Operations Planning Data Analyst

Forward Air•Union City, CA

2h•$112,000 - $128,000•Onsite

About The Position

The Operations Planning Data Analyst is an embedded technical expert within a logistics operation, specializing in the utilization of WMS/TMS technologies, such as SAP Extended Warehouse Management (EWM), to extract, consolidate, and present operational data, such as productivity, labor, costs, etc., that improve efficiency and support decision-making. With a deep operational understanding, they are the analytical backbone of our service delivery – translating operational data into insights for leaders, executives, and clients. Unlike traditional IT/BI-centric analyst roles, they are tightly integrated into daily operations, supporting labor planning, priority setting, backlog management, and service performance, often in support of same-day decisions and outcomes.

Requirements

Undergraduate degree (or higher) in a related field from an accredited college or university preferred; High School Diploma or General Education Development (GED)/equivalent required.
3+ years’ experience in a third-party logistics (3PL) or contract logistics, manufacturing, or similar operations environment.
Hands-on experience with WMS/TMS technologies (SAP, Oracle, Manattan, Blue Yonder, etc.) in a warehouse or distribution center environment.
Expert-level proficiency with SAP Extended Warehouse Management (EWM); Experience translating SAP data into execution-focused operational reports.
Strong proficiency in Microsoft Power BI (Power BI Desktop, Power Query, Power BI Service).
Advanced Microsoft Excel skills (v/x lookups, macros, visualizations, etc.); SQL experience preferred.
Strong understanding of warehouse operations and KPIs, including exposure to workforce planning, capacity modeling, backlog recovery, etc.
Experience supporting daily operations planning or control tower functions preferred.
Strong written and verbal communication skills; comfortable translating data into insights for non-technical users.
Experience building customized, nuanced reporting and dashboarding for different stakeholder groups, including executives and clients.
Demonstrated discretion and confidentiality in handling and protecting sensitive information.
Proficient with common office technologies, including Windows PCs, Microsoft O365 (Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, etc.) and web conferencing (Teams, Zoom, Webex, etc.)
Comfort commuting to/from and working in a 100% on-site setting (listed in this posting), with travel for related meetings, events, and client engagements.

Responsibilities

Build, maintain, and enhance operations-centric dashboards and reporting with Microsoft Power BI and Excel, as needed, using WMS/TMS (in this case, SAP EWM) as the primary data source.
Develop operational data models that support fast, intuitive decision-making.
Improve report usability, refresh performance, and clarity for non-technical users.
Maintain documentation for operational metrics and reporting standards.
Identify opportunities to reduce manual reporting and streamline daily operational reviews.
Help standardize KPIs, dashboards, and reporting cadence across the assigned site(s).
Provide visibility across core operational metrics, such as inbound, outbound, returns processing, picking, packing, inventory, backlog, productivity, and Service Level Agreement (SLA) performance.
Validate all data products to ensure they reflect operational realities and support same-day execution rather than historical reviews, alone.
Partner with the Operations leaders on daily workload planning, volume vs. capacity analyses, and priority sequencing.
Leverage data to support task assignments and monitor execution, providing real-time updates as needed.
Provide end-of-day reporting highlighting planned vs. actual volumes, productivity, labor highlights, SLA adherence, exceptions, and recovery actions.
Prepare and distribute custom dashboarding/reporting to the Operations leaders, Executives, and clients as requested.
All other duties as assigned to meet evolving business needs.