International Warehouse Manager

AirLife•Glendale, AZ

11d•Onsite

About The Position

The International Warehouse Manager leads the Pickers, Finishers, and Coordinators responsible for AirLife’s International warehouse operations at its Phoenix (PHX) site, overseeing processes from receiving through shipping. The role ensures accurate, timely, and compliant fulfillment of International medical device orders to customers worldwide, including export documentation and coordination with carriers, freight forwarders, and Transportation. It monitors operational metrics and service-level agreements, leads continuous improvement initiatives, and maintains a safe workplace that meets OSHA and company standards. This is a hands-on leadership position in a fast-paced environment. The manager plans staffing and workflows, develops team members, coordinates with internal teams and external shipping partners, and oversees operational performance. The position also supports warehouse layout and space utilization, monitors backorders and aging orders, analyzes performance data, maintains current work instructions through document-control processes, and presents performance and corrective actions to the Director of Distribution and senior leadership. Occasional travel may be required, less than 10% of the time.

Requirements

At least 5 years of experience in warehouse or distribution operations, including at least 3 years in a supervisory or management role.
Experience managing international or export order fulfillment.
A track record of meeting backorder, SLA, and service-level KPIs, with demonstrated continuous improvement results.
Knowledge of warehouse operations, including receiving, inventory control, picking, finishing, and shipping.
Knowledge of international shipping and export processes, including commercial invoices, packing lists, Incoterms, customs and trade compliance, and coordination with customs brokers and freight forwarders.
Team leadership and workforce-planning skills, including scheduling, coaching, mentoring, and performance management.
Ability to work collaboratively with global cross-functional teams across multiple time zones.
Knowledge of continuous improvement methods and structured, data-driven problem solving.
Knowledge of warehouse equipment troubleshooting, building systems, and preventive maintenance.
Familiarity with OSHA requirements and workplace safety standards.
Vendor, carrier, and contractor management skills.
Strong organizational, analytical, communication, follow-up, and problem-solving skills.
Ability to manage time, priorities, and projects to meet deadlines.
Working knowledge of WMS/ERP systems and inventory accuracy practices, including cycle counting and lot/serial traceability.
Proficiency in Microsoft Excel.
Flexibility to travel occasionally as business needs require, less than 10% of the time.
Bachelor’s degree in Supply Chain, Logistics, Business Management, Facilities Management, or a related field preferred; an equivalent combination of education and experience will be considered.

Nice To Haves

Lean Six Sigma Green Belt or Black Belt and/or Lean CI Certification.
Familiarity with quality-system and regulatory requirements for medical device distribution, such as FDA 21 CFR Part 820 and ISO 13485.
Experience in medical device, pharmaceutical, or other FDA-regulated distribution, including lot/serial tracking and controlled-environment storage.
Bachelor’s degree in Supply Chain, Logistics, Business Management, Facilities Management, or a related field.

Responsibilities

Provide direction, coaching, and performance management to develop the team and support achievement of company goals.
Align team objectives with company priorities, promote accountability, and ensure compliance with policies and values.
Participate in recruitment and support fair treatment in disciplinary processes.
Promote continuous improvement, employee engagement, inclusion, career development, cross-training, and succession planning.
Manage the team’s budget responsibly.
Oversee daily International warehouse operations at the PHX site, including receiving, put-away, storage, picking, finishing, packing, staging, and outbound shipping.
Ensure International orders are processed accurately and shipped on time; prioritize and resolve order issues.
Coordinate export shipments with customs brokers and ensure commercial invoices, packing lists, labels, and other export paperwork are complete and accurate.
Lead, train, schedule, coach, and manage the International warehouse team.
Plan labor, shift coverage, and workflows to meet order volumes, cutoffs, deadlines, peak periods, and customer-specific requirements.
Maintain a clean, organized warehouse that complies with safety and operational standards.
Support layout optimization, space utilization, and workflow design for International product flows.
Coordinate with Transportation on routing, mode selection, consolidation, and export documentation requirements.
Manage carrier and freight forwarder relationships, including pickup schedules, service issues, claims, and performance reviews.
Partner with Customer Service on order status, expedites, shortages, and customer escalations.
Coordinate with Quality and Inventory Control to support compliant International shipments.
Monitor KPIs and SLAs, including order accuracy, on-time shipment, order cycle time, fill rate, inventory accuracy, and productivity.
Monitor backorders and aging orders daily, prioritize releases, and escalate constraints to Planning, Procurement, and Customer Service.
Analyze performance data to identify trends, root causes, and improvement opportunities.
Build and review dashboards and reports, and present performance and corrective actions to the Director of Distribution and senior leadership.
Lead continuous improvement projects using methods such as Lean, Six Sigma, Kaizen, and 5S.
Use structured, data-driven problem solving and maintain current standardized work instructions through established document-control processes.
Support cost reduction, productivity improvements, and operational excellence initiatives.
Uphold company values, promote quality and safety, treat people with respect and dignity, and contribute to a positive team environment.
Use time and company resources efficiently and ensure policies and guidelines are implemented and followed.
Adjust schedules or work extended hours when needed to meet operational needs.

Benefits

Medical coverage
Dental coverage
Vision coverage
401(k)
Paid time off
Paid holidays
Bereavement leave
Employee Assistance Program resources
Medical leave benefits
Certain positions may be eligible for bonus, commission, or other incentive compensation