Burlington is hiring a Director of Asset Protection Operations and Communications to protect company assets and reduce inventory shortage by leading the Asset Protection (AP) Operations and Communications teams. Reporting to the VP of Shortage Control the Director of AP Operations and Communications is a key member of the Asset Protection organization in supporting Burlington’s AP operational processes and programs designed to help reduce loss and improve company profitability, as well as all AP-related communications to store and field leaders.

The Asset Protection Operations team is responsible for leading, developing, prioritizing, and implementing policies, procedures, and cross-functional initiatives that support AP strategies to reduce theft and fraud in stores. The team also creates training programs for store employees to improve process and program execution and increase shortage awareness. In this role, you will lead the team to identify vulnerabilities in store operations and recommend improvements to reduce shortage risk.

The Director will be a collaborative change agent, recommending and influencing programs and process improvement to drive productivity, achieve KPI benchmarks, accomplish departmental goals, and ultimately support reduced shortage. This person will be a self-starter with strong attention to detail, with the ability to work in a fast-paced, ambiguous environment. The drive and capability to shape a new business group strategy and foster ideas and solutions is necessary.

In addition, the Director will lead the AP Communications team and develop strategic communications strategies and workload capacity plans. This person will integrate planning processes with field and corporate business partners to ensure alignment with business objectives. The Director will build and maintain strong relationships throughout the organization with both field and corporate business partners, remaining flexible with a high level of professionalism and confidentiality. This person must prioritize, plan, and implement workload planning solutions that streamline execution and drive results through an organized and effective communication strategy.

A Day in the Life:

Spearhead and amplify AP operational processes and programs:

• Identify industry AP best practices, competitor practices, and technology opportunities to improve store efficiency, execution, and reduce labor spend.
• Govern all AP standard operating procedures, policies, etc. and influence other store SOPs to ensure there is no potential to create shortage.
• Lead the Shortage Assessment process in stores to validate compliance and to identify opportunities.  Ensure the assessments are accurate, complete, and drive actions to address deficiencies. Work closely with field leadership to identify performance gaps to optimize assessment value.
• Partner with AP Strategy and Analytics to ensure that AP practices are properly measured, assessed, and have an identifiable benefit. Deliver performance metrics to the organization that are structured to clearly identify performance trends coupled with mechanisms to address deficiencies via action planning.
• Coordinate with Store Operations, AP Strategy and Analytics, Learning and Development, and other relevant partners to drive the effectiveness of shortage reduction tools including SCA program, Shortage Highway, Silent Partner, Hi-5, B-Aware, and shortage-related SOP alignment.

Develop strategies and drive improvement in shortage results:

• Build strong partnerships with Store Operations, Field Leadership, Procurement, Finance, Store Innovation, Merchants, PIC, Legal, etc. to secure support, implement recommendations in a fast-paced environment, and drive best-in-class operational execution consistently across all store locations.
• Generate and identify innovative ideas and solutions to protect our merchandise via emerging technologies and by staying ahead of industry trends through research, networking, professional retail organization memberships, etc.
• Define project success criteria (KPIs, qualitative feedback, cost/benefit analysis) and lead and manage cross-functional teams to deliver required results in accordance with corporate expectations and time schedules.

Develop and execute a cohesive merchandise protection strategy to drive improvement in shortage results:

• Reduce inventory shortage by developing, implementing, and managing merchandise protection pilots, initiatives, and strategies.
• Institute best practices for piloting shortage control initiatives by engaging Strategy to help create test store list, priming Procurement to pinpoint a variety of comparable EAS devices and negotiate favorable pricing and contract terms, collaborating with Store Operations to measure and/or verify EAS tagging labor standards, etc.
• Develop a consistent and simplified approach to EAS technology to reduce unnecessary EAS supply expense, eliminate movement of tags between stores, and limit tag pollution.
• Manage ad-hoc supply requests from the field for existing portfolio locations, as well as planned orders for comp stores, new stores, and relocations, while staying within annual supply OpEx and prepaid budgets.

Spearhead AP communications, training, and change management:

• Utilize company communication tools (BPLANNER, Field Leadership News, FirstUp, eCourses, etc.) to introduce, reinforce, and provide recognition of Asset Protection programs and processes.
• Collaborate with corporate and field AP leaders to create and refine new hire onboarding processes that deliver relevant information, properly timed, to give new hires the best chance for success. Partner with Learning and Development partners to continually assess onboarding and ongoing training effectiveness.
• Develop and implement a change management strategy to support our transformation in both business processes and technology. Develop change management tools for communication, training and metrics for the organization.

Oversee physical inventory planning, preparation, and field/store support:

• Lead the team that plans, organizes, and ensures execution of all store physical inventories
• Plan for physical inventory by estimating units, hours, and productivity to produce a calendar of locations by date to be used internally and by the third-party inventory service.
• Manage and enhance record-keeping and documentation for completed inventory counts to drive best-in-class inventory practices with a high commitment to excellence.

You Will Come With:

• BA/BS degree in Operations, Engineering, Business, Strategy, or similar field of study required. MBA preferred.
• Minimum 10+ years of experience focused on store operations in retail at a leadership level. Experience in retail Shortage Control, Asset Protection, Loss Prevention, and/or Operations preferred.
• Strong leadership and project management skills and ability to manage both corporate and field resources, as well as resources in higher positions (senior leadership, executive committees, etc.)
• Advanced computer skills, including Microsoft Excel and PowerPoint required.
• Ability to communicate complex findings clearly and succinctly, both verbally and written, and lead presentations to senior-level executives.
• High comfort level working in ambiguous, rapidly changing environments and ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously.
• Ability to work independently with minimal direction.
•  High degree of reliability including accountability for daily, weekly, and long-term projects.
• Superior analytical skills, both mathematical and problem-solving. Strong verbal and written communication skills and experience in a fast-paced, dynamic environment is required.
• Hybrid Position: Must come into the Burlington, NJ office 2 days per week, every other week.
• Occasional travel required.

Come join our team. You’re going to like it here!

You will enjoy a competitive wage, flexible hours, and an associate discount. Burlington’s benefits package includes medical, dental and vision coverage including life and disability insurance. Full time associates are also eligible for paid time off, paid holidays and a 401(k) plan.

We are a rapidly growing brand and provide a variety of training and development opportunities so our associates can grow with us. Our teams work hard and have fun together! Burlington associates make a difference in the lives of customers, colleagues, and the communities where we live and work every day. Burlington Stores, Inc. is an equal opportunity employer committed to workplace diversity.

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