The Distribution Manager provides overall leadership for a substantial distribution operation or department and is accountable for the safe, efficient, accurate, and cost-effective movement, storage, handling, and distribution of materials and finished goods. The role leads and integrates warehouse and high-bay storage operations, inventory and material flow, order picking and staging, loading and shipping, and inbound and outbound transportation activities across applicable modes, including Conestoga and conventional trailers, vans, railcars, and shipping containers used for ocean transport.The Distribution Manager is accountable for safety, people leadership, customer service, inventory integrity, product quality, operational performance, cost management, and continuous improvement. The role establishes departmental priorities, operating plans, workforce requirements, performance objectives, and resource allocation aligned with plant and business requirements and leads primarily through subordinate leaders.The position develops organizational capability and ensures the Distribution function has the people, processes, equipment, systems, capacity, and operating discipline necessary to achieve current and forecast business requirements. The Distribution Manager works extensively across functions and with external transportation and service providers to ensure effective material and product flow while continuously improving safety, service, quality, productivity, inventory accuracy, and cost performance.City: Lexington (US) North Carolina
Contract Type: Full-time
Job-Code: 7223
Department: Materials Management and Logistics
RESPONSIBILITIESJOB FUNCTIONS: (Job functions include but are not limited to the following)
- Provide overall leadership for Distribution operations with accountability for safety, people, service, inventory integrity, product quality, operational performance, cost, and continuous improvement.
- Lead primarily through Supervisors, Senior Supervisors, Associate Managers, and/or other subordinate leaders and build an effective leadership structure capable of consistently delivering departmental objectives.
- Establish departmental priorities, operating plans, workforce requirements, performance objectives, and resource allocation aligned with production, customer, plant, and business requirements.
- Lead and integrate warehouse, high-bay storage, inventory and material flow, picking, staging, shipping, loading, transportation, rail, and container activities within the scope of responsibility.
- Ensure daily warehouse and shipping activities are effectively coordinated with production requirements, customer demand, inventory availability, transportation schedules, warehouse capacity, and established service expectations.
- Ensure the safe and efficient receipt, movement, storage, handling, picking, staging, loading, and shipment of materials and finished goods.
- Ensure products are properly identified, handled, stored, picked, staged, packaged, loaded, secured, and documented to protect product quality and prevent damage throughout storage and transportation.
- Ensure accurate inventory and material movement transactions through applicable warehouse management and enterprise systems, including EWM or successor systems, and maintain effective cycle counting, reconciliation, and inventory control practices.
- Ensure shipping documentation, load verification, photographs, inventory transactions, and other required records are complete, accurate, and maintained in accordance with company requirements.
- Ensure effective transportation execution and site logistics, including dock and loading schedules, carrier arrival and departure, trailer and railcar placement, loading readiness, container coordination, and resolution of transportation-related operating issues.
- Establish and manage departmental KPIs and performance expectations, including applicable measures of safety, inventory accuracy, product damage, order and shipment accuracy, on-time loading and shipping, productivity, throughput, equipment utilization, carrier performance, service, and cost.
- Review operational performance and trends, identify root causes of performance gaps, and hold subordinate leaders accountable for effective corrective actions and sustained results.
- Evaluate warehouse capacity, staffing, equipment, transportation, material flow, and operating constraints and develop plans to support current and forecast business requirements.
- Develop and manage departmental budgets, labor plans, overtime, operating expenses, equipment requirements, and other assigned financial resources.
- Ensure warehouse equipment, material-handling equipment, scanning devices, and other operating resources are properly utilized, inspected, maintained, and available to support safe and efficient operations.
- Establish and maintain high standards of workplace organization, cleanliness, and 5S throughout Distribution operations.
- Lead safety within the function by ensuring compliance with established procedures, identifying and correcting unsafe conditions and behaviors, supporting incident investigations and corrective actions, and reinforcing accountability for safe work practices.
- Maintain compliance with applicable company policies, operating procedures, transportation requirements, environmental requirements, and federal, state, provincial, and local regulations applicable to Distribution activities.
- Lead workforce planning, talent assessment, recruiting, succession planning, employee development, organizational capability, and leadership development for the department.
- Establish clear expectations for subordinate leaders and employees and ensure effective coaching, feedback, recognition, performance management, and employee development throughout the organization.
- Lead significant continuous improvement and operational excellence initiatives and establish systems for sustained improvement in safety, service, inventory accuracy, quality, productivity, throughput, equipment utilization, and operating cost.
