Manager Warehouse & Manual Handling
DHL · Manama
Manager Warehouse & Manual Handling
Would you like to be part of the most international company in the world? A company operating in more than 220 countries worldwide and has been pioneering cross-border express shipping since 1969. Would you like to be part of a business that connects people across the globe and want to make a difference? Then waste no time and join our amazing team at DHL Group. DHL Global Forwarding, Freight (DGFF) is the Group's air, ocean, and road freight specialist. We offer standardized transport as well as highly specialized end-to-end solutions to customers in a wide range of industries globally.
Who ever said ‘‘the sky is the limit’’ never spoke to you! Because for you it’s the beginning DHL Global Forwarding has an opening for Manager Warehouse & Manual Handling in Manama, Bahrain.
Join us in connecting people and improving lives!
In this Manager Warehouse & Manual Handling position
Existing Warehouse Operations
- Plan, manage, and monitor daily inbound, receiving, put-away, storage, replenishment, picking, packing, value-added services, staging, and outbound activities.
- Ensure operations are completed safely, accurately, and on time in line with customer contracts, SOPs, service-level agreements, and agreed cost targets.
- Allocate labor, equipment, storage space, and shift coverage according to workload, priorities, productivity standards, and capacity constraints.
- Maintain effective inventory control through cycle counts, stock reconciliation, location audits, traceability controls, and disciplined stock-adjustment processes.
- Investigate stock variances, damages, shortages, wrong picks, delays, and process failures, and implement corrective and preventive actions.
- Control warehouse operating costs, labor productivity, overtime, equipment utilization, consumables, maintenance, subcontractors, and revenue leakage.
- Monitor operational and customer KPIs, lead performance reviews, resolve escalations, and maintain accurate daily, weekly, and monthly reporting.
- Drive continuous improvement, standardization, waste reduction, service enhancement, and operational profitability.
- Lead supervisors, coordinators, inventory personnel, warehouse assistants, and outsourced labor, with clear objectives, coaching, performance management, training, and succession planning.
- Manage operational disruptions and maintain effective business-continuity arrangements.
Warehouse Design, Setup and Expansion
- Lead the design, setup, implementation, commissioning, and launch of new warehouse operations.
- Lead warehouse expansion, relocation, redesign, and capacity-enhancement projects while protecting service continuity.
- Translate business and customer requirements into practical warehouse operating solutions and implementation plans.
- Develop capacity models covering storage positions, throughput, labor, equipment, docks, staging, utilities, and future growth.
- Design, validate, and optimize warehouse layouts, product flows, operational zones, storage locations, pedestrian routes, and vehicle movements.
- Define storage-media and racking requirements and lead specification, procurement, installation, inspection, and operational acceptance.
- Evaluate, select, deploy, and commission material-handling equipment based on safety, productivity, service, and lifecycle-cost requirements.
- Provide operational input into facility design, security, fire protection, utilities, maintenance access, and future expansion requirements.
Systems and Technology
- Lead the operational workstream for WMS implementation and optimization, including requirements definition, configuration validation, master-data readiness, integration, testing, user acceptance, training, cutover, and stabilization.
- Ensure warehouse transactions, inventory records, interfaces, and reporting are accurate, timely, controlled, and auditable.
- Assess and deploy barcode, scanning, labeling, mobility, automation, and related warehouse technologies.
- Coordinate with IT, customers, vendors, and operations teams to resolve system issues and deliver enhancements without compromising service or inventory integrity.
Process Design and Governance
- Develop, approve, implement, and maintain SOPs, work instructions, process maps, control plans, escalation procedures, and operational records for new and existing operations.
- Design inventory-control frameworks covering receiving, put-away, storage, replenishment, picking, dispatch, cycle counting, reconciliation, and stock adjustments.
- Establish KPI, reporting, review, escalation, and operational-governance frameworks aligned with contractual SLAs and business objectives.
- Develop and test business-continuity, emergency-response, disruption-management, and recovery plans.
- Use root-cause analysis and structured improvement methods to reduce errors, waste, damage, delays, risk, and cost.
Health, Safety, Security, Quality and Compliance
- Provide visible safety leadership and ensure full compliance with DHL HSSEQ requirements, Bahrain laws, customer standards, site rules, and applicable regulatory approvals.
