Director of customer operations

The Director of Customer Operations is responsible for leading all customer-facing operational activities across the business, including Account Executives / Customer Service, Order Management, Freight & Logistics Coordination, and Delivery Performance. This role serves as the primary bridge between Sales, Manufacturing, and Customers, ensuring customer requirements are met while optimizing production schedules, transportation costs, inventory deployment, and order profitability.

The Director will drive continuous improvement in order fulfillment, on-time delivery, transportation efficiency, customer satisfaction, and operational productivity while supporting the company's growth and profitability objectives.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

CUSTOMER OPERATIONS LEADERSHIP

• Lead, coach and develop Inside Sales, Customer Service, Order Management, and Freight Coordination functions.
• Ensure pricing changes are communicated to the Sales team and Account Executives.
• Establish performance standards, KPIs, and accountability measures.
• Build a customer-centric culture focused on responsiveness, communication, and execution.
• Develop succession plans and talent development initiatives.

ORDER MANAGEMENT & OPTIMIZATION

• Oversee the complete order-to-delivery process. Communicate with manufacturing, production planning, and logistics personnel to meet lead time commitments.
• Balance customer requirements with plant capacity, inventory availability, and freight economics.
• Standardize production scheduling processes across the sites.
• Drive order optimization strategies that improve truck utilization and reduce delivered cost.
• Establish processes to minimize order changes, expedite requests, and service failures. Document service level policies.
• Monitor and improve order cycle times and fulfillment performance.

TRANSPORTATION & FREIGHT MANAGEMENT

• Partner with Arkansas Industrial Traffic to direct outbound freight strategy and execution.
• Develop transportation KPIs including:
• On-time delivery
• Freight cost ($/mile, $/bf)
• Carrier performance
• Load utilization
• Expedite freight spend
• Drive improvements in routing, lead times, load leveling, and carrier management.

INSIDE SALES & CUSTOMER SERVICE

• Manage customer service and inside sales (AE’s) teams responsible for order entry, quote support, and account maintenance.
• Ensure timely communication regarding product availability, lead times, and delivery commitments.
• Support field sales teams through operational excellence and proactive customer engagement.
• Resolve escalated customer service issues and strategic account concerns.

CROSS-FUNCTIONAL COORDINATION

• Collaborate closely with Manufacturing, Purchasing, Finance, and Sales leadership.
• Support demand planning and S&OP processes.
• Align order allocation, production schedules, and transportation plans with business objectives.
• Provide routine visibility and management of aged inventory.
• Participate in strategic decisions regarding inventory deployment and network optimization.

PROCESS IMPROVEMENT

• Implement Lean and continuous improvement methodologies.
• Utilize ERP, TMS, and reporting tools to identify improvement opportunities.
• Develop dashboards and business analytics to drive data-based decisions.
• Standardize procedures across plants and distribution locations.

KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS

• Customer OTIF (On Time In Full), or similar
• Freight Cost
• Expedited Freight Spend
• Sales Policy Claims Spend
• Order Entry Accuracy
• Carrier Performance Metrics
• Truck Utilization / Load Optimization
• Aged inventory

QUALIFICATIONS

Travel Requirements

• The preferred position location is the Atlanta corporate office, but it is possible to fulfill the requirements remotely. In either case, travel is required 25-50% of the time for the purpose of visiting the manufacturing locations, meeting in-person with direct reports, and attending customer meetings.

Supervisory Responsibilities

• The internal customer service department, including the pricing coordinator, report to this position.

EDUCATION

• Bachelor's degree in Business, Supply Chain, Operations Management, Logistics, Engineering, or related field.
• MBA preferred.

EXPERIENCE

• 10+ years of progressive leadership experience in customer operations, supply chain, logistics, customer service, or manufacturing operations.
• Experience in building materials, insulation, construction products, chemicals, or other manufacturing environments preferred.
• Proven leadership of customer service, logistics, transportation, or order management organizations.
• Strong understanding of manufacturing planning, transportation management systems, and ERP platforms.

SKILLS

• Strategic leadership
• Data analytics and KPI management
• Transportation and logistics expertise
• Customer relationship management
• Financial acumen
• Lean / Continuous Improvement
• S&OP participation
• Change management
• Strong communication and influencing skills

RWI 3

Atlas is an equal opportunity employer