Inventory Support Specialist (Chicago, IL)

Job description

## About TurnCare TurnCare is a medical device company dedicated to improving patient outcomes through innovative technology. The Guardian program is a patient management system designed to help protect the health of critically ill patients. We are committed to delivering responsive customer support, reliable operational execution, and strong cross-functional partnership throughout the Guardian program lifecycle. --- ## Role Description #### Location: Remote - US - Central (Chicago, IL) The Inventory Support Specialist (ISS) is the operational owner and field liaison for Guardian equipment management within assigned customer accounts. The ISS ensures that equipment is available, accurately tracked, properly installed, operationally ready, and moved efficiently through hospital workflows. This role coordinates closely with Biomedical Engineering, Supply Chain, Shipping and Receiving, Environmental Services, Patient Transport, frontline hospital staff, and internal TurnCare teams. The ISS combines inventory discipline, customer service, field execution, and foundational product support. The position supports pilots, go-lives, commercialization, account expansion, routine rounding, troubleshooting, returns, and replacement workflows. Success requires strong organization, attention to detail, ownership, sound judgment, comfort working in acute-care environments, and the ability to operate independently in a fast-paced, team-oriented setting. --- ## Duties & Responsibilities ### Inventory Ownership and Control - Serve as the primary onsite operational owner for Guardian inventory within assigned facilities and health systems. - Implement and maintain standardized inventory tracking and control processes for controllers, surfaces, clamps, straps, accessories, replacement equipment, and backup inventory. - Perform routine inventory audits; reconcile missing, damaged, underused, or unaccounted-for equipment and communicate corrective actions. - Monitor inventory levels, product access, utilization patterns, storage locations, and readiness to support patient care and customer demand. - Partner with clinical and operational stakeholders to align inventory placement and par levels with utilization trends, unit needs, go-live requirements, and expansion plans. - Clean, repackage, stage, redistribute, and account for equipment in accordance with approved TurnCare procedures and hospital infection-prevention requirements. - Coordinate equipment retrieval, replacement, and redistribution to minimize downtime and maintain operational continuity. ### Hospital Department Relationships and Workflow Coordination Establish and maintain effective working relationships with the following hospital departments and operational partners: - **Biomedical Engineering (Biomed):** Coordinate maintenance and repair workflows, faulty-equipment evaluation, work-order escalation, troubleshooting, and tracking of equipment sent for repair or replacement. - **Supply Chain:** Coordinate inventory movement, storage, accountability, replacement logistics, inventory reconciliation, and utilization reporting. - **Shipping and Receiving:** Coordinate inbound and outbound Guardian shipments, return shipments, packaging standards, shipping documentation, shipment tracking, and delivery confirmation. - **Environmental Services (EVS):** Clarify cleaning and disinfection ownership, reinforce approved cleaning workflows, and support timely equipment turnaround and readiness. - **Patient Transport:** Support education and workflow alignment for safe, efficient movement of Guardian equipment throughout the facility and escalate barriers that affect equipment availability or patient movement. - **Frontline Clinical and Unit Leadership:** Support operational workflow adherence, equipment access, issue identification, and escalation while deferring clinical decision-making and patient-care education to qualified clinical personnel. ### Equipment Deployment, Installation, and Readiness - Install and remove Guardian-related clamps, straps, and associated equipment after completing required TurnCare training and competency validation. - Verify that equipment is properly secured, correctly configured, functional, and ready for use. - Identify and address gaps in installation standards through immediate correction, operational reinforcement, and escalation when needed. - Complete monthly quality sampling of clamp and strap placement at assigned facilities and maintain the site-specific tools required to perform checks. - Support inventory deployment, staging, equipment placement, and readiness during pilots, go-lives, expansions, and other customer transitions. - Coordinate backup and replacement inventory to ensure continuity during repairs, surges, expansions, or unexpected equipment needs. ### Product Support, Troubleshooting, and Equipment Returns - Serve as the primary operational point of contact for customers reporting faulty, damaged, missing, or nonfunctioning Guardian equipment. - Coordinate issue intake, determine appropriate next steps within established protocols, facilitate communication among hospital departments and TurnCare teams, and ensure timely follow-up through resolution. - Perform approved initial troubleshooting before equipment return, including visual inspection, verification of power or connectivity concerns, basic operational testing, accessory checks, and identification of common failure patterns. - Partner with Biomed and Supply Chain so they function as the centralized control point for incoming and outgoing equipment movement according to facility workflow. - Coordinate local pickup, shipment, return authorization, replacement deployment, packaging, labels, and return documentation. - Support equipment pickup and replacement activities and act as the bridge between customer operations and TurnCare Manufacturing, Engineering, Supply Chain, Service, and Operations. - After formal training, certification, and authorization, perform approved limited field-service tasks and component replacement in accordance with defined protocols, escalation criteria, and documentation standards. ### Product Defect/Return Tracking and Documentation Complete Product Defect/Return Tracking (PDRT) entries and related service documentation accurately and promptly. Required information may include: - Device serial number and equipment type. - Detailed description of the issue, damage, or failure condition. - Troubleshooting steps attempted and the outcome of each attempt. - Date and time the issue was identified. - Facility, department, and unit impacted. - Whether replacement equipment is required and the disposition of the affected device. - Relevant examples such as broken ground prongs, dropped