- Lead workplace inspections, risk assessments, toolbox talks, incident investigations, corrective actions, and operational safety reviews.
- Maintain safe systems of work for MHE, racking, loading areas, batteries, dangerous goods, temperature-controlled products, contractors, and other special operations where applicable.
- Ensure new and expanded operations meet fire and civil-defence requirements, relevant ISO and quality standards, security controls, insurance conditions, and customer compliance requirements before launch.
- Maintain audit readiness and lead internal, customer, regulatory, and certification audit actions.
- Develop and test emergency-response plans and ensure employees and contractors are trained for relevant scenarios.
Customer Solution Implementation
- Lead end-to-end customer onboarding and implementation projects from operational solution validation and planning through go-live and stabilization.
- Partner with Sales, Solutions, Finance, IT, Procurement, HSE, and customers to validate operating models, resource assumptions, implementation costs, SLAs, controls, and operational feasibility.
- Develop implementation plans, milestones, budgets, risk registers, readiness criteria, governance routines, and stakeholder reporting.
- Manage customer transition, data and inventory migration, operational trials, issue resolution, and formal handover into business-as-usual operations.
- Act as the primary operational contact for assigned customers, review service performance, resolve concerns, and maintain clear action plans.
- Ensure activities outside agreed scope are identified, approved, documented, and communicated for billing.
Cross-Functional and Supplier Leadership
- Coordinate cross-functional teams involving Operations, Sales, Finance, Procurement, IT, HSE, HR, Facilities, Engineering, and other support functions.
- Coordinate customers, contractors, equipment providers, system vendors, suppliers, and regulatory stakeholders to deliver implementation and operational outcomes.
- Define clear ownership, milestones, dependencies, escalation routes, and acceptance criteria across all project workstreams.
- Maintain transparent project governance and escalate material scope, timeline, cost, capacity, safety, quality, or customer risks promptly.
Organization Build-Up and People Leadership
- Design the organization structure, staffing model, shift pattern, workforce plan, resource forecast, and competency framework for new and expanded operations.
- Develop recruitment, mobilization, induction, systems training, operational certification, and succession plans.
- Set clear objectives, assign responsibilities, monitor performance, and provide regular coaching and feedback.
- Ensure employees and outsourced personnel are trained, competent, engaged, and compliant with company policies and site requirements.
- Promote teamwork, accountability, discipline, inclusion, and continuous development.
Go-Live and Operational Launch
- Lead warehouse commissioning, readiness reviews, operational testing, pre-go-live simulations, defect closure, and formal operational acceptance.
- Own go-live planning, cutover execution, command-centre governance, performance monitoring, and rapid issue resolution.
- Lead post-launch stabilization until agreed service, safety, inventory, productivity, cost, and control standards are consistently achieved.
- Complete formal handover into business-as-usual operations while retaining long-term accountability for warehouse performance.
Financial and Commercial Control
- Own the warehouse P&L and deliver the approved budget, including achievement of the agreed EBIT target.
- Manage warehouse operating budgets and implementation costs, including labor, overtime, equipment, consumables, maintenance, subcontractors, and project expenditure.
- Support annual budgets, forecasts, business cases, CAPEX submissions, and resource-planning processes.
- Monitor productivity, utilization, cost per activity, revenue leakage, billing accuracy, and operational profitability.
- Validate billable activities and ensure complete, accurate, and timely billing inputs.
- Deliver approved projects within agreed scope, budget, timeline, and benefit expectations.
Decision-Making Authority
- Deploy available manpower, equipment, storage capacity, and operational resources to meet service and implementation requirements.
- Stop unsafe or non-compliant work and remove unsafe equipment, contractors, or processes from service.
- Approve operational methods, warehouse layouts, readiness recommendations, SOPs, testing outcomes, and go-live actions within delegated authority.
- Escalate material resource, capacity, scope, timeline, compliance, customer, system, or financial risks.
- Recommend recruitment, organization design, training, disciplinary action, expenditure, supplier selection, process changes, and capital investment in line with the company approval matrix.
- Recommend whether an operation is ready to launch and define required corrective actions before approval.
