Manager, Global Warehouse COE

About the role:

The Global Warehousing Center of Excellence defines and drives the strategic direction of Barry Callebaut’s warehousing operations worldwide. It ensures safe, standardized, and future-ready warehouse processes across regions, enabling scalable, cost-effective, and service-oriented execution. As the global authority on warehousing, the CoE provides strategic leadership, ensures compliance with all safety and regulatory requirements, and drives performance visibility and continuous improvement. It works in close partnership with regional and local teams to optimize operations, embed digital innovation, and future-proof the global warehousing footprint.

Key responsibilities:

• Owning and executing the global warehousing strategy in alignment with long-term business and supply chain priorities.
• Leading the standardization of processes, SOPs, and compliance with global safety, quality, and regulatory standards.
• Shaping and deploying the digital warehousing roadmap, including global WMS strategy and integration with ERP, yard management, and visibility platforms.
• Evaluating and guiding the adoption of automation, robotics, and emerging warehousing technologies.
• Defining and governing global KPIs to drive cost and service performance through transparency, benchmarking, and continuous improvement.
• Steering warehouse-related strategic discussions with regional logistics heads and key global stakeholders (e.g., digital, sourcing, finance, quality, costing).
• Contributing to global logistics network design, infrastructure planning, and warehouse footprint evolution.
• Driving global capability building through best practice sharing, training frameworks, and development of a global warehousing community of excellence.
• Monitoring industry trends, innovations, and risks to ensure long-term resilience, sustainability, and competitiveness of the warehousing function.

About you:

• Master’s degree, preferably in Supply Chain Management, Operations Management, or Industrial Engineering.
• Proven expertise in warehousing and logistics operations in an international context.
• Demonstrated experience leading large-scale ERP/WMS implementations and/or warehouse automation projects.
• Strong change management, stakeholder alignment, and project leadership capabilities.
• Strong background in warehouse automation, digitalization, and transformation program delivery.
• Deep understanding of supply chain process integration, system design, and operational KPIs.
• Hands-on experience with ERP, WMS, and related logistics tools, including data-driven decision support dashboards.
• Demonstrated success in driving cross-regional standardization, efficiency, and cost optimization.
• Must be able to operate in a complex international matrix organization with strong cross-functional collaboration.
• Clear and persuasive communicator with strong influencing skills.
• Strategic mindset with the ability to simplify complexity and drive structured execution.
• Proven ability to engage across cultures and functions at senior levels.
• High personal drive, resilience, and accountability.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving capabilities.
• Full professional proficiency in English (verbal and written).
• Travel requirements: max. 20%.