Operations Supervisor, Logistics & Cold Chain

Orca Bio•Sacramento, CA

1d•$80,000 - $110,000•Onsite

About The Position

Orca Bio is a commercial-stage biotechnology company redefining the transplant process by developing next-generation cell therapies with the goal of providing significantly better survival rates with dramatically fewer risks. The Operations Supervisor, Logistics & Cold Chain Operations leads the teams responsible for the secure, compliant, and on-time movement of donor cells and cell therapy drug products between Orca Bio's Sacramento manufacturing sites and transplant centers nationwide. This is a hands-on people-leadership role that owns end-to-end operational readiness across two functions: the Logistics Specialist team, which coordinates live courier runs, disruption response, chain-of-custody, and vein-to-vein (V2V) performance; and the cold chain / packaging operations hourly team, which prepares, charges, and qualifies shippers and executes GMP packing and handover. This is a hands-on leadership role. Reporting to the Logistics Program Manager, the Operations Supervisor owns full operational accountability for their team — staffing and qualification currency, KPI performance, real-time disruption response, and continuous improvement — and is expected to be present and available for their team through the parts of the day that matter most. Each Operations Supervisor partners closely with their day-side/night-side counterpart to ensure consistent leadership and a clean handoff between teams. The ideal candidate is a calm, decisive operator who builds strong teams, thrives in a fast-paced regulated environment, and can move fluidly between strategic planning and real-time problem-solving when a shipment is at risk.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree and 5–7 years of relevant logistics or supply chain experience required.
2+ years of direct people-management experience, including hiring, scheduling, and performance management.
Proven success leading logistics and/or cold chain operations, preferably in a regulated environment.
Working knowledge of chain-of-custody requirements and cold chain handling of biological or pharmaceutical materials.
Proficiency in logistics tracking systems or software required.

Nice To Haves

B.S. in biology, life sciences, supply chain, or logistics preferred.
Cell/gene therapy, biologics, or other time- and temperature-sensitive supply chain leadership.
Managing a 24/7 or multi-shift operation with on-call coverage.
Cold chain qualification and packaging operations (e.g., Credo, dry shippers, temperature monitoring, TrakSYS or equivalent MES/asset systems).
Knowledge of IATA, DOT, and GMP/cGMP compliance; experience partnering with Quality on deviations and CAPAs.
Courier / 3PL program management.
Continuous improvement (Kaizen) , SOP development, and scaling operations in a startup or high-growth environment.

Responsibilities

Lead, develop, and retain a cross-trained logistics and cold chain team, setting clear expectations, standards, and accountability.
Be present and available for the team during active runs, handoffs, and coverage crunches, adjusting hours to when leadership presence matters most.
Balance workload across sites (SAC-01 / SAC-02) based on batch volume and operational demand.
Run structured handoffs with your counterpart Operations Supervisor so active runs, at-risk shipments, and open issues transfer cleanly between the day and night teams.
Own vein-to-vein (V2V) performance for the network; monitor KPIs, identify trends, and drive corrective and preventive action when targets are missed.
Oversee real-time coordination of active courier runs, ensuring proactive tracking of flights, weather, and disruptions.
Direct disruption and incident response: flight and hotel rebooking, itinerary and TSA letter re-issuance, negotiating with third parties to ensure minimal delays.
Partner with manufacturing, case management, and clinical scheduling to triage the impact of delays on batch and delivery timelines.
Ensure cold chain readiness across the operation, including Credo and dry-shipper charging, preparation, qualification, and recirculation.
Oversee GMP packing, asset checkout and batch assignment in TrakSYS, final handover, chain-of-custody execution, and shipping-condition confirmation.
Maintain adequate qualified shipper inventory and asset availability to meet forecasted batch demand.
Ensure temperature monitoring, data upload, and excursion response are handled promptly and documented correctly.
Ensure chain-of-custody (CoC) documentation, temperature data, and return-of-materials tracking are complete, accurate, and compliant.
Maintain compliance with GMP/cGMP, IATA, DOT, and applicable transport and cold chain regulations.
Partner with Quality on deviations, CAPAs, and audit readiness; ensure SOPs are current and consistently followed.
Update delivery times in OrcaLink and ensure V2V capture for KPI reporting.
Partner with the Logistics Program Manager in owning the Orca Porter courier program, including courier scheduling, flight and travel logistics, and performance tracking and optimization.
Partner in leading third-party (3PL) courier implementation, vendor relationships, and issue resolution.
Review and approve courier invoices, and manage cost and performance across airlines, travel providers, and 3PLs.
Oversee commercial site feasibility assessments and dry-run support for new and existing treatment centers.
Continuously evaluate and improve logistics and cold chain workflows to support operational scalability and commercial growth.
Contribute to and maintain training programs, SOPs, and qualification frameworks.
Support capacity planning, tooling, and process changes that increase reliability and throughput as volume grows.
Partners closely with Manufacturing, Quality, Clinical Scheduling, Commercial Case Management, and external donor and recipient organizations.
Represents Logistics & Cold Chain in operational planning, readiness reviews, and cross-functional projects.
Directly manage the Logistics Specialists on your team, and oversee the cold chain/packaging operations hourly team.
Own hiring, onboarding, scheduling, timekeeping approvals, performance management, coaching, and career development for your team across both functions.
Partner with your dayside/night-side counterpart Operations Supervisor to align standards, share status, and execute a clean, documented handoff so nothing falls between teams.
Maintain coverage and escalation paths for your team that protect V2V timelines without creating burnout or single points of failure.
Ensure every team member maintains current training and qualification (including courier run currency and packaging-operations certifications) and that records are audit-ready.
Be a visible, available escalation point for your team on non-routine transport and cold chain issues.