Les Souster

Les is Director of Just Lean Associates Pty Ltd. He is a Supply Chain professional with a passion and commitment for Lean principles and customer service with 40+ years’ experience working in the fast moving consumer goods (FMGC) field, primarily in the beer, soft drink and milk/juice fields. He has also consulted to and worked in, a range of other industries including the confectionary and chocolate business, retail supermarket, packaging material manufacturing as well as mining.

Les’s operations management experience has involved extensive people management and has encompassed strategic business planning and deployment, Lean manufacturing implementation, restructuring and process optimisation, management of quality, OHS and Asset Care. For two years he was a part owner/manager of a franchise supermarket in South Africa where he received considerable experience in the management of a retail store and the importance of customer relations and service.

Les recently retired from the Lion group where he was Manufacturing Excellence Leader for all Lion operations, working out of the James Boag Brewery site in Launceston. Les was responsible for initiating and implementing the Tracc manufacturing excellence system throughout the Lion group.

Les has significant experience in developing and delivering training and assessment in industry over some 40 plus years. He completed TAE40110 Certificate IV in Training and Assessment in 2016, through the action learning process, and MSS50312 Diploma of Competitive Systems and Practices, largely by RPL, based on his extensive experience.