Director, Warehouse Engineering & Automation

MWI Animal Health; United Kingdom; Remote; GBP 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Cencora is seeking a Project Director for Warehouse Automation & Engineering to lead design, material flow, and project execution across facilities. This senior role partners with regional teams and external partners to deliver complex automation solutions on time and within budget.

The ideal candidate has extensive warehouse operations and project management experience, with strong leadership, communication, and analytical skills to drive multi-site implementations and major capital projects.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of experience in warehouse operations, distribution, logistics, inventory control, supply chain leadership or related field.
• 5+ years of experience in a management capacity.
• Bachelor's or Master's degree in supply chain management, logistics, operations management, business administration, industrial engineering or related field preferred.

Responsibilities

• Lead development of a project charter and design/implementation plans for warehouse automation.
• Manage overall budgets and timelines for capital equipment and external contracting support.
• Oversee supplier specifications, contract negotiations and plan execution.
• Coordinate internal teams and external trading partner resources across sites.
• Travel up to 75% as required.

Skills

Project management

Leadership

Communication

Analytical thinking

Presentation skills

Cross-functional collaboration

Problem solving

Organizational skills

Education

Bachelor's degree in related field

Master's degree in related field

Tools

Microsoft Project

Excel

Access databases

Word

AutoCAD

Job description

We're hiring the Project Director, Warehouse Automation & Engineering to join our Global Supply Chain team at Cencora.Under general direction of a senior-level Management, responsible for the overall management of the warehouse automation design, detailed material flow design and project execution according to an established project charter and project requirements documents of one to multiple projects at one time which can range in size, complexity and cross functional involvement. The projects will be for Cencora subsidiaries or its trading partners, and examples of the type of projects includes new facility design and construction, rework of existing facilities, new warehouse automation system and/or process implementations across multiple sites. **PRIMARY DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:*** Works closely with local and regional distribution management teams, Human Resources, Information Technology, Division Operations, Finance, Real Estate, other Cencora corporate functions and external trading partner teams if applicable to lead in the development of a project charter and manages project design and implementation plans according to the guidelines established in the project charter.* Manages overall project budgets and timelines to include capital equipment and external contracting support requirements.* Manages the development of supplier specifications, supports the contractual negotiations and oversees the execution of the plans outlined in the contracts.* Manages internal Cencora resources, consultants and other outsourced resources that perform work associated with items such as material handling design, systems design, building design and construction.* Coordinates with other internal project teams to ensure alignment.* Prepares on-going progress reports regarding progress against project plans and budgets.* Assists in the preparation of capital expenditure projects.* Responsible for project completion including construction/installation, inspection, testing, training, and start up.* May directly manage Cencora associates that work on the projects which include expense report review, performance evaluations, goal setting and review, etc.* Willing to travel up to 75% of the time.* Performs related duties as assigned..**EXPERIENCE AND EDUCATIONAL REQUIREMENTS:*** Bachelor's degree in supply chain management, logistics, operations management, business administration, industrial engineering, or a related field, or equivalent experience required.* Master's degree in supply chain management, logistics, operations management, business administration, industrial engineering, or a related field, or equivalent experience preferred.* 10+ years of experience in warehouse operations, distribution, logistics, inventory control, supply chain leadership, and operational management, or a related field required.* 5+ years of experience in a management capacity required. **MINIMUM SKILLS, KNOWLEDGE AND ABILITY REQUIREMENTS:*** Thorough knowledge, understanding and experience in fundamental warehouse design, material handling equipment and systems; knowledge of warehouse operations management and systems functionality* Demonstrated project management and leadership skills for multiple, large capital projects.* Ability to communicate effectively both orally and in writing; ability to communicate (and work) effectively with people from different technical and business backgrounds, acting as a liaison, understanding and appreciating different perspectives and translating into terms necessary for any group or individual to understand.* Ability to lead dynamically and energize multidiscipline work teams to learn and apply new skills and techniques to respond to business needs* Good analytical, conceptual and problem-solving skills to evaluate business problems and apply knowledge to identify appropriate solutions* Strong interpersonal skills* Strong presentation skills; ability to present and discuss strategies and technical information in a manner that establishes rapport, persuades others, and establishes understanding for technical and non-technical audiences* Strong organizational skills; attention to detail* Ability to resolve issues effectively and efficiently* Proficiency with project management tools such as Microsoft Project, Excel, Access databases, Word and AutoCad* Prior experience in either consulting, Six-Sigma, Lean Manufacturing or Kaizen is beneficial.