Assistant Manager - Operation Excellence

MR DIY International; Seri Kembangan; Hybrid; MYR 416,000 - 555,000; Full time

Job summary

MR DIY International is seeking an Operation Excellence Assistant Manager to drive transport cost and service optimization across the Europe region. The role also focuses on ASRS planning, continuous improvement, vendor negotiations, and SOP standardization across multiple countries.

You will mentor the Operations Excellence Executive, coordinate with country PICs and the Planning & Project Management team, and lead KPI frameworks to improve productivity and cost efficiency.

Qualifications

• 5–7 years in warehouse or supply chain operations with cost management exposure.
• Experience negotiating with transporters and managing transport SLAs.
• Experience with warehouse automation (ASRS) and Lean/Six Sigma initiatives.
• Proficient in Excel; able to track and analyze KPIs.

Responsibilities

• Identify, evaluate, and onboard transporters to strengthen cost competitiveness.
• Negotiate transporter rates and contract terms for value and service quality.
• Monitor and improve transporter SLA performance and drive corrective actions.
• Lead ASRS planning, vendor coordination, and automation cost modelling.
• Standardize SOPs and drive regional process improvements across countries.
• Mentor the Operation Excellence Executive and maintain KPI trackers.

Skills

Lean/Six Sigma

Stakeholder management

Vendor negotiation

Data analysis

Cross-functional collaboration

Tools

Excel

WMS

DWG

Canva

Job description

Position Overview:

The Operation Excellence Assistant Manager leads transport cost and service optimization, warehouse automation (ASRS) planning, and continuous improvement initiatives for the Europe region. Key focus areas include strengthening transporter cost competitiveness and SLA performance, assessing owned-fleet versus outsourced transport options, evaluating ASRS opportunities across regional warehouses, and driving the regional process improvement agenda. This role bridges strategic planning with hands‑on execution, driving vendor/transporter negotiation, business case development, and SOP standardization across countries, while mentoring the Operation Excellence Executive and coordinating with country Operation PICs and the Planning & Project Management team.

Key Responsibilities:

1. Transport Cost & Service Optimization

• Identify, evaluate, and onboard additional transporters across the region to strengthen cost competitiveness and reduce reliance on any single provider.
• Negotiate transporter rates and contract terms to secure competitive pricing without compromising service quality.
• Monitor and improve transporter SLA performance (on-time delivery, damage/loss rates, responsiveness) and drive corrective actions with underperforming providers.
• Own the transport cost and SLA performance tracker, and benchmark transporters against each other and against market rates.
• Conduct feasibility and cost-benefit analysis on owning a dedicated truck fleet versus outsourcing transport, and present recommendations to management.
• Coordinate with country Operation PICs to align transport changes with warehouse and outbound operations.

2. Warehouse Automation (ASRS) Planning

• Validate ASRS (Automated Storage & Retrieval System) capacity cases for warehouses across the region where automation is being considered.
• Shortlist and evaluate potential sites and facility options against automation and capacity requirements.
• Produce first draft ASRS solution designs and business cases for management decision making.
• Partner with vendors and system integrators on automation feasibility, layout, and cost modelling.
• Track project milestones for ASRS initiatives and elevate risks to the Planning & Project Management team.

3. Process Improvement & Operational Excellence

• Lead continuous improvement (Lean/Six Sigma-style) initiatives across warehouse operations to improve productivity, accuracy, and cost efficiency.
• Standardize SOPs and operational best practices across countries, and drive their rollout and adoption.
• Own the regional operational KPI framework (productivity, accuracy, cost, service level), benchmark performance across countries, and identify improvement opportunities.
• Conduct root cause analysis for recurring operational issues and lead corrective and preventive action plans.
• Identify opportunities for process automation and digitization beyond transport and ASRS (e.g. inbound, picking, replenishment, inventory control).
• Lead process design reviews for new warehouse setups, expansions, and relocations to embed best practices from day one.
• Drive change management and training for new processes, tools, and systems introduced across the region.

4. Cross-Functional & Stakeholder Coordination

• Collaborate with the Planning & Project Management team to align Operation Excellence initiatives with the regional project roadmap.
• Coordinate with country warehouse teams to ensure smooth adoption of transport changes, automation initiatives, and process improvements.
• Present business cases, cost/performance analysis, and project updates to management for decision-making.

5. Team Leadership

• Guide and mentor the Operation Excellence Executive in data gathering, tracker maintenance, and analysis.
• Review and validate outputs such as KPI trackers, business cases, process audits, and vendor comparisons prepared by the Executive.

Requirements:

• Minimum 5-7 years of experience in warehouse/supply chain operations, with exposure to transport/logistics cost management, warehouse automation, or continuous improvement projects.
• Experience negotiating with transporters/carriers and managing transport SLAs is highly preferred.
• Experience conducting cost-benefit or make-vs-buy analysis (e.g. owned fleet versus outsourced transport) is an advantage.
• Experience with warehouse automation (ASRS) projects, or leading process improvement, Lean/Six Sigma, or operational excellence initiatives in a warehouse or supply chain setting.
• Familiarity with WMS systems and vendor evaluation processes.
• Proficient in Excel and project tracking tools; exposure to DWG software or Canva is a plus.
• Good command of English (spoken and written); proficiency in other languages is a plus.
• Willing to travel across the Europe region (Turkey, Spain, Poland) as required.

Soft-skills and Competencies:

• Strong strategic and analytical mindset with the ability to build business cases from data.
• Excellent stakeholder management and cross-country coordination skills.
• Vendor negotiation and evaluation experience.
• Structured problem‑solving mindset with a track record of driving process improvement.
• Adaptable and comfortable working across multiple countries and cultures.
• Leadership and mentoring capability.