Warehouse Operations Manager

With sales of €700m and 3,300 employees worldwide, Nemera is one of the leading global manufacturers of complex drug delivery systems for the pharmaceutical industry, offering to patients a broad product portfolio which includes inhalation devices, injection devices, nasal and dermal pumps and ophthalmic delivery devices. Nemera has built very long lasting, strong relationships with the leading global pharmaceutical companies globally by providing high quality development, industrialization and manufacturing services. Nemera develops and manufactures its own IP product platforms but also offers also fully custom developments and contract manufacturing.

Nemera’s manufacturing sites are located in the US, France, Germany, Brazil and Poland. The headquarters and Innovation Center for early device design and development are located in France (Lyon).

We have big ambitions at Nemera! We are growing our franchises and strengthening our capabilities.

Position Summary: The Warehouse Operations Manager provides leadership and operational direction for Nemera’s warehouse and internal logistics network supporting Buffalo Grove and Vernon Hills operations.  This position is responsible for maintaining safe, reliable, compliant, and efficient warehouse operations while developing a scalable operating model capable of supporting future business growth. Responsible for leading warehouse execution across multiple buildings and shifts, including receiving, shipping, material handling, warehousing, internal transportation, inventory control, and production replenishment.

Key Responsibilities / Essential Functions

Multi-Site Warehouse Operations

• Provide overall leadership for warehouse and internal logistics operations across multiple buildings and shifts, maintaining consistent operating standards while addressing site-specific requirements.
• Establish consistent operating standards across the warehouse network while ensuring each facility receives the support necessary for its specific manufacturing requirements.
• Ensure reliable service to Production, Quality, Engineering, Supply Chain, and other internal customers.
• Maintain effective warehouse coverage and leadership across all operating shifts.
• Provide operational oversight for: Receiving and putaway, Shipping and customer shipment execution,Material handling and production support, Raw material and finished goods warehousing, Production replenishment and material feeding ,Inter-building transfers and shuttle operations, Inventory movement and transaction execution, Transportation and any future third-party logistics activities
• Maintain alignment between physical material movement and SAP transactions, ensuring inventory movements are executed accurately and timely.
• Establish clear escalation processes for material shortages, shipment risk, inventory discrepancies, equipment issues, and operational interruptions.

Leadership & Daily Management

• Establish daily operating cadences that provide visibility to safety, staffing, service, inbound activity, material flow, inventory exceptions, and open actions.
• Conduct regular Gemba walks to observe actual work, engage employees, identify abnormalities, and ensure corrective actions are implemented and verified.
• Drive problems to root cause and convert recurring issues into improved standard work, training, process controls, layout changes, equipment improvements, or formal continuous-improvement projects.
• Ensure supervisors and leads are equipped to own day-to-day floor execution, coaching, standard adherence, and problem resolution.
• Develop frontline leadership capability so operational issues are resolved at the appropriate level rather than routinely escalating transactional work to the Warehouse Operations Manager.
• Promote a culture of continuous improvement where employees are encouraged to identify problems, suggest improvements, and participate in implementing sustainable solutions.

People Leadership & Organizational Development

• Lead, coach, and develop Warehouse Supervisors, the Inventory Control Supervisor, and other frontline leaders, ensuring they are equipped to effectively manage their respective teams and areas of responsibility.
• Establish clear roles, decision rights, accountability, and escalation paths throughout the warehouse organization.
• Assess staffing requirements against business demand, productivity expectations, and operational complexity.
• Maintain training, qualification, and certification requirements for warehouse activities and material-handling equipment.
• Establish and maintain skills and cross-training matrices to identify critical skill gaps and single points of failure.
• Establish appropriate staffing flexibility across buildings and shifts to respond to changing operational requirements.
• Foster an environment of accountability, employee engagement, teamwork, continuous improvement, and open identification of safety, quality, and operational concerns.

Inventory Control

• Lead inventory accuracy, reconciliation, and SAP transaction integrity.
• Manage inventory control personnel, metrics, and corrective actions.
• Resolve inventory discrepancies and improve systems, processes, and controls.

Material Flow & Production Support

• Ensure timely material availability for production and warehouse operations.
• Optimize replenishment, material movement, warehouse flow, and space utilization.
• Reduce waste and build scalable processes to support growth.

