Senior Manager Distribution Operations

Work Schedule

Standard (Mon-Fri)

Environmental Conditions

Some degree of PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) required (safety glasses, gowning, gloves, lab coat, ear plugs etc.), Warehouse, Will work with hazardous/toxic materials

Job Description

As part of the Thermo Fisher Scientific team, you’ll discover meaningful work that makes a positive impact on a global scale. Join our colleagues in bringing our Mission to life every single day to enable our customers to make the world healthier, cleaner and safer. We provide our global teams with the resources needed to achieve individual career goals while helping to take science a step beyond by developing solutions for some of the world’s toughest challenges, like protecting the environment, making sure our food is safe or helping find cures for cancer.

The Senior Manager, Distribution – UK & Ireland provides strategic and operational leadership for Thermo Fisher Scientific’s distribution operations across the Loughborough (UK) and Clonee (Ireland) facilities.

Reporting to the Director of Distribution, this role carries full P&L accountability and leads service performance, cost optimisation, regulatory compliance, and operational excellence across both sites.

The role directly manages four operational leaders and is accountable for an overall workforce of approximately 45–65 employees. As the senior distribution leader for the UK & Ireland region, this position serves as the primary operational partner to the commercial organisation and plays a key role in enabling revenue growth, service excellence, and regulatory compliance.

Organisational Scope

• 4 direct reports (e.g., Warehouse Supervisors, Inventory Lead, Ireland Site Lead)
• 45–65 total employees across two sites
• £5m+ combined operating budget
• Multi-attribute distribution: Cold Chain, Dangerous Goods, Export, Non-Dangerous Goods
• Member of European distribution leadership network

Key Responsibilities

Strategic & Financial Leadership

• Own full P&L accountability for UK & Ireland distribution operations.
• Develop and execute annual operating plans aligned to service, cost, safety, and productivity targets.
• Lead through direct reports to deliver consistent performance across both sites.
• Drive cost-per-line reduction, labour productivity improvement, and working capital optimisation.
• Develop capital investment plans and manage infrastructure strategy.

Leadership & Organisational Effectiveness

• Lead and develop four direct-report leaders, ensuring clear accountability and performance standards.
• Build a high-performance, safety-first culture across both sites.
• Drive succession planning and leadership capability development.
• Lead change management initiatives including process redesign, system optimisation, and organisational improvements.
• Ensure effective communication and alignment across a matrix organisation.

Service & Commercial Partnership

• Ensure OTIF performance consistently meets or exceeds customer expectations.
• Serve as primary operational escalation point for UK & Ireland commercial leadership.
• Partner with Sales and Customer Service on growth initiatives and customer experience.
• Align capacity planning and forecasting to demand variability.

Operational Excellence & Continuous Improvement

• Champion PPI, Lean, and Six Sigma methodologies.
• Implement robust KPI dashboards and exception management processes.
• Standardise processes across UK & Ireland operations.
• Drive optimisation of layout, space utilisation, and automation opportunities.
• Leverage digital tools and WMS functionality to improve efficiency and visibility.

Regulatory, Quality & Safety

• Ensure full compliance with UK, Irish, EU, and corporate regulations.
• Maintain audit readiness and quality system adherence.
• Lead a strong safety culture with measurable safety performance improvements.

Experience & Qualifications

• Significant leadership experience in distribution, logistics, or supply chain operations.
• Experience leading leaders (multi-layer organisation).
• Demonstrated P&L accountability in a complex operational environment.
• Experience in regulated industries preferred.
• Strong track record of transformation and measurable operational improvement.
• Lean / Six Sigma / PPI certification preferred.
• Degree in Supply Chain, Logistics, Business Administration, or related discipline (or equivalent experience).