In short
An operations manager's resume is read by someone who runs things for a living. They want to size the job you did and see that it ran better because you were there. That means scale (sites, people, volume, budget), a standard you held (on-time, accuracy, safety, cost per unit), and a before and after with the change that made it stick. Below is a senior Operations Manager's full resume, annotated part by part, then the headline, letter and first contacts that go with it.
Dana is invented, but her resume follows FutureDay's method: every line comes from something she actually did, and nothing is added to sound bigger. Read it top to bottom first, the way a hiring manager would, then read the notes.
An operations manager's resume in full
DANA WHITFIELD
Operations Manager | Multi-site Fulfilment | 340,000 units a month, 96% on-time
Brisbane QLD · dana.whitfield@email.com · 0400 000 000 · linkedin.com/in/danawhitfield
Summary
Operations leader who runs multi-site fulfilment networks and keeps them on time through peak, relocation and growth. Runs four sites, 180 staff and a $38M cost base for a national retailer, holding 96% or better on-time dispatch for eleven quarters in a row while taking 14% out of cost per unit.
Known for the daily rhythm that keeps a standard in place after the project team has gone: one exceptions meeting, one set of numbers, and supervisors who own their own shift.
Career highlights
- Took national on-time delivery from 82% to 97% in fourteen months by rebuilding the carrier mix and running a daily exceptions meeting, then held it through two peak seasons and a site closure.
- Opened a new distribution centre while the existing network kept trading: live in 22 weeks against a 26-week plan, on budget, with no drop in on-time dispatch.
- Cut order-to-dispatch from 48 hours to 9 by re-sequencing the pick line and re-rostering the late shift.
Experience
National Operations Manager, Harbourline Retail 2021 to now
Four distribution sites, 340,000 units a month, 180 staff, $38M operating budget. Reports to the Chief Operating Officer.
- Rebuilt the carrier mix from two carriers to five, cutting freight cost per order by 11% ($1.9M a year) while on-time delivery rose.
- Brought in a daily exceptions meeting across all four sites, lifting the share of late orders caught before cut-off from 40% to 85%.
- Led the move to a new warehouse management system across four sites with no lost trading days, on a $2.4M budget.
- Cut the lost-time injury rate from 4.1 to 1.3 over two years by giving each shift supervisor their own safety walk and weekly numbers.
Site Manager, Brindlewood Logistics 2017 to 2021
Third-party logistics site, 70 staff, eleven clients across retail and health.
- Won and onboarded four new clients in two years, growing site revenue by 35% without adding floor space.
- Lifted pick accuracy from 98.1% to 99.6% by moving to scan-to-confirm and retraining every picker in six weeks.
- Held every client service level above 98% through the 2020 demand spike, when volume doubled in a month.
Earlier career
Shift and team leader roles in warehousing and transport, including Inbound Team Leader at Southbank Distribution and Transport Coordinator at Carrick Freight.
Education and training
Bachelor of Business (Supply Chain Management)
Certificate IV in Work Health and Safety
Lean Six Sigma Green Belt
Systems and skills
Warehouse and transport management systems, SAP, Power BI · Sales and operations planning · Carrier and 3PL contracts · Lean · Site start-ups · Workforce planning
- HeadlineThe figure does the work. Role, then the kind of operation, then the scale and the standard kept. An operations reader trusts a number more than any adjective, so there are no adjectives.
- SummaryScope before style. Within two lines the reader knows how big the job is (four sites, 180 people, $38M) and what she holds it to. There's no "seasoned", no "20 years' experience": the scale says senior without giving away her age.
- HighlightsBefore, after, and how. Each one is a number that moved, the thing she did to move it, and proof it stayed moved. "Then held it through two peak seasons" is the part most resumes leave out, and it's the part an operations reader cares about most.
- Scope lineLet them size the job. One plain line under each title: sites, people, budget, who you report to. It saves every bullet underneath from having to repeat it.
- BulletsNo duty statements. "Responsible for warehouse operations" tells a reader nothing they can measure. Every line here names a volume, a standard or a change, and most name all three.
- Earlier careerOlder roles, no dates. Detail is for the last 10 to 15 years. Older roles go in one line with no dates, so the page shows her depth without inviting someone to work out her age.
- SystemsName what carries weight. The systems an operations job description asks for are worth listing, because they're often what a screening system searches for. Nothing she hasn't used.
What does a head of operations look for in an operations manager?
Three things, in this order. Can I size the job you did? Did it run better because you were there? Will it still run when you're not standing over it? A resume that answers all three in the first half page gets read to the end. One that opens with a list of duties usually doesn't.
Before: "Responsible for managing warehouse operations and ensuring KPIs are met."
After: "Cut order-to-dispatch from 48 hours to 9 by re-sequencing the pick line and re-rostering the late shift."
What should an operations manager put in a LinkedIn headline?
The same shape as the resume headline, because recruiters search LinkedIn by job title first. Dana's reads:
"Operations Manager | National Fulfilment | 340,000 units a month, 96% on-time"
Not "Passionate operations leader driving excellence". Nobody searches for that, and it says nothing about the size of the job.
How should an operations manager's cover letter open?
With a problem you fixed, sized so the reader can picture it. Calm and specific reads as someone who has actually run the thing:
"I took a four-site fulfilment operation from 82% to 97% on-time delivery, then held it through two peak seasons. Your two new sites will need the same thing while the existing network keeps trading."
Then close on what you'd own in the role, not on how much you admire the company.
Who should an operations manager contact, and with what message?
This is the part a resume can't do on its own. Operations roles at this level often go to someone the hiring manager already knows, or someone a person they trust puts forward. Dana's resume does its job after the first conversation, not before it. Getting that conversation is the work.
For an Operations Manager, the people worth talking to first are:
- People who used to work with you and have moved to other companies. They know your work, and they hear about openings before they're advertised.
- Your carriers, 3PLs and suppliers. Their account managers sit inside a dozen operations teams. They often know who is opening a site, who is restructuring and who just lost their operations lead.
- The Head of Operations or General Manager, Supply Chain at the companies you'd like to work for. That's who would hire you, so that's who you want to know you exist.
Keep the first message short and the ask small. To a former colleague:
"Hi Sam, saw you've moved to Coastline. How are you finding it? I'm starting to look at what's next after five years at Harbourline, mainly multi-site fulfilment roles. If you hear of anything, or know someone I should talk to, I'd really appreciate it. Happy to return the favour."
A few messages like that every day is the real work of the search. Here's why the people you know less well matter most.
Where FutureDay fits for an operations manager
FutureDay turns your own work history into a resume like Dana's, then fits it to each job description without adding a thing you didn't do. Each day, it shows you who to contact, what to say, and what to do next.
In summary
Lead with scale and a standard you held, not adjectives.
Every highlight is a before, an after, and how it stuck.
One scope line under each job lets the reader size it.
Detail for the last 10 to 15 years; older roles in one undated line.
A resume backs up a conversation; most of your week should go on starting them.