Job purpose

The Warehouse Manager leads warehouse operations, including receiving, staging, put-away, inventory control, material flow, production support, and fulfillment. This role is responsible for developing a safe, efficient, scalable warehouse operation that supports manufacturing and customer needs while improving inventory accuracy, employee capability, operational performance, and continuous improvement.

The Warehouse Manager provides leadership to the warehouse team and evaluates processes, systems, technology, equipment, and facility improvements that strengthen safety, productivity, accuracy, and service. Transportation strategy, freight management, carrier relationships, and logistics network management remain under the Distribution/Logistics function.

Role Relationship and Decision Scope

Supervisor: Owns daily and weekly execution, work assignments, employee direction, training, inventory discipline, safety compliance, issue resolution, and escalation.

Manager: Owns department strategy, staffing and organizational planning, performance measures, budgets, major process and facility improvements, systems, technology, and capital investments.

Working Together: The Manager establishes department direction and priorities. The Supervisor translates those priorities into daily execution, provides frontline operational input, implements approved changes, and maintains established standards.

Duties and responsibilities

People Leadership and Team Development

• Lead, coach, and develop warehouse supervisors, leads, and team members, establishing clear expectations, accountability, training, cross-training, and performance standards.
• Build an engaged culture of safety, communication, ownership, teamwork, and continuous improvement where employees are empowered to contribute ideas and improve operations.

Warehouse Operations and Material Flow

• Direct daily warehouse operations, including receiving, staging, put-away, storage, material movement, production support, picking, fulfillment, housekeeping, and 5S.
• Oversee warehouse capacity, space planning, material flow, and high-volume receiving to ensure safe and efficient movement of inventory throughout the operation.
• Optimize warehouse layout, storage methods, staging, equipment utilization, and material flow between warehouse and manufacturing operations to improve safety, accuracy, efficiency, and scalability.

Inventory Control, Systems, and Data Accuracy

• Establish and maintain effective inventory controls for location management, inventory aging and rotation, cycle counting, discrepancy resolution, transaction accuracy, and material availability.
• Develop and monitor warehouse KPIs to improve inventory accuracy, productivity, material availability, space utilization, safety, and fulfillment performance.

Parts Fulfillment and Customer Experience

• Develop scalable parts fulfillment processes that support accurate storage, replenishment, picking, packing, order fulfillment, and continued growth of the parts resale business.

Systems, Technology, and Continuous Improvement

• Evaluate and implement warehouse systems, technology, automation, equipment, and process improvements that reduce manual work and improve safety, accuracy, productivity, and scalability.
• Lead warehouse improvement initiatives from assessment through implementation, training, change management, and performance follow-up, including future-state workflows and facility planning.

Safety, Compliance, and Quality

• Maintain a strong warehouse safety culture and ensure compliance with company policies, PPE requirements, material handling practices, equipment requirements, training, inspections, and applicable regulatory standards.
• Partner with Quality and other departments to address receiving discrepancies, damaged or nonconforming materials, labeling concerns, and warehouse-related process failures.

Cross-Functional Execution and Communication

• Partner cross-functionally with Operations, Production, Procurement, Logistics, Quality, Customer Service, Finance, and other departments to align priorities, resolve operational barriers, and support business needs.
• Communicate warehouse capacity, inventory availability, labor and equipment needs, operational risks, performance results, and improvement priorities to appropriate stakeholders and leadership.

Qualifications/Skills

Required: • 7+ years of progressive warehouse, distribution, materials, inventory, or operations experience within a manufacturing, industrial, assembly, or distribution environment.
• 3+ years of people leadership experience, including coaching, performance management, employee development, and accountability for warehouse employees.
• Strong knowledge of warehouse operations, inventory control, material flow, fulfillment, warehouse layout, and material handling practices.
• Demonstrated ability to improve operational processes, analyze performance, develop KPIs, and lead continuous improvement initiatives.
• Working knowledge of ERP/WMS, inventory management systems, warehouse technology, and system-based transaction controls.
• Strong leadership, communication, organizational, problem-solving, and cross-functional collaboration skills.
• High level of initiative, curiosity, organization, follow-through, and ownership; comfortable leading both daily operations and long-term improvement projects.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Outlook and Excel.

Preferred: • Experience with industrial, bulky, heavy, containerized, or cylinder-related inventory and operations.
• Experience implementing or improving WMS, barcoding, automation, warehouse layouts, racking, or material handling systems.
• Experience supporting B2B parts, aftermarket, eCommerce, or small-parts fulfillment.
• Lean, 5S, Six Sigma, APICS/ASCM, OSHA, forklift trainer, or related certifications.

What success looks like

• An engaged, accountable warehouse team operating with clear expectations and consistent processes.
• Reliable inventory accuracy, visibility, material flow, and fulfillment performance.
• Improved efficiency and scalability through better processes, systems, technology, equipment, and warehouse design.
• A sustainable warehouse operation positioned to support production needs, business growth, and an excellent customer experience.

Working conditions

Warehouse and office environment in an industrial operation. This position will spend time in warehouse, dock, staging, inventory, and production-adjacent areas and may be exposed to forklifts and other material handling equipment, truck/container traffic, noise, temperature fluctuations, heavy materials, and plant operations. The role may also require movement between warehouse and manufacturing areas, including current cross-street coordination. Personal protective equipment may be required, including but not limited to safety glasses, ear plugs or hearing protection, high-visibility apparel, gloves, and closed-toe shoes that may be steel-toed or metatarsal.

Please reach out to Express Employment Professionals North Aurora at 630-429-9113