Operations Program Manager (E-commerce/Quick Commerce)

Cephas Consultancy Services Private Limited

India, Karnataka, Bengaluru

On-site · Full-time

Positions: 1 | Employment type: Full time

Experience: 3–6 years

Program Manager — Middle Mile

Team: Supply Chain / Operations | Location: Bengaluru (on-site, with regular warehouse and store time) | Experience: 3–6 years

About the role

Every order we deliver depends on the medicine already sitting in the right darkstore. Getting it there—from the mother warehouse to each store, on the right schedule, at the right temperature, with the paperwork intact—is the middle mile.

This role owns that network within the city. You’ll decide how often each store is replenished, on what routes, in what vehicles, through which transporter, and at what cost per unit. When a store runs dry because a dispatch wave slipped, that’s your problem to prevent structurally rather than firefight.

It’s a program role: you build the schedules, SOPs, and partner systems that the network runs on, and you onboard every new store into them.

What you’ll own

Replenishment planning and TAT

  • Design the city replenishment schedule: dispatch waves, cut-off times, and frequency per store based on velocity and storage capacity.
  • Own warehouse-to-store TAT, on-time dispatch, and on-time arrival rates.
  • Plan routes and milk runs across the store network; balance trip consolidation against store-level urgency.
  • Build the emergency and top-up replenishment path for fast movers and critical chronic SKUs without letting it become the default.
  • Work with category and store operations teams so replenishment quantities match bin capacity, not just demand.

Transport cost

  • Own cost per unit and cost per trip as primary metrics; know where each rupee goes.
  • Optimise vehicle mix and fill rate—the cheapest trip is the one that didn’t need to run.
  • Model route, frequency, and vehicle changes before rollout, and measure them afterward.
  • Track fuel, detention, waiting time, and idle capacity as controllable line items.

Network accuracy and reverse flows

  • Run the reverse logistics flow: near-expiry returns, damaged stock, vendor returns, and inter-store transfers.
  • Own crate, tote, and cold-box asset tracking; these disappear quietly and cost real money.
  • Close the loop on every variance with root cause, not just an adjustment entry.

Programs and new store onboarding

  • Own the middle-mile playbook for new store launches: route addition, schedule fitment, transporter capacity, and first-fill planning.
  • Write SOPs, train warehouse and store teams, and audit whether they’re being followed.
  • Run pilots with clear hypotheses and readouts; build the dashboards the team operates on.

What we’re looking for

Must have

  • 3–6 years in middle mile, transportation, warehouse operations, or supply chain—ideally in quick commerce, e-commerce, pharma distribution, or 3PL.
  • Hands-on route planning and transporter management experience, with cost outcomes you can point to.
  • Program management strength: you can run a change across warehouse, stores, and partners without owning any of those teams.
  • Strong data skills: advanced Excel/Sheets, and SQL or hands-on generative AI experience.
  • Working knowledge of movement documentation: e-way bills, GST invoicing, and stock transfer compliance.
  • Willingness to be at the warehouse at dispatch time, which may be an uncomfortable hour.

Good to have

  • Pharma or cold-chain experience, and familiarity with GDP practices.
  • Exposure to WMS, TMS, or route-optimisation tools.
  • Experience scaling a city network from a handful of stores to many.
  • Kannada or another regional language ability for warehouse and driver conversations.

Why us

You’ll design a city replenishment network rather than maintain one, in a business where a store running out isn’t an inconvenience—it’s a customer who needed medicine and didn’t get it.