Grocery Operations Manager

Neighborhood Co-op Grocery

GROCERY OPERATIONS MANAGER JOB DESCRIPTION

Summary:        To manage and direct all Grocery operations, assisting those sales departments in evaluating internal and external product and category trends, build strategies and systems for desired price image, administer plans for store promotions, and provide support as needed in order to ensure sales department buyers can focus fully on their primary responsibilities.  The Grocery Operations Manager helps all grocery department buyers meet all objectives and goals, ensuring efficient daily store operations, prompt, friendly, knowledgeable customer service, and store security and cleanliness.

Status:             Reports to General Manager.
Supervises Bulk Buyer, Refrigerated Buyer, Frozen Buyer, Scanning Coordinator and Grocery Stockers

Responsibilities:

I. Planning and Finance

A. Participate in development of annual operating and capital budgets for all grocery departments.

B. With General Manager and grocery department buyers, set objectives for grocery departments’ sales, margin, turns and labor costs.

C. Monitor deviations from budget, take corrective actions and report to General Manager on actions taken.

D. Review weekly sales and labor reports and quarterly budget-to-actual reports to assess performance. 

E. Review department financial performance reports with buyers regularly and help them plan corrective actions as needed in order to ensure they hit their goals. 

F. Set department productivity goals and routinely monitor sales per labor hour by department. 

G. Work with department buyers to create plans to manage inventory turns by department in an efficient way so as to not have unnecessarily high inventory levels. 

H. Use labor calculation tool to ensure appropriate labor expense per department.  Ensure that all staffing plans can be supported by sales volume before hiring decisions are made. 

II. Provide Leadership – 

1. Model supportive and participatory leadership qualities, act always in the co-op’s best interests and promote team building and alignment within the staff.
2. Treat staff and managers with consistency and fairness, in a style appropriate to a cooperative work environment.
3. Ensure that communications are clear, direct, and respectful.
4. Ensure the integrity of the co-op’s stated values in decision-making and interactions with others. 
5. Use effective and respectful problem-solving method to resolve issues.
6. Act as a model to all store employees following all policies and procedures and striving to uphold the mission, vision and values of the organization.
7. Serve as the Promotions Liaison with NCG attending all required meetings and projects.
8. Ensure that all grocery staff are aware of all relevant internal and external trends.
9. Ensure consistent product and purchasing practices are based on relevant data and product guidelines and adhered to.
10. Help maintain store standards for prompt, friendly, helpful customer service.
11. Help ensure security of customers, staff, building and inventory.
12. Coordinate major department cleaning projects with department buyers.
13. Coordinate physical inventory counts and develop appropriate systems to ensure accuracy and timeliness.
14. Accompany state and federal health and safety inspectors as needed and report to General Manager on actions needed.
15. May be asked to serve as a part of the GM’s emergency succession plan and may be required to receive additional training accordingly. 
16. May be asked to serve as a Manager-On-Duty (MOD).
17. Fully participate in all promotions, management team and all other staff meetings. 

III. Personnel Management – for Bulk Buyer, Refrigerated Buyer, Frozen Buyer, Scanning Coordinator and Grocery Stockers 

1. Hire qualified applicants following established policy and ensure a thorough and systematic training process and curriculum for all direct reports. 
2. Ensure appropriate department specific on-the-job training systems are in place to ensure that all employees within the grocery department are proficient in their skills and knowledge required for their positions. 
3. Provide support, leadership and coaching to grocery buyers to continually improve their training and skills. 
4. Conduct timely and meaningful performance evaluations in accordance to the co-op’s processes and standards for effective leadership. 
5. Recommend pay raises within department budget and co-op pay scale.
6. Review and analyze department payroll to ensure appropriate staffing plans and expense.
7. Take disciplinary action as needed following established policies.
8. Ensure department staff are informed of storewide meetings and policy changes.
9. Approve hiring decisions/staffing plans for sales department buyers. 
10. Ensure all staff and sub-teams within the grocery are fully engaged in the pursuit of department and organization-wide goals. 

IV. Upholding the Co-op’s Brand and Image

The Grocery Operations Manager will collaborate with department managers and Brand Manager to ensure the best plans are developed and implemented to continually improve the co-op’s image.  Accordingly, the Grocery Operations Manager will ensure that all grocery buyers are utilizing data from internal and external trends reports upon which to base all category management, pricing and promotions decisions. 

This includes ensuring all grocery buyers:

1. Review internal movement reports and make recommendations to Grocery Operations Manager of products to be added or discontinued.
2. Review external data like SPINS data and other sources regularly in order to evaluate external trends and make recommendations for changes.
3. Collaborate with the Grocery Operations Manager to ensure effective systems are in place to evaluate categories ensuring responsiveness to national trends and also to having fully developed selection of tiers (low-price, mid-tier, premium) where needed.

The Grocery Operations Manager will also ensure smooth planning, operations and image by:

1. Collaborating with Brand Manager to review seasonal data and help coordinate changes in mix for each approaching season and/or event. 
2. Once reset plans have been finalized based on internal and external trends, the Grocery Operations Manager may be needed to assist the buyers in implementing the resets according to the plan and timeline. 
3. Provide assistance in researching data for category or department resets with buyers as effectively as possible. 
4. Help create a comprehensive pricing strategy: 
   1. Establish systems for every department to evaluate their image and competitiveness through regularly scheduled competitor surveys. 
   2. Help determine which products in each department have the highest price awareness in consumers’ minds and establish plan to compete on those products. 
   3. Help ensure end caps and promotions are fully supported by messaging and fully implemented for maximum appeal. 
   4. Monitor competitor data and make recommendations for adjustments to pricing and messaging program as necessary to maintain a cohesive and effective overall strategy that appeals to the customers. 
   5. Collaborate with GM and other sales managers around the store to help refine an overall organization-wide pricing strategy.
5. Collaborate with the Brand Manager to establish plans to implement the stated merchandising priorities each quarter. This may include assisting in the development of plan-o-grams.
6. Ensure that any additional or replacement signage requests for displays are turned in expeditiously and according to established systems. 
7. Support and assist in implementing any associated in-store events that occur. 
8. Support and assist in the development of a demo schedule of sampling
9. Work with department buyers to create effective cross-merchandising opportunities where appropriate.
10. Ensure the Co-op Deals program is being implemented as effectively as possible.  Assist with Co-op Deals paperwork or specific trouble-shooting as necessary to help department buyers. 
11. Review brokers’ promotional offerings monthly and make recommendations to buyers for best selections that will support the promotional calendar and/or the branding priorities of the co-op.

V.          Perform other tasks assigned by the General Manager.

Qualifications:

• At least one year of purchasing in a retail environment; preferably in natural foods grocery store.
• Excellent communications skills including the ability to work effectively in one-on-one and small group relationships and help facilitate the movement of ideas to concrete action plans with co-workers.
• Must have strong analytical skills to evaluate data and respond to emerging trends. 
• Must have excellent organizational skills and consistently follow through on commitments and implementation plans.
• Knowledge of current trends in natural foods industry.
• Ability to safely lift 50 pounds.
• Regular, predictable attendance.
• Willingness and ability to learn and grow to meet the changing requirements of the job.