controllers, connectivity issues, or visible physical damage. ### Go-Live, Rounding, and Expansion Support - Provide onsite support during pilots and commercialization launches, including daily equipment rounding during the initial stabilization period, typically the first two weeks following go-live. - Validate inventory, support workflows, reinforce approved operational education, engage staff, escalate issues rapidly, and identify operational gaps or adoption barriers. - Complete routine post-go-live rounding, generally monthly unless a different cadence is approved based on customer engagement, inventory performance, support volume, operational stability, and facility ownership. - Transition mature accounts to an every-other-month, quarterly, or as-needed support cadence when approved by TurnCare leadership and the account team. - Assist with expansion planning, forecasting, inventory scaling, and readiness for additional units, facilities, or health-system deployment. ### Reporting, Customer Experience, and Continuous Improvement - Maintain accurate inventory, service, support, shipment, audit, and rounding records in approved TurnCare systems. - Track recurring equipment issues, escalation patterns, turnaround times, inventory variances, and operational risks. - Provide timely operational updates to Clinical Sales Specialists, Customer Success, Clinical teams, Operations leadership, Manufacturing, Supply Chain, and other internal stakeholders. - Build trust with frontline staff and hospital operational partners through responsive communication, professionalism, reliability, and follow-through. - Proactively surface customer concerns, workflow barriers, equipment risks, and opportunities to improve adoption, uptime, and operational efficiency. - Participate in process-improvement initiatives and help standardize inventory, troubleshooting, shipping, return, and documentation workflows across customer accounts. - Maintain confidentiality, discretion, and sound business judgment in all customer and internal relationships. - Demonstrate a customer-first mindset while balancing patient safety, regulatory requirements, operational standards, and company priorities. --- ## Qualifications ### Minimum Qualifications - High school diploma or equivalent required; associate degree or relevant technical, logistics, healthcare, or supply-chain education preferred. - Minimum of one year of experience in inventory management, logistics, supply chain, medical equipment support, field service, healthcare operations, or a closely related role. - Experience performing inventory audits, reconciling equipment, managing shipments, or coordinating repair and replacement workflows. - Valid driver’s license and reliable transportation. - Proficiency with Microsoft Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and virtual meeting platforms; ability to learn company inventory, service, CRM, and documentation systems. ### Preferred Qualifications - Experience working in hospitals, acute-care settings, biomedical engineering, medical device operations, durable medical equipment, or healthcare supply chain. - Experience supporting product implementations, go-lives, field operations, or multi-site customer accounts. - Experience with basic equipment troubleshooting, service documentation, shipping and receiving, or return-material processes. - Demonstrated ability to analyze inventory and utilization information and translate findings into operational action. --- ## Skills & Competencies - **Inventory Management and Operational Discipline:** Maintains accurate records, follows standardized processes, notices discrepancies, and closes gaps promptly. - **Customer Focus:** Responds with urgency, professionalism, and empathy while maintaining clear ownership and follow-through. - **Communication:** Communicates clearly and effectively with frontline staff, hospital leaders, technical departments, and internal teams in person, by phone, and in writing. - **Relationship Building:** Builds trust quickly and sustains productive working relationships across multiple hospital departments. - **Problem Solving and Judgment:** Assesses issues, applies approved protocols, determines when to escalate, and makes sound decisions in changing environments. - **Attention to Detail:** Accurately records serial numbers, shipment details, service history, inventory status, and required documentation. - **Independence and Accountability:** Plans work, manages priorities, meets commitments, and operates effectively with limited direct supervision. - **Adaptability and Learning Agility:** Responds constructively to changing schedules, customer needs, product updates, and evolving operational processes. - **Collaboration:** Partners effectively with Clinical Sales Specialists, Customer Success, Clinical, Operations, Manufacturing, Engineering, Supply Chain, EVS, Transport, and Biomed. - **Professional Presence:** Represents TurnCare appropriately in customer environments and demonstrates reliability, discretion, self-awareness, and a positive attitude. --- ## Work Environment - Up to 75%, including local hospital travel, may include some weekend and holiday traveling - Comfortable entering and working in acute-care and critical-care patient environments and complying with all hospital policies. - Able to lift, carry, push, pull, stage, and transport equipment weighing approximately 25 pounds, with or without reasonable accommodation. - Able to stand and walk for extended periods, bend, reach, kneel, use hand tools, access equipment in patient rooms and storage areas, and move equipment between hospital locations. - When trained and directed by hospital clinical staff, able to assist with equipment access or placement activities that may require support during patient repositioning; the ISS does not independently direct patient care. - Able to drive to hospitals up to five days per week and travel by vehicle or air up to approximately 60% to support assigned and other active accounts. - Able to maintain a flexible schedule that may include early mornings, evenings, weekends, urgent onsite support, and attendance at required team or company meetings. - Must meet and maintain customer and vendor credentialing requirements, including immunizations, screenings, training, and other health or compliance requirements. --- ## Salary Range - $50,000 - $60,000 annually --- TurnCare, Inc. is an Equal Opportunity Employer and is committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants. We prohibit discrimination and harassment of any kind without regard to race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, ancestry, age, physical or mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, military or veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local law.