Senior Manager, Transportation (Temperature-Controlled Logistics)

kinders; Walnut Creek (CA); On-site; USD 150,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

Kinder's is seeking an experienced Senior Manager, Temperature-Controlled Logistics to own the transportation strategy, 4PL partnership and carrier base behind our frozen and chilled foods.

You will partner with Supply Planning, Quality, Sales, Finance, co-manufacturers and internal Logistics Operations teams, reporting to the Senior Director, Transportation & Logistics Strategy.

Qualifications

• Experience developing and owning a multi-year temperature-controlled transportation strategy.
• Strong cross-functional leadership and collaboration with internal teams and partners.
• Proven ability to negotiate and manage 4PL relationships and carrier networks.

Responsibilities

• Develop and own the multi-year temperature-controlled transportation strategy.
• Design end-to-end refrigerated network across co-manufacturers and retailers.
• Shape mode and network decisions for refrigerated freight and capacity planning.
• Translate launches and seasonal peaks into proactive capacity plans.
• Lead governance of the 4PL partner, SLAs, and quarterly business reviews.

Skills

Transportation strategy

Cross-functional leadership

Vendor/4PL management

Education

Bachelor's degree in supply chain / logistics

Tools

Routing guide management

Cold-chain execution

Job description

BUILT ON FLAVOR. FUELED BY PEOPLE.

What's it like to work at Kinder's? Well, there's a lot of snacking and geeking out over what we all cooked over the weekend. Beyond that, there's also plenty of hard work. Because we don't just like flavor, we're obsessed with it.

With over 100 products sold nationwide, we're now a top-five brand in multiple flavor categories at Costco, Walmart, Whole Foods, and more. We're not your typical CPG company. Privately held and founder-led, we like to think of ourselves as a pirate ship in a sea of cruise ships . Our crew is adventurous and fearless. We chart our own course and chase big ideas to make food unforgettable.

As we expand globally and approach $1 billion in revenue, we need more smart-and-scrappy, flavor-obsessed people to come aboard. If you're looking for a place where you can see the real impact of your work... this is it! Every day, you'll be part of a journey to add flavor to millions of meals and lives.

About The Role

Kinder's is seeking an experienced Senior Manager, Temperature-Controlled Logistics to own the transportation strategy, 4PL partnership and carrier base behind our fastest-growing business: frozen and chilled foods.

We are a fast-growing company working hard to bring amazing flavor solutions that are as exciting and delicious as they are simple to use to our consumers, whether they are experienced cooks or first-timers in the kitchen. We are obsessed with quality and 100% committed to being the most innovative company in any market we serve. Our mission is to bring awesome flavor to consumers whenever and wherever they are looking for it, and in whatever they are looking for it in (seasonings, sauces, rubs, marinades, frozen favorites, or anything else we can come up with). We have experienced tremendous growth over the last 5 years, but we think we are just getting started.

Today, we have over 100 products sold nationwide at retailers including Costco, Walmart, Sam's Club, Whole Foods, Sprouts, Kroger, Safeway and many more. While we have been around for 80 years, we are now a top 5 brand in the U.S. in multiple flavor categories including seasoning blends, BBQ sauce, and wing sauce. To keep our momentum rolling, we need more passionate builders to join our team and help us reach every kitchen across the U.S. and maybe even the world.

How you’ll have an impact at Kinder’s: As the Senior Manager, Temperature-Controlled Logistics, you will be the single accountable owner of how our Frozen and Chilled products move – from co-manufacturers, through cold storage, to retail and club shelves across the country. This is a strategic role. You won’t: (…)

You will own the relationship with our temperature-controlled 4PL partner, set and govern the routing guide, lead our refrigerated carrier strategy, and own cold-chain integrity and food safety compliance in transportation. You will partner closely with Supply Planning, Quality, Sales, Finance, our co-manufacturers and our internal Logistics Operations and Analytics teams, and you will report to the Senior Director, Transportation & Logistics Strategy.

Key Responsibilities

Temperature-Controlled Transportation Strategy:

• Develop and own the multi-year transportation strategy for the Frozen and Chilled businesses, built to scale with rapid growth in volume, items and customers.
• Design the temperature-controlled network end to end - co-manufacturer pickups, cold storage and warehouse moves, and outbound to retail and club distribution centers - balancing service, cost, product integrity and resilience.
• Shape mode and network decisions for refrigerated freight, including multi-stop, consolidation and dedicated capacity where it creates advantage.
• Translate commercial plans, launches, promotions and seasonal peaks into refrigerated capacity plans well ahead of demand.
• Bring a point of view to cross-functional leaders on how temperature-controlled transportation can protect in-stock performance and enable growth.

4PL Partner Ownership:

• Serve as the accountable owner of our temperature-controlled 4PL relationship: scope of work, service level agreements, governance cadence and quarterly business reviews.
• Set clear expectations for what the partner executes day to day - tendering, appointment scheduling, temperature tracking, exception handling, carrier payment, freight audit and claims - and hold them accountable for delivering it.
• Negotiate and manage partner agreements, including service levels, service credits, cold-chain and food safety requirements, rate and cost transparency, data access and audit rights.
• Direct the partner to operate within the Kinder's routing guide and over Kinder's-contracted carriers, and push them for continuous improvement ideas, not just reports.
• Manage cold storage and other partners supporti