VP, Distribution Operations

Coca Cola Beverages Florida•Tampa, FL

10d•Onsite

About The Position

The VP, Distribution Operations establishes the vision, strategy, and operating model for Coke Florida’s distribution network, including distribution centers, warehouse operations and automation, inventory management, fleet operations, and field logistics. The role drives enterprise-wide operational excellence, productivity, asset utilization, and development of future distribution capabilities while ensuring service, safety, inventory, financial, and customer objectives are consistently achieved. The VP leads the evolution of the distribution network by integrating people, processes, technology, automation, fleet, and infrastructure to build a scalable, efficient, and resilient operation that supports continued growth. This executive serves as the senior warehouse and distribution advisor to executive leadership and leads a large, geographically dispersed organization across multiple facilities and levels of leadership. The role owns distribution operating budgets, labor spending, fleet expenses, productivity commitments, and financial forecasts. It partners across the company to align distribution capabilities with customer and commercial needs, develop future organizational and technical capabilities, and ensure compliance with applicable safety, environmental, and governance requirements.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Supply Chain Management, Logistics, Operations Management, Engineering, Business, or a related discipline.
15+ years of progressive leadership experience in distribution, automation, logistics, warehouse operations, fleet, transportation, or supply chain operations.
7+ years of progressive leadership leading large, complex, high-volume, multi-site operations, with responsibility for multiple leadership levels.
Demonstrated experience leading operations within highly automated warehouses and environments involving AGVs, Vertique warehouse automation, WMS, TMS and ERP, fleet management systems, supporting analytics, or ASRS.
Experience with system-driven workflows, throughput management, and operational recovery in automated warehouse environments.
Demonstrated success leading operational transformation, productivity improvement, automation, and network optimization.
Strong financial acumen and experience managing significant operating and capital budgets.

Nice To Haves

CPG, beverage, manufacturing, distribution, or retail supply chain experience.
Master’s degree in Business, Supply Chain, Engineering, or a related field.
Lean Six Sigma and/or APICS/ASCM certification.
Experience with warehouse automation, inventory optimization, fleet management, SAP, Manhattan WMS, Blue Yonder, labor management systems, and Power BI.
Experience managing statewide or multi-state operations.
Previous Coca-Cola System or bottler experience.

Responsibilities

Develop and execute the enterprise warehouse and distribution strategy aligned with company goals, customer requirements, and operational priorities.
Serve as the senior warehouse and distribution advisor to executive leadership.
Lead the long-term design, optimization, and evolution of the warehouse and distribution network.
Provide executive leadership for distribution centers, cross-docks, warehouse operations, warehouse automation, inventory management, fleet operations, and field logistics.
Establish enterprise operating standards, KPIs, performance expectations, and management routines that drive consistent execution and accountability.
Lead operating reviews, identify performance gaps, establish corrective actions, and drive continuous improvement.
Develop and execute the warehouse automation and distribution technology strategy, including operation of the Vertique/ASRS environment and related automated material-handling systems.
Lead deployment and optimization of automation and material-handling technologies to improve safety, capacity, productivity, service, and cost.
Develop a long-term distribution capability roadmap integrating facilities, automation, fleet, technology, labor, and capacity requirements.
Partner with Engineering, Technology, and Operations to implement and integrate new capabilities and deliver expected business results.
Evaluate emerging technologies and operating models to strengthen distribution capabilities and maintain competitive advantage.
Develop, test, and maintain network-wide contingency plans for system outages or capacity constraints.
Establish enterprise inventory strategy, governance, controls, and operating standards across the distribution network.
Improve inventory accuracy, product availability, freshness, shrink, damage, and asset accountability; establish ownership and accountability for inventory performance.
Partner with Manufacturing and Supply Chain teams to optimize inventory deployment and product flow throughout the network.
Develop and execute the enterprise fleet strategy supporting distribution and field operations.
Lead fleet operations, maintenance, asset reliability, utilization, and lifecycle management; improve fleet availability, preventive maintenance, equipment uptime, safety, and total cost of ownership.
Develop long-range fleet replacement and capital plans aligned with operational requirements and company growth.
Own distribution operating budgets, labor spending, fleet expenses, productivity commitments, and financial forecasts.
Drive productivity initiatives that improve operating margins, labor efficiency, asset utilization, and cost-per-case.
Lead business-case development for significant distribution, automation, fleet, and infrastructure investments and ensure investments deliver expected benefits.
Ensure product availability and distribution performance support customer expectations and commercial objectives.
Partner with Sales and Commercial leadership and with Manufacturing, Supply Chain, Engineering, Technology, Safety, Human Resources, Procurement, and Finance to deliver enterprise objectives.
Improve on-time delivery, order fulfillment, customer service, inventory accuracy, warehouse productivity, and fleet reliability.
Lead a large, geographically dispersed organization across multiple distribution facilities and levels of leadership.
Develop leadership succession pipelines and workforce strategies for current and future business needs.
Build a high-performance culture focused on accountability, associate development, customer service, and continuous improvement.
Develop organizational and technical capabilities for an increasingly automated and digitally enabled distribution network.
Ensure compliance with DOT, OSHA, environmental, company safety, and governance requirements.