Senior DC Operations Manager

About Careem Grocery

Careem Grocery is a key part of Careem’s vision to simplify and improve the lives of people in our region. Through Careem Quik, our 24/7 grocery delivery service, we operate a network of dark stores and fulfilment centres across the UAE and wider MENA region. Our mission is to provide customers with the fastest, freshest, and most reliable grocery delivery experience in the market.

About the role

The Senior Manager – DC Operations will lead and optimize the performance of Careem’s Distribution Centres (DCs). This role is responsible for driving operational excellence, ensuring world-class service levels, managing cost efficiency, and developing scalable processes that enable rapid business growth.

The ideal candidate is a strategic operator with strong analytical capabilities, people leadership experience, and a proven track record in managing large-scale logistics or fulfilment networks.

What you'll do

1. Operational Leadership
Own the end-to-end operations of all grocery DCs, including inbound logistics, inventory management, order processing, and last-mile handover.
Establish and maintain SOPs, SLAs, and quality control frameworks to ensure consistent service delivery.
Lead cross-functional initiatives with Supply Chain, Planning, Commercial, and Tech teams to optimize warehouse design, picking efficiency, and automation.

2. Performance Management
Define and track KPIs (e.g. order accuracy, on-time dispatch rate, cost per order, stock loss, labor productivity).
Build dashboards and review cadences to monitor performance and proactively address bottlenecks.
Continuously benchmark DC operations against industry standards and regional best practices.

3. Cost & Process Optimization
Drive initiatives to reduce fulfilment costs through process engineering, automation, and layout optimization.
Collaborate with Procurement and Network Design teams on capacity planning, DC expansion, and contract negotiations.
Manage budgets, P&L, and resource allocation across facilities to deliver on financial and service targets.

4. People Leadership
Lead, mentor, and develop a team of DC Managers, Supervisors, and frontline associates.
Foster a high-performance culture focused on safety, collaboration, and continuous improvement.
Ensure compliance with HSE, labor, and local regulatory standards.

5. Strategic Projects
Support the launch of new DCs or markets, including site selection, setup, and operational readiness.
Partner with Product & Tech teams to design and implement warehouse management systems (WMS) and automation tools.
Champion sustainability and energy efficiency initiatives within operations.

What you'll need

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Supply Chain, Operations Management, or related field
• 8+ years of experience in fulfilment centre or DC operations, ideally within grocery, FMCG, or e-commerce sectors
• Proven experience leading multi-site operations and large teams
• Deep understanding of warehouse processes, lean principles, and demand-driven logistics
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, and stakeholder management skills
• Excellent communication and leadership abilities
• Tech-savvy mindset; experience with WMS, OMS, and BI tools (e.g., Tableau, Power BI, SQL) preferred

What we’ll provide you

We offer colleagues the opportunity to drive impact in the region while they learn and grow. As a full-time Careem colleague, you will be able to:

• Work and learn from great minds by joining a community of inspiring colleagues
• Put your passion to work in a purposeful organisation dedicated to creating impact in a region with a lot of untapped potential
• Explore new opportunities to learn and grow every day
• Work 4 days a week in office & 1 day from home, and remotely from any country in the world for 30 days a year with unlimited vacation days per year. (If you are in an individual contributor role in tech, you will have 2 office days a week and 3 to work from home.)
• Access to healthcare benefits and fitness reimbursements for health activities including gym, health club, and training classes