Operations Manager
Unique Precise International LLC
Total years of experience :17 years, 2 Months
Company Profile: Supplying high quality, branded and customized linen and room amenities to the hospitality industry in the Gulf region. (Website: www.uniqueprecise.com)
Responsible for: Procurement, Logistics, Warehouse and Inventory management.
Reason for leaving: Company ran into financial difficulties.
Company Profile: Manufacturing company for premium tissue products (facial tissues, interfolds, maxi rolls, toilet rolls, napkins).
MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES AND VALUE ADDING ACTIVITIES:
Purchase Management:
1) Segmenting raw materials and devising suitable procurement strategies for each segment.
2) Setting suitable re-order levels to keep lowest procurement and holding costs, and a high inventory turnover ratio.
Production Management:
3) Preparing long term aggregate and short-term production plans and budgets and work out raw materials and manpower resource requirements based on demand forecasts.
4) Scheduling, monitoring and controlling daily production schedules and production levels.
5) Manage and control manufacturing costs.
Warehouse Management:
6) Planning layout of storage areas to facilitate the handling, storage and movement of goods within the facility. Maintain Health and Safety standards as per Municipal regulations.
Distribution Management:
7) Monitoring distribution performance with respect to cost efficiency achieved by load maximization and route optimization, without sacrificing the speed levels expected by customers.
ADDITIONAL KEY ACHIEVEMENTS:
• Achieved record levels of production and sales in March 2018.
• Planned the operational & management infrastructure for the future factory expansion plans in UAQ.
MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES AND VALUE ADDING ACTIVITIES:
1) PROCUREMENT MANAGEMENT - Managed procurement of industrial machines, consumables (including printing plates, chemicals, inks, adhesives, substrates) and spares from Europe, UK, USA, Korea and China, to support one-off and contracts supply to clients in the Middle East.
- Managed the complete procurement cycle (from RFIs / RFPs / RFQs to Purchase Orders/Contracts to delivery) for both stock and non-stock products.
- Aligned procurement strategy with overall business strategy.
2) DEMAND PLANNING AND INVENTORY MANAGEMENT - Managed inventory levels in 5 warehouses in UAE to serve the requirements of the clients in GCC, and to prevent stock outs.
- Analysed inventory movement reports, inventory mix, seasonal trends and sales forecasts.
- Implemented strict FIFO procedures for products with expiry dates such as inks, plates and chemicals.
- Regularly identified and highlighted ‘slow-moving' items and reviewed inventory turnover - both overall and item category wise. This practice led to continuous improvement in inventory turns.
3) LOGISTICS MANAGEMENT - Managed imports, exports and cross trades - shipment, documentation and insurance. Controlled costs in line with set budgets. Set up reliable clearing agents all over GCC to enable cross trades to these countries and helped to avoid additional import duties and freight costs.
4) VENDOR MANAGEMENT - Managed, developed and optimised the local and international supplier base.
- Negotiated mutually beneficial and sustainable business terms, and progressively developed relations based on supplier segmentation (coupled ABC analysis with a two-dimensional portfolio analysis for
segmentation). Evaluated and analysed vendor performance.
5) RISK MANAGEMENT - Identified and proactively managed risks by supply chain mapping. In case of single supply sources, identified, developed and kept alternative sources on standby and held safety
stocks - a strategy which proved very successful for items like lamination films when the supplier suddenly informed an unavoidable price increase of 8% in raw material costs.
6) REPORTS - Prepared purchase and spend reports, and periodic performance and variance reports, inventory control and analysis. Overviewed order status, shipment and delivery reports regularly to monitor progress and to resolve problems.
- Maintained close collaboration with the finance function to enable cash flow management.
7) ERP - Worked with ERP software Microsoft Dynamics GP. Developed several new customized reports employing advanced excel formulas for deeper analysis of inventory movement.
ADDITIONAL KEY ACHIEVEMENTS:
• Improved coordination between purchase, warehouse and delivery functions to achieve 95% OTIF (on time in full) deliveries.
• Enabled gradual reductions in procurement spend by reformed vendor agreements, container load optimization and by implementing improved, lean and agile supply chain practices. The segments targeted were ‘bought-in materials’ and ‘overhead costs’.
MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES AND VALUE ADDING ACTIVITIES:
1) SOURCING - Sourced products and materials from USA, Europe, UK, Russia, Malaysia, West African countries and the local market to suit client and project requirements in the Gulf region.
2) PURCHASE MANAGEMENT - Negotiated and placed Purchase orders and contracts, employed rigorous pre-delivery follow-ups, and shortage chasing when required. Established, managed and developed vendor relations with a sustainable long-term view.
- Developed accurate specifications to fulfil end customer’s exact requirements by employing ESI (Early Supplier Involvement). Developed suitable terms and schedules as required by specific contracts.
3) RISK MANAGEMENT - Managed supply and demand side risks and also inherent risks associated with commodity trading in general and timber in particular.
- Evaluated currency exchange rate movement trends and price volatility risks continuously.
- Undertook regular overseas visits to supplier sites and also employed third-party quality inspections and certifications before shipments, where required. Frequently visited African countries and Malaysia to audit quality and supply risks.
4) LOGISTICS MANAGEMENT - Organized imports, exports and cross trades - shipment, documentation and insurance.
- Negotiated and filed freight contracts with forwarders and lines (Maersk, MSC, CMA) quarterly.
5) ERP - Worked with ERP software Microsoft Dynamics AX. (posting Purchase Orders, GRNs, Stock Capturing, Picking Lists, Delivery Notes).
6) DEMAND PLANNING AND INVENTORY MANAGEMENT - Ensured appropriate products mix and levels in 3 warehouses (1 in UAE & 2 in KSA). Employed tools like Inventory Analysis, Inventory Movement Reports, Stock Turnover ratios, Setting Re-order levels and Demand Forecasting.
7) REPORTS AND BUDGETS - Prepared regular Order Status reports and Shipments Status reports. Also annual and quarterly Purchase Budgets, and Inventory Analysis reports for Italy Head Office.
ADDITIONAL KEY ACHIEVEMENTS:
• Gulf Timber was a new operation when I joined and I had set up the framework of operational guidelines for Purchase, Logistics, Warehouse and Deliveries Management from scratch.
• Reformed the clearing process from UAE ports to reduce the clearing and de-stuffing costs by 20%.
MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES AND VALUE ADDING ACTIVITIES:
1) SOURCING AND PROCURING - Sourced and procured products from the international and local market to suit specific client and project requirements.
2) MEETING STRICT DELIVERY DEADLINES - Ensured timely procurement and delivery of goods ordered by existing clients and new hotel projects. Negotiated and placed orders/contracts, employed regular pre-delivery follow-ups with suppliers and organized substitutes for production shortages.
3) MANAGING THE SUPPLY CHAIN - Ensured continual availability of more than 5000 different stock items in the company warehouses. Employed tools like Inventory Analysis, Inventory Movement Reports, Stock Turnover ratios, Setting Re-order levels and Demand Forecasting.
4) ERP - Worked with ERP software Sage Pastel.
5) REPORTS AND BUDGETS - Prepared Order Status reports, Shipments Status reports, annual and quarterly Purchase Budgets and Inventory Analysis reports.
ADDITIONAL KEY ACHIEVEMENTS:
• During my tenure with Tomaco, I managed successfully on time deliveries of over 120 hotel project orders in the Gulf region. The challenge was to ensure that the goods ordered from many overseas countries, with different lead times, arrived in coordination and in time for the project opening.
• Increased stock sales by 30% by introducing and implementing improved inventory management procedures and reducing stock-outs.