Core Competencies
- Operational leadership and disciplined execution
- Warehouse design, setup, expansion, and implementation management
- Project planning, governance, risk management, and delivery control
- WMS implementation, process digitization, and operational technology
- Inventory control, capacity planning, and productivity management
- People leadership, organization design, and competency development
- Customer focus, solution implementation, and stakeholder management
- Cross-functional leadership, negotiation, and supplier management
- Safety, quality, security, regulatory, and compliance leadership
- Commercial awareness, budgeting, CAPEX, and cost control
- Analytical thinking, structured problem-solving, and continuous improvement
- Change leadership, decisiveness under pressure, integrity, and accountability
Key Performance Indicators
- Safety incidents, near-miss reporting, risk treatment, and corrective-action closure
- Inventory accuracy, stock-adjustment value, traceability, and control compliance
- Inbound, outbound, order-accuracy, damage, claims, and customer SLA performance
- Labor productivity, overtime, warehouse capacity, and equipment utilization
- Customer satisfaction, complaint resolution, and implementation stakeholder feedback
- Audit, regulatory, HSSEQ, security, and quality performance
- Budget achievement, implementation-cost control, CAPEX discipline, billing accuracy, and profitability
- Employee readiness, training completion, attendance, engagement, and retention
- Delivery of new warehouse and expansion projects against approved scope, timeline, budget, and benefits
- WMS, system-integration, testing, user-acceptance, and cutover readiness
- Operational readiness, commissioning, go-live, and stabilization performance
- Timely closure of implementation risks, defects, dependencies, and action plans
- Delivery of continuous-improvement savings, automation benefits, and productivity initiatives
Now, here is what we need from you!
- Bachelor’s degree in supply chain management, logistics, industrial engineering, operations management, business administration, or a related field.
- Typically 8–12 years of warehouse, contract-logistics, or supply-chain experience, including at least 3–5 years in a warehouse management role.
- Proven experience managing an established warehouse operation with accountability for safety, inventory, service, productivity, people, budgets, and customer performance.
- Demonstrated experience in the design, setup, implementation, commissioning, or launch of at least one new warehouse operation.
- Practical experience leading warehouse expansion, relocation, redesign, or major capacity-enhancement projects.
- Hands-on experience in warehouse layout planning, capacity modelling, racking or storage-media design, and MHE selection.
- Proven involvement in WMS implementation or major optimization projects, including requirements definition, systems integration, testing, user acceptance, training, cutover, and stabilization.
- Experience leading customer onboarding, operational transition, or contract-logistics implementation projects.
- Demonstrated ability to lead cross-functional teams involving Operations, Sales, Finance, Procurement, IT, HSE, HR, Facilities, Engineering, suppliers, contractors, and customers.
- Strong project-management capability, including planning, budgeting, risk management, governance, stakeholder reporting, commissioning, and go-live management.
- Experience developing SOPs, process maps, inventory controls, KPI frameworks, business-continuity plans, and operational governance.
- Sound knowledge of warehouse HSSEQ, regulatory compliance, audit requirements, racking safety, fire and emergency controls, and relevant ISO or quality-management systems.
- Project-management, Lean, Six Sigma, supply-chain, HSE, or quality certification is an advantage.
- Strong written and spoken English; additional languages are an advantage.
We offer:
- Opportunities in a global company where you can contribute your ideas and skills to move towards our shared goals.
- Possible further career development
- Competitive salary
Why join DHL Global Forwarding?
We are part of Deutsche Post DHL, the world’s leading logistics provider with operations in over 220 countries. Visit our career site on the web at https://www.logistics.dhl/us-en/home/careers.html
Our TOP EMPLOYER prestigious certification attests to our best-in-class efforts to attract and retain talent by fostering a positive work environment and encouraging personal and professional development among employees. The development of talented women in our organization will be a focus for us and an important part of our DGF Strategy 2025.
We aspire to become the undisputed leader in our industry, when people think of forwarding; we want them to think DGF because we have:
- The largest global network with more than ~30,000 passionate employees
- The most efficient processes and fastest response times
- The best solutions and best customer service
Our Vision: The Logistics Company for the World.
Our Mission: Excellence. Simply Delivered.
Our Purpose: Connecting People, improving lives.
Our Values: Respect & Results
Our Goals: Employer, Provider, and Investment of Choice, Living Responsibility
DHL Global Forwarding is an equal opportunity employer. We evaluate qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, veteran status, and other legally protected characteristics.