Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Warehouse Project Director

🎯 Role Definition

The Warehouse Project Director (also titled Distribution Center Project Director, DC Project Director, or Warehouse Transformation Director) is accountable for end‑to‑end delivery of large capital projects, automation integrations, facility relocations and process improvement initiatives for a portfolio of warehouses and distribution centers. This role combines program and construction management, supply chain operational leadership, vendor and contractor oversight, and stakeholder communication to drive measurable improvements in capacity, labor efficiency, accuracy, and safety.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

Senior Project Manager — Warehouse/Logistics
Director/Manager of Warehouse Operations
Program Manager, Supply Chain Transformation

Advancement To:

VP of Supply Chain / VP of Distribution
Head of Global Real Estate & Facilities
Chief Operations Officer (COO) for Logistics

Lateral Moves:

Automation Program Director (Robotics/Conveyors)
Real Estate & Construction Director (Retail/Logistics)
Global Implementation Director (WMS/ERP Deployments)

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

Lead the full project lifecycle for multiple concurrent warehouse and distribution center projects — including new facility builds, expansions, retrofit/automation integrations, WMS/ERP migrations, and multi‑site rollouts — ensuring projects meet scope, schedule, budget and quality targets.
Own project governance and program management for a portfolio of capital projects (typical annual portfolio $2M–$100M+), creating and maintaining program schedules, milestone tracking, risk registers, and executive status reporting to the C‑suite and steering committees.
Develop, manage and optimize project budgets, cost forecasts and change control processes; implement value‑engineering to reduce cost and improve ROI while maintaining operational performance and safety standards.
Define technical and operational requirements for material handling systems (conveyors, sortation, AS/RS, carousels), robotics (AMR/AGV, robotic picking), and control systems; lead vendor selection, RFPs, commercial negotiations and contract management to secure best‑value suppliers and integrators.
Coordinate architectural, structural and MEP design reviews and approvals; oversee permitting, inspections and compliance with local building codes, environmental regulations and OSHA/health & safety requirements.
Drive WMS/ERP integration strategy and execution (SAP EWM, Blue Yonder/JDA, Manhattan, Oracle, etc.), coordinating application teams, middleware, controls engineers and 3PL/operations to achieve go‑live readiness and data integrity.
Serve as the primary interface between engineering, operations, IT, finance, real estate, procurement and external stakeholders to align project scope with business needs and operational constraints.
Establish and enforce project quality standards, FAT/SAT testing protocols, commissioning and acceptance criteria; lead system validation, production cutover planning and phased go‑lives to minimize operational disruption.
Lead cross‑functional readiness activities including resource planning, SOP development, training programs, change management plans, and pre/post‑go‑live support to ensure sustained operational performance.
Manage construction and installation contractors on site—oversee schedules, safety programs, daily coordination, progress inspections and punchlist completion to keep projects on track.
Implement performance metrics and KPIs for projects and affected operations (throughput, lines per hour, pick accuracy, labor cost per unit, OTIF, cycle time) and use data to inform continuous improvement and benefits realization.
Lead risk management and mitigation for program risks — commercial, schedule, technical and operational — and develop contingency plans to minimize business impact.
Direct supplier and subcontractor performance management: SLAs, milestone payments, technical deliverables, warranty management and dispute resolution.
Coordinate logistics, staging and inventory management for equipment deliveries, installations and site turnovers to avoid operational bottlenecks and material shortages.
Drive continuous improvement initiatives (Lean, Kaizen, Six Sigma) as part of project scope: optimize layout, slotting, storage density and labor flows to improve productivity and reduce cost per order.
Prepare and present business cases, CAPEX/opex analyses and ROI projections to secure funding and executive approval for strategic warehouse investments.
Create and maintain project documentation — contracts, drawings, schedules, testing results, punch lists, as‑built documentation and closeout packages — to ensure audit readiness and long‑term maintainability.
Oversee commissioning and post‑implementation monitoring to validate that expected operational benefits and savings are realized; lead lessons‑learned and continuous improvement reviews.
Provide leadership, mentorship and development to project managers, site leads and cross‑functional teams; allocate resources and prioritize portfolio work to achieve strategic targets.
Ensure a strong safety culture on all project sites by enforcing contractor safety programs, conducting safety audits and integrating safety requirements into design and commissioning.
Manage stakeholder communication plans, ensuring timely executive briefings, program dashboards, and transparent escalation paths for issues impacting schedule, cost or operations.
Lead vendor acceptance testing, controls integration testing, and synchronization of mechanical, electrical and software system handoffs to production teams.
Integrate sustainability and energy efficiency considerations into project design and procurement decisions (LED lighting, HVAC optimization, material reuse).
Support site selection and facility planning activities — capacity modeling, throughput analysis, labor modeling and cost comparisons — to inform strategic network design and future investments.
Oversee readiness and contingency planning for seasonal peaks and ramp‑ups, ensuring the facility can scale safely and efficiently to meet business demand.

