Senior Warehouse Operations Manager in London, Greater London

Senior Warehouse Operations Manager, Premium Event Hire Solutions, West London

Salary: £65000 to £75000 depending on experience, plus a bonus & excellent benefits

Location: West London, on site. Permanent, full time

Lead the people behind some of the UK's most demanding events

When a five-star hotel or a major event needs furniture, tableware and catering equipment, it must arrive on time and perfect, whatever changes at the last minute. This is a pressured, fast-moving business, where events do not move and orders can arrive on the day. Our client is looking for an energetic leader who will be in the warehouses, coaching and motivating the people who make that happen, and who will bring planning and structure so that the pressure is managed and not simply endured. The customers are demanding and plans change late, which is exactly why the team matters so much.

The business

Our client is a premium event furniture and tableware hire business serving five-star hotels, prestigious venues and some of the most high-profile events in the UK. Goods go out, return, are quality checked, washed or repaired and go back into stock, often within 24 hours. In a few short years, it has grown to a team of more than 150, with two warehouses in West London and a further site located in the North, and customers rate it very highly. It is also an employer that people are proud of and has been recognised as an Employer of Choice, a London Living Wage employer, with 25 days holiday for every employee, full sick pay and life assurance and income protection for every manager.

The role

As Senior Warehouse Operations Manager you will lead both West London warehouses and report to the Managing Director. You will be present on the floor, coaching individuals, motivating the team and making sure standards are communicated, kept to and never ignored. You will inherit an experienced, loyal and knowledgeable team who know the product and the customers inside out, and your job is to earn their trust and lift them to the next level. You will work with your managers one to one so that the management team is aligned and accountable, supporting and mentoring first and managing performance fairly where needed. You will plan weekly, monthly and annually, set the KPIs, own the warehouse budgets, build bench strength, take responsibility for recruiting into the warehouse and look at whether a nighttime operation should run for the busiest months.

You will see the result of your work every day: an event that goes ahead on time because your team delivered. For the right person, and subject to delivering agreed targets, the role can grow into a General Manager, Warehousing position as the business adds sites, and it will stay hands on.

Who we are looking for

You are a senior warehouse or operations leader who has run a busy operation of real scale, ideally across more than one site, where accuracy, speed and service are not negotiable. You are energetic and visible, a natural communicator who can reach people from many backgrounds, and you have turned a reactive team into a motivated, organised one. You know how to lead experienced people who have always done it their way, you can say no diplomatically when a customer asks for the impossible, and you keep a team calm when plans change at the last minute. You are comfortable with KPIs, budgets and planning through a sharply seasonal year, and you take quick, sound decisions when something goes wrong two days before an event. Experience in hire, rental, events, hospitality, staging, lighting and audio visual, linen and uniform

rental, medical equipment, premium retail, contract logistics or the military will be valued, as will experience of lean, 5S or night shifts. Character matters as much as sector. You will hold IOSH, NEBOSH or equivalent health and safety training.

What you will receive

A base salary of £65000 to £75000 depending on experience, plus a bonus linked to agreed improvements. Employer pension, life assurance, income protection, healthcare, 25 days holiday plus bank holidays and full sick pay once probation is passed, together with recognition schemes and an annual family barbecue. The role is on site in West London, typically 8am to 6pm.

Requirements for this role

Applicants must already have the right to work in the UK, as our client is unable to offer visa sponsorship for this position. The role also requires recent, hands-on experience of working in a UK warehouse or operations environment, because it depends on working knowledge of UK health and safety law and UK employment practice. Appointments are subject to right to work checks and satisfactory references. We welcome applications from everyone who meets these requirements.

To apply in confidence, please send your CV, a telephone number and your availability to Martin Veasey Talent Solutions. Your details will not be shared with our client without your permission.