Director, Operations

Job Description
Role Scope & Expectations

Serve as a key member of the leadership team, helping shape operational strategy, support growth, and drive the future direction of the NY DSD operation.
Partner closely with Sales, Customer Service, Finance, IT, Human Resources, and other cross-functional teams.
Directly manage the Senior Route Sales Manager and Warehouse Manager.
Provides indirect leadership for approximately 15 frontline employees across warehouse and delivery operations.
This is an on-site leadership role based in the Hunt's Point area of the Bronx, NY. The Director is expected to maintain a consistent in-person presence and work from the facility five days per week.
This position typically works an eight-hour schedule Monday through Friday during standard business hours (8:00am-4:00pm or 9:00am-5:00pm); however, flexibility is required to support business needs given the operation’s weekday hours from 4:00am to 7:00pm.
Evening and weekend work is infrequent but may be required during peak periods, staffing shortages, weather events, or other business disruptions.

Operational Leadership

Provide strategic and day-to-day leadership for warehouse, routing, and delivery operations.
Establish clear operating standards, performance expectations, and accountability.
Ensure warehouse and delivery operations meet customer service, safety, quality, and financial objectives.
Translate company strategy into actionable operating plans, staffing models, performance goals, and continuous improvement initiatives.
Evaluate facility, fleet, labor, and network capacity requirements to support current operations and future growth.
Serve as the senior operational leader during service disruptions, capacity constraints, weather events, and other business continuity challenges.
Partner with Human Resources on recruitment, retention, employee relations, performance management, training, and workforce planning.

Warehouse Operations

Oversee receiving, put-away, replenishment, picking, loading, returns, inventory control, sanitation and facility operations.
Partner with Warehouse manager to improve warehouse productivity, order accuracy, inventory accuracy, load quality, and on-time dispatch performance.
Establish labor planning and scheduling practices based on volume, seasonality, and customer requirements.
Reduce shortages, damages, write-offs, out-of-stocks, and product rotation issues.
Ensure warehouse layouts, equipment, and workflows support safe and efficient operations.
Maintain controls for product handling, lot tracking, expiration management, and FIFO/FEFO inventory practices.

Routing Management and Optimization

Monitor route adherence, delivery productivity, vehicle utilization, stop efficiency, and on-time performance.
Support the design and maintenance of efficient delivery territories, route structures, service frequencies, and customer delivery windows.
Partner with Sales and Customer Service to evaluate new accounts, service changes, delivery requirements, and customer-specific exceptions.
Partner in ensuring route plans appropriately balance customer service requirements, driver workload, vehicle capacity, geography, and regulatory constraints.
Maintain fleet equipment in good working order, keeping up with routine maintenance and regulations.

Personnel Safety

Build and maintain a strong culture of safety throughout warehouse and delivery operations.
Monitor vehicle incidents, workplace injuries, safety observations, and compliance trends.
Lead corrective-action plans and preventive programs designed to reduce incidents and operational risk.
Ensure employees receive appropriate safety, equipment, vehicle, and process training.

Food Safety & Quality

Lead and maintain food safety, quality, and regulatory compliance programs across DSD operations, including ownership of the Safe Quality Food (SQF) Program.
Drive compliance with food safety standards, operational controls, employee training requirements, and audit readiness.
Lead investigations, corrective actions, and resolution of food safety and SQF non-conformances.
Coordinate internal, customer, regulatory, and third-party audits, including successful completion of the annual SQF certification audit.

Qualifications
7+ years of progressively responsible experience in distribution, transportation, warehouse, or logistics operations.
Significant experience managing food warehouse operations required.
Direct store delivery (DSD) experience preferred.
5+ years of experience leading managers and frontline operational teams.
Strong analytical and problem-solving/strategic planning skills with the ability to convert data into actionable decisions.
Experience with warehouse management systems, routing platforms, transportation management systems, telematics, and delivery technology.
Strong communication, leadership, and cross-functional collaboration skills.
Ability to work on-site five days per week.
Occasional overnight travel, as needed.