Customer Operations Specialist na Not Your Mother's

Description

Customer Operations Specialist

Lutz, FL - Onsite

JOB SUMMARY

The Customer Operations Specialist owns the end-to-end order lifecycle — from order receipt through invoicing — with precision, urgency, and accountability. As an Operations Business Partner, this position serves as the central communication hub between Sales, Supply Chain, Warehouse, Logistics, and retail partners, ensuring every order flows accurately, on time, and in full while driving collaboration and alignment across teams.

The role requires strong communication, system proficiency, and problem-solving skills in a fast-paced, results-oriented environment. Specialists are expected to lead conversations, make informed decisions, and proactively resolve issues without reliance on others for direction.

The position initiates and manages correspondence related to specific customer needs to ensure customer satisfaction, including direct contact with customers to provide sales support, reporting, order status updates, product availability, and other account-specific inquiries.

DUTIES/RESPONSIBILITIES

• Execute all customer purchase order management activities from order receipt through invoicing with accuracy, speed, and compliance. This includes both automated purchase orders submitted via EDI transactions and manually processed orders received through email submission.
• Take full ownership of assigned customers and orders, ensuring proactive communication, timely follow-up, and clear documentation of all actions.
• Serve as the primary point of contact for customer and internal inquiries, leading conversations to resolution rather than escalating without action.
• Maintain up-to-date routing guides, compliance documentation, and customer requirements; actively review, interpret, and communicate updates or changes to all relevant internal teams. Specialists are expected to understand the content and impact of these documents.
• Maintain customer resources and requirements, including portal management, service level tracking, scorecards, and other customer-specific documentation to ensure accuracy, compliance, and consistent visibility across departments.
• Fully own chargeback management for assigned customers, including tracking, reporting, and analyzing all chargebacks and deductions. Examples include but are not limited to OTIF, compliance, data accuracy, documentation, and shipping- or labeling-related chargebacks.
• Identify root causes and take direct action — initiating disputes with customers, driving recovery efforts, and leveraging deduction and chargeback applications to prevent revenue loss.
• Track and analyze order and chargeback performance, communicate findings, lead root-cause reviews, and drive cross-functional accountability across internal departments.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams — including Sales, Finance, Supply Chain, Warehouse, and Logistics — to support customer needs, resolve fulfillment issues, and drive business success. Proactively escalate and communicate critical issues to ensure visibility, alignment, and timely resolution that prevents customer or revenue impact.
• Partner closely with our third-party logistics (3PL) warehouse provider to ensure compliance with customer requirements and operational standards. Hold the 3PL accountable for performance, violations, and corrective actions by collaborating regularly to conduct root-cause analysis, request credits, and verify resolution of issues.
• When the root cause or credit is determined to be outside the 3PL’s responsibility, obtain all supporting documentation from the warehouse partner and work directly with the customer to dispute or resolve the issue.
• While the Logistics team owns the vendor relationship, Customer Operations owns the ongoing operational accountability — ensuring compliance, communication, and continuous improvement between DeMert and our warehouse partner.
• Validate orders and collaborate with Sales to resolve discrepancies prior to fulfillment.
• Utilize ERP and EDI systems (Business Central, TrueCommerce, and retail customer portals) to manage workflows and ensure accurate data across platforms. Analyze customer scorecards, supplier performance, and service level data to identify trends and provide insights that improve accuracy, compliance, and efficiency.
• Demonstrate professional written and verbal communication skills, including customer-facing correspondence and cross-department interactions.
• Apply fundamental business tools such as Excel (data organization, tracking, and reporting), Outlook (calendar and communication management), and PowerPoint (process or issue summaries).
• Contribute to continuous improvement by identifying inefficiencies, suggesting solutions, and supporting the standardization of best practices.
• Be a self-starter — proactively identify potential issues, gather information, and initiate conversations with cross-functional partners to prevent problems before they occur. 
• Lead problem-solving efforts by scheduling meetings, facilitating discussions, and engaging the appropriate departments to develop and implement effective, sustainable solutions for customer-specific challenges.  

Requirements

REQUIRED SKILLS/ABILITIES

• Ownership Mindset: Acts independently to identify, communicate, and resolve issues.
• Professional Communication: Writes and speaks clearly, concisely, and respectfully in all interactions.
• Technical Proficiency: Demonstrates strong ability to navigate and utilize ERP and EDI platforms (Business Central, TrueCommerce, and related customer portals). Skilled in Microsoft Office applications including Excel (data analysis and reporting), Outlook, and PowerPoint. Comfortable interpreting and using data to make informed decisions.
• Critical Thinking: Uses facts and logic to determine next steps, not emotion or assumption.
• Accountability: Follows through on commitments and delivers accurate results. 
• Decision Making: Performs responsibilities with minimal supervision, exercising discretion, sound judgment, and independent decision-making.
• Adaptability: Thrives in a changing environment and remains solution-oriented.
• Attention to Detail: Demonstrates accuracy and thoroughness in all aspects of work.
• Time Management: Prioritizes tasks effectively to meet deadlines and customer expectations.
• Organizational Skills: Maintains structured processes, documentation, and follow-through to ensure consistency and visibility.
• Multitasking and Prioritization: Highly organized, with the ability to effectively manage multiple time-sensitive projects and competing priorities in a dynamic, fast-paced environment.
• Proactive Leadership: Initiates conversations, drives collaboration, and leads cross-functional problem solving without waiting for direction.

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE

•  Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, Supply Chain, or a related field preferred.
• 3+ years in Order Management, Customer Service, or Supply Chain functions.
• Experience managing or supporting major retail accounts (e.g., Walmart, Target, Ulta, CVS, Walgreens, etc.) strongly preferred.
• Familiarity with consumer packaged goods (CPG) operations and prior experience in a customer operations or service position preferred. 

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS 

•   Prolonged periods of sitting at a desk and working on a computer.
• Must be able to remain focused and perform detailed work for extended periods.
• The position will require movement within warehouse and logistics areas to engage with the pick/pack, shipping, and receiving teams.
• May be required to actively participate in warehouse operations — including order selecting, pick/pack activities, and preparing orders for shipment — during peak periods or when assisting in recovery efforts following inclement weather.
• The position is currently based primarily at the Distribution Center (Lutz, FL) but will be required to work out of the company’s headquarters building (International Plaza/TPA) several times per month for team collaboration, presentations, and cross-functional meetings.
• All employees are required to attend the monthly company lunch and/or quarterly breakfast at the headquarters building, as well as the Supply Chain meetings.