Luke Ward
Melbourne,VIC
Summary
I am an accomplished Inventory Manager with 9+ years experience in DC operations, logistics and supply chain with a proven track record, adept in leveraging data analysis and lean methodologies to drive customer centric outcomes and operational excellence across multiple sites, whilst driving process improvement and commercial benefit for the business.
I am passionate about developing teams to achieve operational excellence, drive customer centric outcomes and challenge the status-quo whilst leading continuous improvement initiatives with a strong belief in building a heathy work-place culture which nurtures and promotes professional & psychological growth through empowerment, training and positive leadership - promoting and encouraging buy-in on the company's vision and purpose.
Overview
8
8
years of professional experience
Work History
Inventory Manager
Stow Australia
04.2025 - Current
- Reporting directly to the CEO, I was brought in to the company to bring visibility and control across their inventory functions. I drove end-to-end inventory processes, which included conducting an end-to-end stocktake to gain a baseline, concluded at 29% inventory accuracy prior to my employment. Did a quarterly stocktake post this, saw location accuracy exceed 98.9%.
- Analysed and assessed preferred stock levels, safety stock and reorder points. Saved approx. $1.4m in purchasing costs through refining supplier conformance metrics and establishing a supplier matrix.
- Reduced lead times on A,B,C lines by preemptively setting ROPs to meet forecasted sales targets.
- Redesigned the layout of all DCs (VIC, NSW & QLD), to best support rapid customer fulfilment through reducing travel time throughout putaway and picking.
- Established best practices in a business looking to modernise and keep up with the ever changing world of supply chain and logistics.
Inventory Manager
Bapcor Limited
02.2024 - 04.2025
- Conduct data analysis, accountable and make operational decisions across 6 DC's with ~$500m worth of inventory OH. Bapcor's total inventory listing is approximately 275,000 SKUs, with roughly 80,000 SKUs in each DC at any given time.
- I created and updated regular inventory reports, klipfolios and records to best ensure key inventory KPIs were visible, met and adhered to.
- Designed and lead the establishment of the new Sydney DC, through designing the racking configuration, implementing the pick-paths, item location dedication and slotting approximately 70,000 SKUs in a 6-week time-frame in time for Go-Live.
- Implemented processes to reduce financial leakage and improve inventory health at the Victorian DC which saw a 61% improvement in reduced lost stock and nil picks in FY24, with an average customer fill-rate of 99.7%.
- Reduced stock discrepancies by 58% from FY23 to FY24 with a total saving of $1,325,095.
- I applied lean methodologies to reduce labour cost through cycle count programs, with a net benefit of 72% from FY23 to FY24, equating to $218,527.
- Created and implemented national inventory policies relating to Delegation of Authority and Dead/Obsolete stock disposal ensuring end-to-end accountability.
- Optimised storage solutions at the VIC DC, which allowed for 10 Business Units to transition in FY24, through reconfiguring racking to create approx. 10,000 pallet spaces and applied fit-for-purpose storage and picking solutions to ensure efficiency in putaway and picking.
- Executed long-span reserve configuration across VIC/QLD DC's, which increased putaway times and reduced replenishment times, leading to de-hiring of MHE and reducing labour, with a net benefit of $1,175,941 p/a.
- Designed and executed the reconfiguration of the Victorian DC which saw the pick-path altered, slotting logic and racking change. This led to a decrease in 27% in travel time, equating to 117 lines extra per day per FTE, totalling $2,734,638 p/a benefit.
- I am efficient in Manhattan WMS, Momentum Pro ERP, and WAMAS (Schaefer SSI GTP systems), as well as excel and MS functions.
Inventory Coordinator
Bapcor Limited
07.2023 - 02.2024
Team Leader
Bapcor Limited
01.2022 - 07.2023
- Set performance expectations for the team, monitoring progress towards goals and providing constructive feedback as needed.
- Empowered team members by delegating responsibilities according to individual strengths and areas of expertise.
- Managed conflict resolution among team members, fostering a positive and collaborative work environment.
- Collaborated with other department leaders to establish shared goals and ensure alignment across teams.
- Implemented lean practices to reduce labour which saw a 26% reduction in labour cost and eliminated the need for a night-shift, whilst still maintaining excellent customer service.
- Successfully led the planning and DC project for the Burson One Day Sale, enabling records to be broken.
Inventory and Export Manager
Visy
05.2021 - 01.2022
- Coordinated sales forecasts and inventory management to ensure adequate stock levels for prompt fulfillment of customer orders.
- I was accountable for data analysis, stock accuracy and stock availability of 20,000 SKUs.
- By implementing a new FIFO system, this led to a 67% increase in putaway times and paved the way for rapid customer order fulfillment.
- I was accountable for all exports to numerous countries, including: Japan, Malaysia, Netherlands and South Africa. I ensured all OHS policies, weight declaration forms and compliance certificates were adhered to at all times and kept an open line of communication to all internal and external stakeholders.
Section Leader
ALDI
01.2020 - 05.2021
- Collaborated with management to develop strategic plans that aligned with company objectives.
- Established road maps for team members to increase daily KPIs.
- Built a foundation for my career in the supply chain and logistics space, through hand-on learning experience in a fast-paced DC, aided during the times of the Covid pandemic and the pressure this placed on the industry.
High Reach Operator
Bidfood
10.2017 - 01.2020
Education
Diploma of Competitive Systems And Practices - Continuous Improvement And Lean Methodologies
Vative Academy
08-2024
VCE -
Penleigh And Essendon Grammar School
11-2016
Skills
- Decision-making
- Problem-solving
- Sales strategy development
- Operations Management
- Multi-site Management
- Data analysis
- Lean Methodolgies
- Inventory Management
- Logistics Management
- Customer Relationship Management
- WMS & ERP implementation
- Transformation Execution
- Sales and operations planning
- Demand analysis
- Supply chain optimization
- Forecasting accuracy
Accomplishments
- Awarded Bapcor employee of the year in 2022.
- Awarded Bapcor Champion Award in 2024.
Timeline
Inventory Manager
Stow Australia
04.2025 - Current
Inventory Manager
Bapcor Limited
02.2024 - 04.2025
Inventory Coordinator
Bapcor Limited
07.2023 - 02.2024
Team Leader
Bapcor Limited
01.2022 - 07.2023
Inventory and Export Manager
Visy
05.2021 - 01.2022
Section Leader
ALDI
01.2020 - 05.2021
High Reach Operator
Bidfood
10.2017 - 01.2020
VCE -
Penleigh And Essendon Grammar School
Diploma of Competitive Systems And Practices - Continuous Improvement And Lean Methodologies
Vative Academy
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