Secondary Functions

Support ad-hoc data requests and exploratory data analysis.
Contribute to the organization's data strategy and roadmap.
Collaborate with business units to translate data needs into engineering requirements.
Participate in sprint planning and agile ceremonies within the data engineering team.
Maintain RFIs, RFPs and vendor evaluation templates; archive procurement decisions and lessons learned for reuse.
Provide technical input to real estate negotiations (leasehold improvements, build‑to‑suit scope).
Conduct post‑project financial close and reconciliation with finance, including final warranty claims and contract closeouts.
Assist with emergency response planning and business continuity related to facility outages and system failures.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

Program & Project Management: multi‑site program governance, MS Project, Oracle Primavera, Smartsheet, or similar enterprise scheduling and portfolio tools.
Warehouse Systems & Automation: hands‑on experience with WMS (SAP EWM, Manhattan, Blue Yonder), WCS, MES, controls integration, AS/RS, conveyors, sortation, pick/pack automation, AMRs/robotics.
Systems Integration: experience leading middleware, PLC, SCADA and API integrations between WMS/ERP and material handling equipment.
Construction & Engineering Oversight: familiarity with MEP, structural design, site civil work, permitting and contractor management.
Commercial & Contract Management: RFP/RFI development, vendor selection, negotiations, contract drafting and SLA management.
Financial Acumen: CAPEX/OPEX budgeting, cost estimating, ROI modeling, value engineering and financial reporting.
Data & Analytics: Excel modeling (advanced), SQL basics, Power BI/Tableau dashboards for KPI tracking and benefits realization.
Quality & Testing: FAT/SAT protocols, commissioning checklists, test plans and acceptance criteria development.
Safety & Compliance: OSHA, local building code compliance, safety program implementation for construction and commissioning.
Lean / Continuous Improvement & Six Sigma: process mapping, Kaizen events, productivity improvement methodologies.
Technical Drawing & Layout: reading and reviewing AutoCAD/Revit drawings, racking and slotting planning.
IT/Network Awareness: basic understanding of networking, wireless design in DCs, barcode/RFID systems.

Soft Skills

Strategic Leadership: ability to align projects with business strategy, prioritize investments and lead cross‑functional teams.
Strong Communication: clear executive reporting, stakeholder management, negotiation and contract communications.
Change Management: influence, coaching and stakeholder buy‑in to drive adoption at scale.
Problem Solving & Decision Making: analytical mindset with bias for action under tight timelines.
Collaborative & Cross‑Functional: work effectively with operations, IT, procurement, finance and HR to deliver outcomes.
Resilience & Adaptability: manage ambiguity, rapidly changing requirements and high‑pressure go‑lives.
People Development: mentor project managers and technical leads, build high‑performing project teams.
Attention to Detail: manage complex documentation, contracts and technical specifications.
Commercial Acumen: ability to balance quality, risk and cost when making recommendations.
Client Focus: internal customer orientation to ensure operational readiness and minimize disruption.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

Bachelor’s degree in Engineering (Mechanical, Industrial, Electrical), Supply Chain, Construction Management, Business Administration, or related field.

Preferred Education:

Master’s degree (MBA, M.Eng) or relevant postgraduate qualification; preferred certifications such as PMP, Prince2, Lean Six Sigma Black/Green Belt.

Relevant Fields of Study:

Supply Chain Management
Industrial/Mechanical/Electrical Engineering
Construction Management
Business Administration / Finance
Operations Management

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range: 8–15+ years of progressive experience in project or program management; minimum 5 years leading large warehouse, automation or distribution center projects.

Preferred:

Proven track record delivering multi‑million dollar capital projects (e.g., $5M–$100M+), new builds, automation integrations, or major WMS/ERP implementations.
Experience supervising construction, MEP and controls teams, and coordinating multi‑discipline contractors on site.
Demonstrated success managing cross‑functional stakeholders including operations, IT, real estate, procurement and finance.
History of delivering measurable operational improvements (throughput, accuracy, labor productivity) post‑implementation.
Prior experience in retail, e‑commerce, 3PL, manufacturing or FMCG logistics operations is highly desirable.
Professional certifications strongly preferred: PMP, Lean/Six Sigma, OSHA 30, or certifications relevant to construction/automation.