Factory-Inbound Logistics Recovery Leader

The mandate

Three assembly interruptions were attributed to suppliers, yet review found releases changed after route cut-off, owned tractors waited at cross-docks, trailers lacked dependable yard states and line-side shortages were discovered after parts had entered the plant. Premium freight rose while route adherence appeared green. The logistics vice president left after a production council rejected the recovery forecast. The interim assumes 1PL inbound authority while plant directors retain assembly and safety command.

The appointment starts within two weeks and runs nine months through two model ramps, cross-border peak and a permanent search commencing in month three. The first twenty days secure high-consequence parts, reconcile trailer and container positions, and stop false route closure. Months two through six reset supplier release, route, cross-dock, yard, dock and line-side control. The closing phase proves recovery through supplier, border, vehicle and plant disruptions before successor-led reviews.

Handover is complete when the permanent leader has chaired eight material-control reviews, twelve weeks of parts journeys reconcile from release to consumption, avoidable premium freight falls within approved tolerance, returnable packaging supports the ramp and every plant can simulate loss of a cross-dock without hiding shortage. The successor inherits route economics, supplier behaviours, border constraints, asset health, labour risks, container debt and a ninety-day plan owned by permanent plant logistics leaders.

The interim may rebalance owned vehicles and drivers, alter milk-run frequencies, redirect parts among approved nodes, reject late supplier releases, set yard and dock priority, authorise premium freight within emergency limits and suspend unsafe routing. Production schedule change, supplier commercial settlement, permanent senior appointment, collective-term change, fleet acquisition, border-policy position or spend above USD8 million requires manufacturing, procurement, labour or council approval. Plants retain line-stop and safety authority.

Supplier quality, sourcing decisions, manufacturing process redesign, sale of the owned fleet and replacement of core planning platforms are outside scope. Recovery cannot improve route adherence by resetting cut-offs after departure, classify unscanned trailers as supplier delay or protect assembly output by exhausting drivers and line-side buffers. Work concerns owned inbound execution, complete material evidence and a disciplined transfer to permanent leadership.

Why this seat is open

The manufacturer internalised transport to control sequence-critical flow, but accountability fragmented across supplier schedulers, cross-docks and plants. Production loss revealed that each node closed its own task while the part journey remained incomplete. A hands-on automotive logistics executive is required before model ramps magnify the same failure and premium freight becomes the default operating plan.

What you will own

• Reconcile release, pickup, cross-dock receipt, route departure, border, yard arrival, dock, supermarket, line-side and consumption events for critical parts.
• Decide owned fleet, driver, container, cross-dock and dock allocation within delegation against assembly consequence and verified inventory.
• Reset supplier cut-offs, schedule-freeze rules, route exceptions and escalation clocks around one material-need timestamp.
• Establish trailer, returnable-container and in-plant custody controls that expose dwell, missing scans, damage and empty imbalance.
• Close model-ramp risks through sampled part journeys, route ride-alongs, dock observation and plant production reconciliation.
• Exercise supplier miss, border delay, tractor loss, cross-dock outage, yard congestion and simultaneous sequence shortage.
• Induct the permanent leader and transfer route economics, asset constraints, supplier cures, labour risks and open premium-freight decisions.

Candidate qualifications

• Has held executive 1PL responsibility for sequence-critical automotive or comparable high-velocity manufacturing inbound networks.
• Can evidence line-loss recovery that joined supplier release, physical transport, yard state, plant receipt and actual consumption.
• Understands milk-runs, cross-docks, border flow, yards, dock scheduling, returnable packaging, sequencing and premium-freight economics.
• Has allocated scarce transport during model ramp while preserving plant safety, driver hours and supplier accountability.
• Can distinguish route departure, expected arrival, physical receipt, available inventory and line-side readiness in control evidence.
• Has handed a recovered inbound network to permanent leadership after unannounced node-loss and sequence-shortage exercises.

Non-negotiables

• Can start onsite in Detroit within two weeks and rotate weekly across United States and Mexican nodes.
• Will not override plant safety, manipulate route cut-offs or classify unsupported trailer positions as available inventory.
• Brings direct owned-fleet manufacturing logistics authority; freight procurement or control-tower analytics alone is insufficient.
• Will retain missed pickups, late releases, premium moves, exhausted containers and unscanned dwell in performance reporting.

1. 49 words maximum. Which apparently green inbound milestone most seriously concealed assembly-line shortage risk?
2. 49 words maximum. Describe how you allocated owned transport when supplier release and plant sequence both changed late.
3. 49 words maximum. Confirm your Detroit start date and largest 1PL manufacturing perimeter.