Senior Logistics and Warehouse Supervisor

Job description

Lightship is scaling from prototype builds to sustained production. The material path from our supplier base, through the facility, and out to completed trailers has outgrown a role focused on either the warehouse or the freight alone. We are looking for a Senior Logistics & Warehouse Supervisor to own both halves as one system. This is a hands-on, factory floor role. You will be on the floor daily, and at our current scale you will do the work as often as you direct it. That means driving a forklift, working a receiving discrepancy, or staging a kit yourself when the schedule demands it. You will lead a small warehouse team and grow it as we scale, so the leadership share of the job grows along with the company. We need someone who moves comfortably between both and does not consider any task beneath the role. Production is your customer. The warehouse exists to serve the build, and this role works shoulder to shoulder with production leadership every day. Reporting to the VP of Supply Chain, you will also work with Manufacturing Engineering, Quality, Program Management, and Finance. You sit where their competing priorities meet physical material, so success depends as much on influence and clear communication with peers who do not report to you as on running a tight warehouse. This role is built for someone stepping up. You do not need to have run both halves at full scale before. A strong warehouse operations background, real exposure to freight, and the appetite to own the logistics side will get you there, and we will back you with support to grow into the rest. ### Responsibilities Warehouse Operations - Lead and Grow the Team. Inherit a small warehouse team and build it as we scale. Own hiring, onboarding, regular 1:1s, performance management, and skill development. Set shift structure and coverage, and create a bench that operates well without you standing over it. - Own Receiving and Put-Away. Ensure inbound material is received accurately against purchase orders, inspected, and put away to the correct location the same day it lands. - Drive Line-Side Material Flow. Own kitting, staging, and delivery of parts to the assembly line. Partner closely with Manufacturing Engineering on new part introductions, point-of-use presentation, and workstation layout so that material arrives in the form and sequence the build actually needs. - Maintain Inventory Integrity. Own cycle count cadence, root-cause discrepancies rather than adjusting past them, and keep ERP records aligned with physical inventory. - Champion Safety and Equipment Readiness. Lead by example on safety. Conduct stand-ups, enforce forklift and PPE protocols, keep material handling equipment maintained and serviceable, and hold the warehouse to a clean, organized, audit-ready standard. ### Logistics and Material Flow - Coordinate Inbound Freight. Manage domestic and international inbound shipments against the production schedule. Work with suppliers, freight forwarders, and customs brokers to keep material landing on time and at planned cost. - Coordinate Internal and Local Logistics. Direct material movement once it is ours, including cross-building transfers, yard moves, supplier pickups, outside-processor runs, and inter-site shuttles. Balance cost against production urgency. - Coordinate Finished-Unit Transport. Schedule outbound movement of completed trailers through third-party transport providers. Own carrier scheduling, shipping documentation, damage claims, and condition-at-arrival accountability. - Coordinate Third-Party Partners. Work day to day with our existing 3PL and carrier partners on tendering, scheduling, performance tracking, and escalation. Contract and relationship ownership sits with the VP of Supply Chain. Your focus is execution and holding partners to the standard on the ground. - Partner on Packaging and Dunnage. Work with Supply Chain, Manufacturing Engineering, and our suppliers to improve how material is packaged, protected, and presented from receiving through line-side. You bring the floor perspective on what is working and what is not, and you help test and roll out changes. - Own the Metrics. Inherit and build the reporting that runs the function, covering inventory accuracy, material availability to the line, freight cost and service, and safety. Report on a regular cadence and turn the numbers into decisions leadership can act on. ### Minimum Qualifications - Experience. 4+ years in warehouse operations or logistics within a manufacturing, automotive, or industrial environment, with hands-on exposure to both sides. Deep expertise in both is not required. - Leadership. 2+ years leading an operational team or crew. This can be formal supervision or lead responsibility covering scheduling, training, and day-to-day direction, with a track record of developing people rather than only directing them. - Hands-On Orientation. Comfort working on the floor and doing the work alongside the team, including forklift operation, in a growing and sometimes unstructured environment. - Freight Coordination. Direct experience coordinating inbound or outbound freight, working with carriers, forwarders, or 3PL partners on scheduling, tracking, cost, and issue resolution. - Inventory Discipline. Hands-on experience running cycle counts and resolving inventory discrepancies to root cause in an ERP environment. - Cross-Functional Partnership. Demonstrated success as a service partner to a production or operations organization, earning trust with operations leadership, absorbing schedule volatility, and influencing peers without formal authority. - Systems and Reporting. ERP fluency, with comfort building reporting in spreadsheets and writing SOPs. ### Preferred Qualifications - Formal people management experience, including hiring and performance management. - NetSuite experience, and/or WMS selection, implementation, or administration. - Packaging, dunnage, or returnable container program experience. - Continuous improvement or Lean training such as 5S and Kaizen, applied in a low-volume or high-mix environment. - RV, powersports, marine, or vehicle-hauling experience, including oversize or specialized transport. - Bachelor's degree.