Operations Manager in Birmingham

Job Description

Position: Operations Manager

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Location: Birmingham depot (on-site)

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Salary Range: £48,000 – £53,000 (guide, depending on experience)

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Contract: Full-time, permanent

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An established business in the industrial products / recycled materials sector is looking for a hands-on Operations Manager to take day-to-day ownership of its Birmingham depot – a busy outdoor yard and processing site serving local and group customers.

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This is not a desk-only planning role. You’ll be out in the yard as much as in the office, leading a mixed team of drivers, yard/production staff and administrators (around 25 people), and acting as the General Manager’s right hand on site.

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The company has a strong track record of developing people internally, and this post gives you a clear line of sight into wider depot or general management over time.

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The opportunity

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As Operations Manager you will:

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• Take the lead on the day-to-day running of the depot – material in, material processed, and material out.

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• Coordinate collections, drivers and vehicle movements so that inbound and outbound flows hit plan.

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• Work closely with the yard/production supervisor to keep the operation moving, especially when things don’t go to plan.

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• Be a visible presence on site – walking the yard, checking loads, equipment and housekeeping, not just steering from behind a screen.

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• Deputise for the General Manager during holidays or absence, including handling local commercial decisions within agreed parameters.

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The site has a very mixed workforce – a core of long-serving employees and newer starters – so this needs someone who can both respect experience and challenge constructively where standards slip.

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What you’ll be responsible for

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Operational leadership

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• Own the daily plan for the site: what’s being collected, what’s being tipped and processed, and what’s being loaded out.

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• Allocate resource across drivers, yard staff and admin to make sure the right people are in the right place at the right time.

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• Keep close control of yard layout, stock locations and loading bays to avoid bottlenecks.

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Transport & yard coordination

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• Work with the transport function to sequence collections and deliveries around processing capacity and customer requirements.

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• React to delays, breakdowns or no-shows – re-prioritising drivers and loads to protect service and cost.

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People management

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• Lead a multi-discipline team with a wide range of service lengths and backgrounds.

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• Set clear expectations, provide regular feedback and deal promptly with performance or conduct issues.

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• Build a culture where people are comfortable in a tough, industrial environment but also understand standards and procedures.

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Safety, compliance & standards

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• Maintain a strong health & safety culture across the depot – traffic management, housekeeping, equipment use, PPE.

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• Ensure operating procedures are understood and followed, and that the site is always “audit-ready”.

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• Support environmental and waste-related compliance requirements applicable to the depot.

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Commercial awareness

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• When deputising for the GM, handle day-to-day commercial conversations – for example, basic pricing discussions with local customers within agreed frameworks.

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• Keep an eye on cost drivers on site (overtime, vehicle utilisation, waste, rework) and support initiatives to improve performance.

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What we’re looking for

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To fit well in this role, you will need:

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• Proven experience in operational leadership in a relevant environment – e.g. recycling, waste management, MRF/transfer station, or heavy industrial / manufacturing with yard-based operations.

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• A track record of being physically present in the operation, not just managing via spreadsheets and email.

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• Experience managing mixed teams – drivers, yard/production staff and administrators – ideally 15–30 people.

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• Strong health & safety mindset and experience maintaining standards in non-glamorous, industrial settings.

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• Confidence to stand in for your manager, make sensible decisions, and represent the site to internal stakeholders and local customers.

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• Solid organisational skills – comfortable juggling collections, processing and outbound loads without losing sight of the detail.

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• Clear, straightforward communication style; able to gain respect from long-serving staff as well as bring newer people with you.

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• A continuous improvement mindset – spotting small operational gains and following them through.

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Background in distribution/warehouse-only environments can be considered if you can clearly demonstrate success in tough, outdoor/yard-based operations rather than purely indoor DCs.

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Why this role?

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• Take genuine ownership of a live, complex depot operation, not just part of the process.

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• Join a business with a strong internal progression track record across depots and wider group roles.

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• Work closely with an experienced General Manager and senior team who understand the sector and value hands-on operators.

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• Have the scope to shape culture and standards at a key site for the business.

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If you’re an operations leader who thrives in real-world industrial environments and wants the chance to run a busy depot end-to-end, we’d like to hear from you.