Jobs and Careers

Director, Distribution Operations

Whitestown, United Statesfull_timeVerifiedPosted 30 Sept 2025

💰 $221,760/yr($137,300/yr – $221,760/yr)

About the role

Position Summary

The Director of Operations reports to the Vice President, Operations and is responsible for motivating, developing, and leading a team of five direct reports and 100+ indirect employees.

The Director ensures all Cardinal Health operational, financial and safety procedures are followed, enabling relevant key financial performance indicators are met and operational goals are achieved. The new state of the art automated distribution center, located in Indianapolis, IN is 230,000 square feet and picks, packs, and ships approximately 26.5 million lines of pharmaceutical products annually. The Director role is essential to maintaining clear and frequent communications with all levels within the organization as well as with customers.

The Director provides strategic direction and leadership, ensuring execution of the distribution center's employee engagement and retention strategies and internal and external customer satisfaction. In addition, this leader will lead the distribution center's compliance with all appropriate state and federal agencies.

Position Accountabilities

Provide strategic leadership to managers, experienced professional staff and operational associates
Promote a productive work environment with high employee engagement levels
Lead initiatives designed to improve processes or continuous improvement projects throughout the facility
Develop and implement key performance indicators, policies and procedures to achieve organizational goals
Influence and understand the business and culture strategy and translate the strategy into executable initiatives for their department.
Build a highly effective team with a winning culture and opportunities to develop talent, including enhancing organization capabilities and building strong talent pipelines
Interact with internal and external leaders, including senior management across the Supply Chain
Persuade others into agreement with sensitive situations while maintaining positive relationships across the organization
Collaborate with cross-functional teams at all levels within the organization (Human Resources, Transportation, Sales, Finance, and Safety)
Enforce Cardinal Health compliance and regulations for OSHA, DEA, FDA, state and local authorities, primary facility contact for QRA compliance.
Evaluate current procedures and practices for accomplishing department objectives

Position Qualifications

Bachelor's degree in related field preferred
7 -10 years of senior level experience in a distribution environment preferred
5 years of operations management experience preferred
Experience launching new distribution sites preferred
Experience implementing and scaling modern technology solutions (ERP, WMS, TMS)
Experience managing supplier relationships and global vendor performance
Strong financial acumen, analytical, organizational and communication skills
Knowledge of Health and Safety laws and best practices
Experience working with Lean Six Sigma projects
Demonstrated ability to hire, develop and retain employees
Able to thrive in a fast-paced ever-changing environment; works well under pressure and results oriented
Have a working understanding of user interfaces, electronic controls and components related to conveyance and production-related automated systems;
Have a working understanding and/or hands-on experience with PLCs, robotics control systems and machine operations

Anticipated salary range: $137,300 - $221,760

Bonus eligible: Yes

Benefits: Cardinal Health offers a wide variety of benefits and programs to support health and well-being.