Field Inventory Manager

About the Role

Responsible for the management of branch inventory at assigned locations. The Field Inventory Manager reviews associated data, recommends areas for improvement, and leads projects to establish strategy ensuring the availability of materials, maintenance of inventory, and operational/logistic efficiencies. They coordinate and integrate MRP parameters according to changing trends and challenges among suppliers, manufacturers, distributors, and customers, identifying opportunities to improve efficiency, effectiveness, and capabilities of the supply chain. Focused on continuous improvement of the movement of materials through distribution processes and the establishment of key performance metrics and benchmarks to monitor actual performance against goals.

Responsibilities

• Inventory Management
  • Manage supply chain and inventory responsibilities in assigned districts, including inventory planning with branch locations.
  • Assist in setting LP/OP, Min-Max, Stock/Non-Stock status.
  • Coordinate inventory activity and planning for turn-around and new account on-boarding with Sales, Operations, and Procurement.
  • Review and manage Field Inventory Requests for assigned geographic area and Branch Operations.
  • Develop and execute activities to minimize excess and obsolete inventory.
  • Serve as cross-functional coordinator among multiple sites to standardize and simplify practices.
  • Support setup and system requirements for customer VMI.
  • Coordinate activities with other Field Inventory Managers and the corporate supply chain department to standardize practices and processes.
• Process Development & Continuous Improvement
  • Identify opportunities for improvement in supply chain-related processes and methods.
  • Create workflows to drive business results such as cash flow, inventory turns, and productivity.
  • Streamline activity related to inventory warehousing, logistics, and stock planning.
  • Benchmark and identify best practices to create and apply universal standards.
  • Develop process architecture and collaborate with IT to implement technical solutions.
• Data Analytics
  • Perform data mining, analysis, synopsis, and proposals.
  • Identify problem areas and apply problem-solving techniques.
  • Evaluate historical information and data trends to drive planning and forecast strategy.
  • Conduct cost-benefit and ROI analysis.
  • Create data models, including graphs, charts, diagrams, and pivot tables for large, multi-dimensional data sets.
• Reporting
  • Identify critical aspects to be measured and efficient methods to facilitate improvement.
  • Establish and manage primary metrics/KPIs and relationships.
  • Generate and own associated reporting.
• Other duties as assigned.

Skills and Qualifications

• Supply chain management/inventory control acumen, including forecasting and planning.
• Robust organizational and planning skills with documentation rigor.
• Ability to drive change (process and culture) initiatives as a self-starter and lead cross-functional teams.
• Effective interpersonal skills and ability to influence.
• Mix of mathematical and analytical skills with strategic and critical thinking.
• Autonomy to summarize and present data, synopses, action/project plans to influence peers and management.
• Strong verbal/written communication and networking skills.
• Experience with quality tools and techniques to drive problem-solving and continuous improvement (e.g., 8D, 5Y).
• Involvement in implementation of Lean 5S, Six Sigma, and other business improvement projects.

Requirements

• Approximately 30%-40% travel required.
• Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, Logistics, or Mathematics.
• 5+ years of relevant supply chain experience, ideally within a multi-location, industrial distribution environment.
• APICS or Supply Chain Management certifications preferred.
• Proficiency with MS Office Suite, SQL, and other advanced analytical models.

Benefits

• Competitive compensation plan.
• Health benefits: medical, dental, vision, short-term and long-term disability.
• 401k with company match.
• Paid time off.