and prioritization criteria to focus investment on the highest-value opportunities and eliminate low-value complexity.
• Portfolio Reporting & Value Realization: Report the status of an 800+ project portfolio, including value realization and risks to achieving targets; provide transparency on progress, expected outcomes, and gaps requiring leadership attention or intervention. Ensure benefit tracing is in place across Operating Income, Revenue Growth, ROIC, Free Cash Flow, cost avoidance, and customer satisfaction, and provide regular updates to Senior Leaders.
• Portfolio Mining & Enterprise Deployment: Mine the portfolio to identify repeatable initiatives, scalable solutions, and proven practices; standardize and enforce deployment of these across the enterprise to accelerate value capture, reduce duplication, and improve consistency of outcomes.
• Resource Allocation: Redirect human, financial, and technological resources toward high‑impact initiatives.
• Culture Transformation: Champion a culture of simplification, continuous improvement, and focus.
• Team Empowerment & Delegation: Identify top talent and delegate intentionally.
• Data‑Driven Decision Making: Use segmented P&Ls and analytics to guide decisions.
• Process Improvement & Transformation: Oversee and govern kaizen events, transformation initiatives, and cross-functional improvement efforts to ensure they align to enterprise priorities, simplify processes, increase productivity, and deliver measurable business impact.

Typical Activities would include

• Conducting 80/20 analysis (e.g., customer, product, profit).
• Convening kaizen and strategy review forums to assess progress, remove barriers, and reinforce priorities.
• Developing Raving Fans and target selling strategies.
• Leading portfolio optimization reviews across process improvement, transformation, and product rationalization; using 80/20 analysis to guide decisions, simplify offerings, and focus investment on the highest-value opportunities.
• Partnering with senior leaders across business lines.

What Will You Bring :

Key Skills

• Analytical & Strategic Thinking: Ability to see the big picture and pinpoint leverage points.
• Influence & Coaching: Inspire and coach leaders and teams to adopt focused, high‑impact behaviors.
• Decisive & Focused: Concentrate on important—not just urgent—work and say "no" to lower‑value activities.
• Governance & Accountability Orientation: Drive results through clear governance, disciplined prioritization, and strong accountability across the portfolio.
• Exceptional Communication: Clearly articulate the "why" behind decisions and challenge existing norms.
• Change Leadership: Influence teams through organizational transformation and simplification

• Bachelor's degree required; MBA preferred
• 10–15+ years in operations, strategy, or continuous improvement
• Experience with 80/20 methodology, Lean, or segmentation