- Identify operational constraints, recurring problems, waste, and opportunities for improvement and ensure sustainable corrective actions and process improvements are implemented.
- Ensure effective management and escalation of significant inventory discrepancies, product damage, service failures, transportation disruptions, safety events, equipment constraints, system issues, staffing challenges, or other material operational risks.
- Participate in the evaluation and implementation of warehouse technology, automation, material-handling systems, equipment, facility changes, warehouse configurations, and capital projects.
- Develop strong partnerships with Production, Supply Chain, Customer Service, Sales, Procurement, Quality, Maintenance, Safety, Finance, Human Resources, Information Technology, and other plant and functional leaders and represent Distribution in business planning, operating reviews, projects, and cross-functional decision-making.
- Establish effective working relationships with transportation providers and other external partners and ensure service and operating expectations are effectively managed within the function's scope of responsibility.
- Ensure departmental policies, procedures, controls, training systems, and operating standards are current, effective, consistently applied, and compliant.
- Support business continuity and lead the operational response to changing production requirements, customer priorities, transportation disruptions, equipment constraints, inventory issues, staffing challenges, and other conditions affecting Distribution.
- Promote a culture of safety, accountability, customer focus, employee engagement, operational excellence, continuous improvement, and collaboration.
- All employees are authorized to stop work when unsafe conditions are present.
- Other duties as assigned.
SCHEDULE DEMANDS- Office Standard: 8-hour M-F assignment; however, employee must be willing to work alternate schedules occasionally; that may include early mornings, nights, and/or weekends and be punctual while doing so.
- As a leader supporting Distribution operations, must be willing and able to provide leadership support outside normal business hours as operational needs require, including nights, weekends, holidays, or during significant operational disruptions.
- Domestic and International Business travel required.
PHYSICAL DEMANDS- Sitting or standing for extended periods of time up to 8 hours.
- Occasional lifting up to 20 pounds.
- Regular movement between office and active warehouse, high-bay, shipping, loading, rail, and other Distribution operating areas.
- Working in industrial warehouse and distribution environments where temperature, noise, dust, vehicle traffic, material-handling equipment, and other operating conditions may vary.
- Reading computer screens or other electronic devices.
- Use of various office hand and electrical tools or equipment.
- Ability to safely access and observe Distribution operating areas as necessary to provide effective leadership, conduct audits, evaluate operating conditions, and respond to business needs.
QUALIFICIATIONSBACKGROUND / EXPERIENCE- Typically 10 to 15 years of progressively responsible experience in distribution, warehouse operations, logistics, shipping, manufacturing material flow, supply chain operations, or related fields.
- Significant people leadership experience, including demonstrated success leading through subordinate supervisors, managers, or other frontline leaders.
- Demonstrated accountability for a substantial operation, department, workforce, budget, or comparable business scope.
- Demonstrated experience managing complex warehouse and distribution operations involving inventory management, material flow, shipping, transportation execution, and operational performance.
- Demonstrated success improving safety, service, quality, productivity, inventory accuracy, cost, employee capability, or other significant operational outcomes.
- Demonstrated experience managing operational performance, allocating resources, leading process improvement, and working effectively across functional boundaries.
- Experience within complex manufacturing or industrial distribution operations strongly preferred.
- Experience with high-bay or automated warehousing and multi-modal transportation operations preferred.
SKILLS, EDUCATION, LICENSES, CERTIFICATIONS- Four-year degree preferred or compensatory closely related work experience required.
- Comprehensive knowledge of distribution and warehouse operations, inventory management, transportation execution, material flow, operational controls, workplace safety, and performance management.
- Strong knowledge of warehouse management and enterprise systems; SAP/EWM or comparable systems experience preferred.
- Strong financial and business acumen, including budgeting, labor management, cost analysis, resource planning, and evaluation of operational trade-offs.
- Ability to analyze operational and financial information, identify trends and business implications, establish priorities, and make sound decisions within established authority.
- Demonstrated ability to lead through others, develop leaders, build organizational capability, and establish accountability for sustained performance.
- Demonstrated ability to lead organizational change and translate plant and business requirements into operational strategy and execution.
- Strong continuous improvement, problem-solving, root-cause analysis, and change-implementation capability.
- Strong written, verbal, presentation, negotiation, interpersonal, and stakeholder-management skills.
- Ability to build effective relationships and influence decisions across functional and organizational boundaries.
- Applicable equipment certifications, safety training, and licenses may be required based on site operations and assigned responsibilities.
BENEFITSYour ContactJessica Ostroska, Talent Acquisition | EGGER North America
