Process Improvement and Automation Team Lead

Coho Consulting Group is seeking a Process Improvement and Automation Team Lead to direct and empower a high-performing team supporting the Washington Headquarters Services (WHS) Human Resources Directorate (HRD), within the Technology & Data Support Division (TDSD).

In this role, you will lead end-to-end business process reengineering, workflow optimization, and digital transformation initiatives. You will oversee a team tasked with diagnosing operational bottlenecks and delivering targeted solutions—ranging from streamlined business workflows and policy alignment to advanced technical automations utilizing Microsoft Power Platform, SharePoint Online, and integrated M365 ecosystems.

The ideal candidate blends strong team leadership, stakeholder management, and continuous improvement methodologies (e.g., Lean, Agile) with hands-on technical understanding to guide engineers and developers in implementing scalable, high-impact solutions.

This is an on-site position at the Mark Center in Alexandria, VA with occasional telework available and reports to the Program Manager. 

Responsibilities (include but are not limited to):

Team Leadership & Strategy

• Team Management & Guidance: Lead, mentor, and task a multidisciplinary team of process analysts and low-code/no-code technical developers, driving daily deliverables, task assignments, and quality assurance.
• Process Reengineering & Discovery: Lead process discovery workshops and stakeholder interviews across HRD divisions to analyze existing workflows, identify manual inefficiencies, and architect future-state business processes.
• Solution Architecture & Strategy: Evaluate proposed process improvements to determine the optimal delivery mechanism, balancing technical solutions (automation, apps, analytics) with non-technical enhancements (policy, standard operating procedures, governance).
• Project Delivery & Agile Execution: Manage project backlogs, sprint planning, requirements gathering, user story development, and acceptance testing to ensure timely and effective solution delivery.

Technical Oversight & Process Integration

• Power Platform & M365 Solution Oversight: Provide technical governance and oversight for team members building Power Apps (Canvas & Model-Driven), Power Automate workflows, Power BI dashboards, and Dynamics 365/Dataverse solutions.
• SharePoint Online & Ecosystem Architecture: Guide the architecture and configuration of SharePoint Online site collections, Dataverse environments, Teams integrations, and secure data pipelines.
• AI & Innovation Integration: Drive the adoption of modern technologies, including Microsoft Copilot and AI capabilities, to transform routine administrative and HR workflows into intelligent, automated processes.
• Quality Assurance & Governance: Establish development standards, security protocols, permissions management, and technical documentation templates to ensure compliance with DoD security guidelines and system integrity.

Stakeholder Management & Operations

• Customer Collaboration: Serve as the primary point of contact for TDSD leadership and HRD division directors to translate business challenges into actionable improvement roadmaps.
• Troubleshooting & Escalation Management: Act as the technical and operational escalation point for complex system outages, integration hurdles, performance bottlenecks, and operational impediments.
• Change Management & Training: Oversee user adoption programs, standard operating procedure (SOP) development, and executive change management plans to ensure seamless transition to updated processes and tools.

Requirements:

• Clearance:
• Secret security clearance is required.

• Education:
• Bachelor’s degree in Industrial Engineering, Systems Engineering, Computer Science, Business Transformation, Management Information Systems, or a related discipline

• Required Experience:
• Overall Experience: Minimum of 7–8 years of professional experience in process improvement, business transformation, or IT project delivery, including at least 2–3 years in a team lead, supervisor, or project manager capacity
• Domain Experience: Federal government or Department of Defense (DoD) contracting experience preferred; prior work with WHS or HR organizations is a strong plus

• Preferred Certifications & Qualifications:
  • Project Management Professional (PMP) or Agile/Scrum certification (e.g., CSM, SAFe)
  • Lean Six Sigma certification (Green Belt or Black Belt)
  • Microsoft Certified: Power Platform Functional Consultant Associate (PL-200) or Power Platform Solution Architect (PL-600)

• Technical & Functional Competencies:
  • Demonstrated experience leading continuous process improvement (CPI) engagements, business process reengineering (BPR), or digital transformation projects
  • Functional knowledge and technical capability across the Microsoft 365 suite, specifically:
    • Microsoft Power Platform: Canvas Apps, Model-Driven Apps, Power Automate, Power BI, and Dataverse environment management (data modeling & security configuration)
    • Collaboration Tools: SharePoint Online site collection administration, Microsoft Teams, OneDrive, and Dynamics 365/CRM.
    • Emerging Tech: Hands-on awareness of Microsoft Copilot and AI-assisted workflow engines
  • Proven ability to decompose complex stakeholder requests into technical specifications, process flowcharts, and clear development user stories

About Copper River & The Native Village of Eyak:

Owned by the Native Village of Eyak (NVE), a federally recognized Alaska Native Tribe, the Copper River Family of Companies are a collection of entities that deliver a complementary set of solutions and services to support the diverse missions and requirements of our clients. Proud participants of the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) 8(a) Business Development Program since 2006, our companies consist of both current and graduation SBA 8(a) entities. It is our collective purpose to support the Tribe and diversify the NVE’s ability to facilitate economic advancement.

The income generated from our companies helps the Native Village of Eyak fund health and social services, economic development, natural resource/environmental education, jobs, job training, and other benefits to the NVE in a manner that is consistent with Alaskan Native cultural values and traditions.

Copper River’s Culture

The Copper River Family of Companies has a positive, supportive, and thriving culture. At the foundation of our culture is a focus on collaboration. No matter your role or which operating company you work for, we are ONE TEAM working toward the same goals for our customers and for our collective owner- The Native Village of Eyak. How we treat each other is just as important as the work we deliver.

Benefits

• Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage
• Flexible Spending Account - healthcare and dependent care
• Health Savings Account - high deductible medical plan
• Retirement 401(k) with employer match
• Open leave policy and paid holidays
• Additional benefits including tuition reimbursement, transportation expense account, employee assistance program, and more! 

Note: Benefits are offered based on employment classification and applicable contract requirements. Eligibility may vary by position.

Disclaimer:

The Copper River Family of Companies provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local laws.