Operations Associate, Midlands, UK

Modern Milkman; Lichfield; On-site; GBP 29,000 - 36,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

EMI Share Options

25 days holiday

6% company pension (matched)

Life Insurance

Health & wellbeing budget

Cycle to work

Job summary

Modern Milkman is seeking an Operations Associate to provide cross-site operational leadership across Midlands hubs, ensuring stock integrity, compliance, and smooth route execution. You’ll step up to cover Hub Associate/Manager duties and support driver performance while maintaining service standards across Wellingborough, Lichfield and Loughborough.

You will act as a flexible operational utility, plugging gaps, reinforcing procedures, and promoting improvements.

Qualifications

• Experience in fulfilment, warehouse, or last-mile delivery operations.
• Strong understanding of stock control, compliance, and yard operations.
• Confident stepping up into leadership responsibilities when required.
• Comfortable working across multiple sites.
• Strong organisational and problem-solving skills in live operational settings.
• Proactive, disciplined, and solutions-focused mindset.

Responsibilities

• Multi-site operational coverage across Midlands hubs, including coverage of Hub Associate and Hub Manager duties.
• Ensure compliance, safety, and documentation standards across hubs.
• Support recruitment, onboarding, and coaching of drivers across sites; promote safe driving behaviours.
• Lead shift operations during manager absence and ensure route coverage and dispatch readiness.
• Assist with rota execution and identify coverage risks early; act as escalation point for issues.

Skills

Fulfilment ops

Warehouse ops

Last-mile delivery

Stock control

Yard operations

Leadership experience

Driving licence

Job description

Hours- 16:00 to 00:30 - Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday (6 days per week)

The Role

The Operations Associate is a multi-site operational lead supporting performance, stock control, and compliance across our Midlands hubs. Sitting between Hub Associate and Hub Manager, this role provides stability across sites and steps up to lead shifts when required.

Working across Wellingborough, Lichfield and Loughborough, this role ensures operational continuity by covering absences at both Hub Associate and Hub Manager level, reinforcing standards, and promoting best practice across the region.

The Function

Fulfilment is the heartbeat of our operation, ensuring every order reaches the doorstep safely, on time, and in full. The Operations Associate strengthens this foundation by providing cross-site resilience, leadership cover, and operational discipline.

This role acts as a flexible operational utility, plugging gaps, maintaining stock integrity, upholding compliance standards, and supporting driver performance to protect OTIFIQ and cost control.

Duties and Areas of Responsibilities

Multi-Site Operational Coverage

• Work across all Midlands hubs each week, providing consistent operational support.
• Cover Hub Associate duties during absences, including stock handling, picking, yard management, and compliance checks.
• Step up to cover Hub Manager responsibilities during holidays or sickness, ensuring smooth shift leadership and delivery execution.
• Provide additional capacity during peak periods, recruitment gaps, or change rollouts.
• Support movement of stock between sites to maintain route readiness and minimise shortages.

Compliance & Safety Standards

• Identify recurring stock discrepancies and implement corrective actions.
• Champion daily compliance routines (vehicle checks, food safety, H&S controls).
• Support audits and ensure documentation standards are consistently met across hubs.
• Reinforce defect reporting discipline and proactive risk identification.
• Lead shift operations when covering Hub Manager absence, ensuring dispatch readiness and full route coverage.
• Support rota execution and address coverage risks early.
• Act as escalation point for operational issues before they impact OTIFIQ.

Driver Champion & Best Practice

• Support recruitment, onboarding and coaching of new drivers across sites.
• Promote safe driving behaviours and consistent OTIFIQ standards.
• Share best practice between hubs and support implementation of operational improvements.
• Act as a role model for accountability, discipline, and performance culture.

KPIs

• Contribution to Hub OTIFIQ (99%+ target support)
• Route coverage stability during absences
• Audit & compliance completion rate (100%)
• Reduction in repeat operational failures

Skills breakdown

• Experience in fulfilment, warehouse, or last-mile delivery operations.
• Strong understanding of stock control, compliance, and yard operations.
• Confident stepping up into leadership responsibilities when required.
• Comfortable working flexibly across multiple sites.
• Strong organisational and problem-solving skills in live operational settings.
• Proactive, disciplined, and solutions-focused mindset.
• Valid UK driving licence.
• Accountability – owns outcomes across sites.
• Flexibility – adapts quickly to different hubs and teams.
• Leadership Presence – calm and credible when stepping up.
• Operational Discipline – reinforces standards consistently.
• Continuous Improvement – identifies gaps and drives fixes.
• 25 days holiday + 8 bank holidays (5 flexible) + your birthday off
• EMI Share Options
• Up to 6% matched company pension
• Access to thanksBen for core & flexible benefits including retailer and cinema discounts
• Employee discount on Modern Milkman products
• Enhanced parental leave & pay
• Life Insurance
• Cycle to work scheme & Octopus EV salary sacrifice
• £300 L&D budget per year
• £300 health & wellbeing budget
• £300 workwear allowance to help get you set up
• In-person company events
• Endless product samples - our category managers love a taste test
• 2x volunteering days and team volunteering days
• Loads of company clubs to join, from book clubs, running, cycling and anything else you fancy

Interview process

Screening call with people team -> Hiring manager interview -> Operational scenario / technical conversation -> Ways of working conversation

Due to the high volume of applications, it might take us a little longer to get back to you. Most feedback will be shared via email, and we make every effort to provide specific and constructive insights whenever possible.

We strongly encourage candidates of all different backgrounds and identities to apply. We believe that our team is stronger with a variety of perspectives.