Continuous Improvement Specialist (Lean, Process and Automation)

The role

Neon Link places experienced remote professionals, whom we call Linkers, full time with US small and mid-size businesses, and every Linker we place is trained on continuous improvement.

This role isn't a client placement: you're Neon Link's own continuous improvement lead, working with every Linker and their client, and you turn that training into results inside real US businesses. You'll sit with a Linker and their client on video, map how the work actually happens in Lucidchart or Miro, find the waste, standardize the good version, and write the SOP and the checklist in Scribe or Trainual. Then you'll automate what a tool does better than a person with Zapier or Make and the automation built into Google Workspace or Microsoft 365, measure what changed against a baseline, and report the savings in hours and dollars.

Many small businesses have never had anyone look at their processes, so the first wins are often simple: a duplicate spreadsheet retired, an approval nobody needed removed, a handoff that no longer waits overnight.

It matters because every hour you give back to an owner is an hour they spend running the business instead of catching up, and every process you standardize lets a Linker take on more of the work with confidence. You'll see how many different businesses run, and some of their data is regulated, so you map and test with sample records, keep real customer data inside each client's own systems, and treat every client's numbers as confidential. You'll do well here if you can run a kaizen session with a nervous owner on a video call, coach a Linker without putting them on the defensive, and write clearly enough that your SOP survives you.

The strongest fit is a hybrid: someone who has done the work as a virtual assistant or in BPO operations, then spent years improving it, so you know what a Linker's day really looks like. You'll report directly to Neon Link's founder and work across client engagements rather than inside a client's team. In your first weeks you're trained on Neon Link's improvement playbook and the curriculum every Linker learns.

What you'll do

• Map current state processes with each Linker and their US client, using interviews, screen share walkthroughs and process maps or swimlanes in Lucidchart, Miro or Visio, and capture who does each step, in which tool, and where the work waits
• Set a baseline before changing anything: time per task, volume, rework, errors, turnaround and hours spent, pulled from the client's own tools or a short time study, so every result has something real to compare against
• Find the waste with the client and the Linker: handoffs, rework, waiting, duplicate data entry, approvals nobody needs and work done in the wrong tool, and use root cause analysis such as 5 whys or a fishbone to fix causes, not symptoms
• Design the improved process, standardize it, and get both the client and the Linker to agree on it before it goes live, including who owns each step and what happens to the exceptions
• Write the SOPs, checklists, templates and job aids that make the new way the easy way, using Scribe or Trainual, short Loom walkthroughs and the client's own shared drive, and keep each one versioned and easy to find
• Automate what should be automated with Zapier or Make, Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 automation such as Apps Script or Power Automate, CRM workflows and simple AI tools, then test with sample data, document each automation and hand it over so it doesn't depend on you
• Run kaizen sessions and monthly improvement reviews on video with clients who are not process people, and keep a ranked improvement backlog for each client by effort and payoff
• Coach Linkers on the basics they were trained on: 5S for a digital workspace, root cause analysis, standard work and visual management, in short one to one sessions that build their confidence
• Measure before and after, and report results in hours saved, errors avoided and dollars saved in a plain English monthly savings report for each client
• Keep the internal playbook current so every new Linker starts from the best version we have, and turn a win with a client into a template the next client can use

What you bring

• 3 or more years in process improvement, continuous improvement, operational excellence or business process analysis, in BPO, shared services or a services business, with improvements you've actually delivered and the numbers to back them up
• Hands-on time doing the work itself, as a virtual assistant, in BPO operations or supporting US clients directly, before or alongside your improvement work
• Call or ticket QA auditing alone doesn't count for this role, and neither does report building or project coordination that never changed how the work gets done
• Working command of Lean and process improvement methods: DMAIC, value stream and process mapping, root cause analysis, 5S, standard work, visual management and kaizen facilitation, plus writing SOPs that people actually follow
• Strong automation skills with Zapier or Make, Google Workspace or Microsoft 365 automation and CRM workflows, plus practical use of AI tools for drafting, summarizing and cleaning up data
• Enough Excel or Google Sheets skill, including pivot tables, lookups and simple charts, to build a clean before and after measurement and defend the math
• Confident on video, able to lead a working session with a skeptical owner, keep it on time, and give a Linker direct feedback they can use the same day
• Careful with client data across many businesses: you use each client's own accounts and password manager rather than shared logins, you share a client's numbers only with that client and Neon Link, you don't copy client files or customer lists into personal accounts or your own tools, and you'll sign a confidentiality agreement and pass a background check
• Excellent written English, because your SOPs, process maps and monthly reports go straight to US business owners, and clear spoken English for leading video sessions and coaching Linkers
• Able to work mostly within US business hours, when Linkers and their clients are online, on hours agreed with the founder that fit where you live
• Education: a degree in industrial engineering, business or operations is common and helps, but what you've improved and measured matters more

Work setup

• Your own Mac with an M series chip, or a Windows 10 or 11 computer with a Core i5 or Ryzen 5, and 8 GB of RAM or more, plus a webcam and a noise canceling headset
• Reliable broadband of at least 25 Mbps with a backup connection
• Backup power, such as a UPS, generator or inverter, for outages
• A quiet, private workspace where client screens and conversations can't be seen or overheard
• Tell us your city, your province or state and your country when you apply; we hire across regions, so one storm or outage doesn't hit everyone at once

You'll do well here if

Questions applicants ask

Is this job work from home?

Yes. Remote, work from home, from any country.

How much does it pay?

USD 1,100 to 1,500 a month (about USD 7 to 9 an hour), depending on experience. Pay is in US dollars (USD).

What are the working hours?

Monday to Friday, mostly overlapping US business hours, which is when Linkers and their clients are working, so coaching fits inside the same hours; exact hours set with the founder.

When would I start?

Hiring now.

How do I apply?

Use the form on this page: your resume, a few questions about this role, your expected pay and a short voice introduction you record on the page. A person reads every application.

Does Neon Link charge a fee to apply?

No. Neon Link never charges a fee to apply, test, train or start, and only contacts applicants from neonlink.ai email addresses.