Operations Leadership Development Program

Job Description

Operations Leadership Development Program | Palmer-Donavin

The Tone:
This is a full-time, 12-18 month rotational leadership development program at Palmer-Donavin. The company is a leading provider with extensive distribution, manufacturing, and corporate operations, specializing in home building materials. This program is designed to cultivate future operations leaders by providing extensive hands-on experience across multiple facets of the business. Participants will gain real operational responsibility and develop data-driven decision-making capabilities essential for leadership roles.

The TL;DR
• Role: Early Career
• Type: Full-time
• Location: In-person, requiring travel and potential relocation throughout the Midwest and Southeast

• Mission: To develop future operations leaders through hands-on experience across distribution, manufacturing, and corporate operations.

What You’ll Actually Do
• Operations Execution: Learn and execute daily operational processes within distribution centers and manufacturing facilities, including receiving, picking, loading, inventory control, production workflows, and quality control.
• Leadership & Supervision: Supervise front-line associates during designated supervisory experience rotations, including task delegation, productivity tracking, and safety oversight.
• Data Analysis: Monitor and analyze operational KPIs, reports, and dashboards to identify inefficiencies and improvement opportunities using root-cause analysis and structured problem-solving techniques.
• Strategic Project Management: Lead a capstone project focused on a real operational issue, presenting findings and recommendations to senior leadership.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Collaborate with cross-functional teams including Sales, Supply Chain, Transportation, Customer Service, Human Resources, Finance, and Marketing to achieve operational goals.

The Must-Haves
• Background: Minimum qualification of a Bachelor’s degree or completion of coursework toward a bachelor’s degree in Operations, Supply Chain, Engineering, Business, or a related field. This is an early-career program designed for individuals seeking to develop into future operations leadership roles.
• Experience: No specific years of experience are required, however prior internship, co-op, or work experience in operations, manufacturing, logistics, distribution, or supply chain is preferred. Candidates who have demonstrated experience leading teams, projects, or student organizations will be well-suited for this program.
• Skills: Strong analytical, organizational, and problem-solving skills are essential for this role, particularly in applying root-cause analysis and structured problem-solving techniques. Clear and professional written and verbal communication skills are also key for reports, reflections, and presentations to senior leadership.
• Bonus: A strong interest in pursuing a long-term career in operations leadership is crucial for this program. Candidates must be willing to work non-traditional hours, including mid-shift and night-shift rotations, and be willing to travel and relocate as required during and after the program. The ability to adapt quickly in a fast-paced, hands-on environment is also highly valued.