Warehouse Manager – Transportation & Freight Operations
Confidential Employer
An established transportation and logistics company is seeking an experienced, hands-on Warehouse Manager to lead a fast-paced warehouse operation. This position is responsible for the overall direction, coordination, productivity, safety, service quality, and performance of warehouse operations.
The Warehouse Manager will lead approximately 3 supervisors and 15–30 warehouse employees and work closely with Dispatch, Operations, and office personnel to ensure freight moves safely, accurately, and efficiently through the facility.
We are looking for a leader who is comfortable being present on the warehouse floor, developing supervisors, holding employees accountable, solving operational problems, and continuously identifying ways to improve service, safety, productivity, and cost control.
Key Responsibilities
- Lead, coach, and manage warehouse supervisors and employees.
- Oversee daily warehouse activities, including receiving, unloading containers, loading trucks, staging, storage, and outbound freight.
- Coordinate container unloading and truck-loading activities with Dispatch and other operational departments.
- Ensure freight is properly received, counted, measured, marked, documented, staged, and stored.
- Monitor operational performance, including unloading productivity, labor costs, loading times, and overtime.
- Prepare and manage daily work schedules and assign personnel based on workload and operational priorities.
- Review employee timekeeping and ensure hours are submitted accurately and timely.
- Enforce safety procedures for loading and unloading trucks, containers, equipment operation, warehouse activities, and yard operations.
- Maintain a clean, organized, professional, and safe warehouse and yard.
- Investigate freight shortages, overages, damages, and count discrepancies and ensure appropriate documentation and follow-up.
- Verify piece counts and maintain appropriate loss-prevention controls for high-value freight.
- Ensure container seal numbers are verified against applicable shipping documentation.
- Review freight manifests for accuracy, including proper documentation of overages, shortages, damages, seal numbers, and dates.
- Monitor refrigerated freight to ensure appropriate temperature-controlled handling.
- Monitor aging freight and ensure issues preventing delivery or movement are identified and addressed promptly.
- Ensure freight and storage pallets are properly marked, stored, and easily identifiable.
- Coordinate receiving and storage activities with office personnel to maintain accurate freight records.
- Identify weak or ineffective procedures and implement improvements that enhance service, safety, productivity, efficiency, and profitability.
- Communicate operational issues between the warehouse, Dispatch, office personnel, management, and customers.
- Report equipment repair, maintenance, and supply needs to management.
- Ensure the warehouse, yard, freight, equipment, gates, and designated secured areas are properly secured at the end of operations.
- Assign duties and special projects to warehouse personnel as operational needs require.
Leadership & People Management
This position has significant responsibility for the performance and development of the warehouse team.
Responsibilities include:
- Interviewing and selecting qualified warehouse employees.
- Training and developing supervisors and employees.
- Planning, assigning, and directing work.
- Setting clear expectations for productivity, attendance, safety, service, and conduct.
- Providing ongoing coaching and performance feedback.
- Completing employee performance evaluations timely and consistently.
- Recognizing strong performance and addressing performance deficiencies.
- Administering appropriate corrective action in accordance with company policy.
- Addressing employee concerns and assisting with the resolution of workplace issues.
- Maintaining appropriate staffing levels based on operational requirements.
- Recommending compensation adjustments when appropriate.
- Building accountability while maintaining a professional and respectful work environment.
Customer Service Expectations
Operational performance directly affects the customer experience.
The Warehouse Manager is expected to maintain a high standard of accuracy, timeliness, professionalism, and customer service.
When an operational issue could result in a delay, service failure, freight problem, or negative customer experience, the expectation is that the issue is identified and communicated immediately, allowing management sufficient time to respond with urgency and restore the expected service level.
The successful candidate will understand that preventing service failures is just as important as resolving them.
Safety, Compliance & Quality
The Warehouse Manager is responsible for maintaining a safe and compliant operation and ensuring employees follow:
- Company policies and procedures
- Workplace conduct requirements
- Safety policies and procedures
- Workplace violence prevention requirements
- Harassment prevention requirements
- Quality-management procedures
- Freight-handling and loss-prevention procedures
- Applicable federal, state, and local laws and regulations
The expectation is to maintain a workplace that is safe, professional, respectful, productive, and customer-focused.
QualificationsEducation & Experience
- High school diploma or GED required.
- Previous warehouse, transportation, freight, distribution, or logistics experience required.
- Previous supervisory or management experience required.
- Experience managing supervisors and a warehouse workforce strongly preferred.
- Experience in freight forwarding, trucking, LTL/LCL, container freight, distribution, or transportation operations highly desirable.
- Experience managing a workforce of approximately 15–30 employees is a plus.
Knowledge & Skills
- Strong leadership and employee-management skills.
- Ability to lead multiple supervisors and operational workgroups.
- Strong problem-solving and decision-making abilities.
- Ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment.
- Ability to investigate freight discrepancies and identify root causes.
- Working knowledge of warehouse safety and freight-handling practices.
- Ability to monitor productivity, labor utilization, overtime, and operating performance.
- Strong organizational skills and attention to detail.
- Strong verbal and written communication skills.
- Ability to work effectively across departments.
- Basic proficiency with Microsoft Word and Excel.
- Ability to learn and use warehouse, transportation, and company information systems.
Math & Reasoning Skills
Must be able to:
- Perform basic mathematical calculations using whole numbers, fractions, and decimals.
- Calculate rates, ratios, percentages, and productivity measurements.
- Read and interpret operational reports.
- Apply sound judgment and common-sense reasoning to operational problems.
- Analyze situations, identify potential consequences, and take appropriate action.
Licenses & Certifications
- Valid driver's license.
- Forklift certification required or ability to obtain certification as required.
What Success Looks Like
A successful Warehouse Manager will operate a warehouse that is:
Safe | Accurate | Productive | Organized | Accountable | Customer-Focused
Success will be measured by the ability to:
- Maintain strong safety performance.
- Move freight accurately and efficiently.
- Meet productivity and loading/unloading expectations.
- Effectively manage labor and overtime.
- Maintain accurate freight documentation.
- Reduce operational errors and service failures.
- Develop capable and accountable supervisors.
- Address employee performance issues timely.
- Maintain a clean, organized, and secure operation.
- Communicate potential service problems before they become customer problems.
- Continuously identify opportunities to improve the operation.
Employment Information
This is a full-time management position with an established transportation and logistics organization.
The company is an equal opportunity employer and considers qualified applicants without regard to legally protected characteristics. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of the position.
Employment is at-will, meaning either the employee or employer may terminate the employment relationship at any time, with or without cause or notice, subject to applicable law.
Pay: $75,000.00 - $85,000.00 per year
Benefits:
- 401(k)
- 401(k) matching
- Dental insurance
- Employee assistance program
- Health insurance
- Health savings account
- Life insurance
- Paid time off
- Professional development assistance
- Referral program
- Retirement plan
- Tuition reimbursement
- Vision insurance
Work Location: In person
