Operations Director

£165,000 (Work Level 3) plus excellent benefits

Scunthorpe – In this role, you’ll be working in a hybrid way, splitting your time between home and the Scunthorpe office (typically 1-2 days per week) with regular visits to depots and other sites when needed.

We’re looking for a visionary and commercially astute Operations Director to join Co-op Wholesale. Since 1977, we’ve championed independent retailers to thrive with Nisa – and now, we’re entering a bold new chapter as Co-op Wholesale. It’s the same spirit, with bigger ambition: bringing the power of Co-op to more local businesses than ever. And with that, exciting opportunities are on the rise, like this one.

In this role, you’ll be leading the full strategy and execution of logistics and warehouse operations for Co-op Wholesale, delivering against a £1.5bn sales and driving a high-performing delivery proposition that meets evolving customer needs whilst ensuring operational efficiency. 

This role has a key focus of transforming our distribution network, designing and delivering a cost-effective, agile infrastructure that reduces cost-to-serve while supporting business growth and evolving demand across our estate. This Is more than a leadership role – it’s an opportunity to architect the future of an evolved wholesale model and support growth through to 2030 and beyond. If you’re energised by scale, complexity and innovation then this is the role for you.

What you’ll do

• Play a key strategic role on the operating board, influencing the overall direction of Co-op Wholesale
• Own the senior-level relationship with DHL, managing a £160m 3PL contract to drive maximum value
• Define and deliver a best-in-class customer service proposition for logistics, balancing speed, service and cost
• Oversee third-party warehouse operations, ensuring safety, legal compliance and alignment with strategic partner standards
• Own the P&L for distribution, logistics and service delivery, driving cost efficiency and long-term value
• Partner with sales teams to create differentiated service models that enhance customer satisfaction and boost revenue
• Lead the transformation of our distribution network to support agile, scalable growth through to 2030
• Collaborate across the Co-op Group to unlock network synergies, share best practices and contribute to Net Zero targets
• Inspire, lead and develop supply chain, logistics and partner teams to deliver consistently high service levels
• Ensure operational compliance across logistics, routing and delivery, keeping safety and regulatory standards front and centre

This role would suit people who have

• Proven experience in managing 3PL partnerships and shaping end-to-end supply chain propositions
• A track record of leading large-scale operational and cultural transformation
• The credibility and presence to operate at board level, influencing and challenging senior stakeholders
• Experience working with independent retailers and franchise partner store models
• Strong industry gravitas and the ability to effectively represent the business externally
• A deep understanding of pull-based commercial models, with customer demand at the centre of decision-making

Why Co-op? 

Here you’ll do work that matters. We’re a commercial organisation with a purpose beyond profit, you’ll have an opportunity to help us build a stronger Co-op and stronger communities. You’ll also get a package that includes:

• A company car or £6,000 car allowance
• Private healthcare for you and your family
• An annual bonus (based on personal and business performance)
• 28 days holiday (rising to 32 with service) plus bank holidays
• A pension with up to 10% employer contributions
• Access to a subsidised onsite gym (at our Manchester HQ)
• Coaching and training to support your career development
• Wagestream – a money management app that gives you access to a percentage of your pay as you earn it
• Grocery Aid – 24/7 access to a range of emotional, financial, and practical support services for you and your family

Building an inclusive work environment

We’re actively building diverse teams and we welcome applications from everyone. We want to build inclusive work environments, where our colleagues have equal opportunities to reach their full potential. We celebrate our differences, and recognise the importance of our teams reflecting the communities they serve. 

If you have a disability, we can make reasonable adjustments to our recruitment process according to your needs. We're also part of the Disability Confident scheme, meaning we'll always offer an interview to disabled candidates who apply through the scheme if they meet the minimum criteria for a job.

We'll ask whether you’d like to be considered under the Disability Confident scheme when you apply. 

If we invite you to take part in the recruitment process for any of our jobs, we’ll ask you if you need any reasonable adjustments to enable you to participate.

You can find out more about our recruitment process at jobs.coop.co.uk/apply-process. 

You can find out more about the Disability Confident scheme and all our commitments to diversity and inclusion at colleagues.coop.co.uk/diversity-inclusion-and-wellbeing.

As part of your application, you'll need to complete an online assessment. This assessment typically takes between 45-60 minutes. If you're a current Co-op colleague, this does not need to be completed.

Please be aware that we may close applications for this role early