Safety, Quality & Compliance

• Ensure safety, quality, and regulatory compliance.
• Maintain SOPs, training, and 5S standards.
• Conduct inspections, audits, and corrective actions.
• Ensure proper equipment use and maintenance.
• Support change control and validation requirements.

Capacity, Growth & Strategy

• Plan warehouse capacity, resources, and scalability.
• Identify and mitigate operational constraints.
• Optimize space, labor, equipment, and processes.
• Support warehouse network, automation, and growth initiatives.
• Develop long-term infrastructure and capital plans.

Performance Management

• Establish and maintain warehouse KPIs and visual management appropriate to the operation.
• Develop a consistent performance-management cadence across buildings and shifts.
• Monitor key performance areas including: Safety, Service and shipment attainment, Material availability and production support, Inventory accuracy, Receiving and putaway performance, Labor productivity and utilization, etc.
• Establish accountability for corrective actions and verify that implemented countermeasures produce sustainable results.

Financial & Resource Management

• Develop and manage warehouse operating expenses and applicable capital budgets.
• Review spending against plan, explain variances, and implement corrective actions where appropriate.
• Evaluate labor, overtime, equipment, transportation, external warehousing, and capital requirements against operational demand.
• Manage third-party warehouse, transportation, equipment, and logistics-provider performance as applicable.
• Identify opportunities to improve operational efficiency and control cost while maintaining required safety, quality, and service levels.

Position Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree required
• Area of study in Supply Chain, Logistics, Operations, Business, or related discipline, strongly preferred
• 5+ years of progressive warehouse, distribution, logistics, or manufacturing-materials experience.
• 5+ years of supervisory or people-leadership experience in a warehouse, distribution, or manufacturing environment.
• Demonstrated experience leading multi-shift operations.
• Experience working within a regulated, high-quality, or highly controlled manufacturing environment.
• Strong knowledge of warehouse operations, material flow, inventory control, and production-support principles.
• Working knowledge of SAP and applicable warehouse, inventory, production, and distribution processes.
• Demonstrated ability to develop supervisors, leads, and frontline employees.
• Strong analytical, organizational, and structured problem-solving skills.
• Demonstrated ability to lead change and continuous improvement while maintaining day-to-day operational execution.
• Ability to work effectively across Production, Supply Chain, Quality, Engineering, Finance, EHS, and other cross-functional teams.
• Strong written and verbal English communication skills.
• Proficiency with Microsoft 365 applications and data-driven performance management.

Preferred Knowledge / Skills

• Experience managing multi-site or multi-building warehouse operations.
• Experience implementing Lean manufacturing or Lean logistics principles, including Leader Standard Work, Gemba, visual daily management, 5S, and structured problem solving.
• Experience improving inventory accuracy and transactional discipline within SAP.
• Experience with SAP MM, WM/EWM, PP, or SD-related processes.
• Experience with warehouse capacity planning, facility layouts, space utilization, and material-flow optimization.
• Experience managing or evaluating third-party logistics and external warehousing solutions.
• Experience implementing warehouse technology, automation, scanning, or material-handling equipment.
• Experience supporting warehouse or manufacturing expansion and organizational growth.
• Knowledge of budget management, capital planning, and business-case development.

Why Join Nemera?

At Nemera, we prioritize patients when creating drug delivery devices, understanding that accurate dosing and ergonomics are crucial for treatment adherence. Joining Nemera means becoming part of a team that enjoys working together and consistently delivers on its commitments. We take pride in our work because it improves patients’ lives.

We look forward to receiving your application (resume submitted in English is appreciated). We offer varied jobs job in an international group, if you want to discover more about Nemera, please look at our website www.nemera.netKnow someone at Nemera? We have a Referral Program so, be sure to have them submit you as a referral prior to applying for this position

All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.

For US Benefits, CLICK HERE.

PAY RANGE:  $125,000 - $145,000 USD Salary (This is the range that we in good faith believe is the range of possible compensation for this role at the time of this posting. This range may be modified in the future.)

For US Benefits, CLICK HERE.

Nemera is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate against any person on the basis of race, religion, color, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, national origin, disability, veteran status, or any other protected class indication. This company is required by federal law to hire only persons who can establish they are eligible to work in the United States.