District Operations Manager

Location: Lake Bluff

Based in St. Louis, Core & Main is a leader in advancing reliable infrastructure with local service, nationwide. As a specialty distributor with a focus on water, wastewater, storm drainage and fire protection products and related services, Core & Main provides solutions to municipalities, private water companies and professional contractors across municipal, non-residential and residential end markets, nationwide. With over 370 locations across the U.S., the company provides its customers local expertise backed by a national supply chain.

Core & Main’s 5,700 associates are committed to helping their communities thrive with safe and reliable infrastructure. Visit  to learn more.

Position Summary The District Operations Manager (ROM) is a key operational leader responsible for scaling capacity, driving consistency, and strengthening operational discipline across all branches within the region. This role enhances the effectiveness of the Regional Director (RD) and District Managers (DMs) by owning critical operational processes, improving inventory integrity, and ensuring field execution of corporate initiatives. The DOM ensures every branch operates with excellence, adheres to SOPs, and maintains strong operational health — enabling DMs to spend more time with customers, talent, and growth activities.

Purpose of the Role The DOM exists to:

Increase operational capacity across the region

Improve and standardize operational performance

Ensure strong inventory control and audit readiness

Drive adherence to SOPs, D365 processes, and operational best practices

Support execution of national and regional initiatives

Free the RD and DMs from tactical operational work so they can focus on strategy, customer relationships, and talent development

This role is designed to be a force multiplier — not a firefighter.

Key Responsibilities Core Operational Ownership (Primary Responsibilities)
The DOM fully owns and leads:

Inventory integrity, investigations, and follow-throughSOP compliance across warehouse, receiving, and branch operations

Cycle counts, returns processes, receiving discipline, and operational accuracy

Branch audit preparation, execution, scoring, and corrective action plansD
365 process compliance and troubleshooting of operational workflows

Warehouse flow, safety standards, and operational efficiency

Readiness and field execution for corporate and regional initiatives

Regional operational scorecard management and reporting

Partnership Responsibilities (Supports, but does not own)
Collaboration with DMs on operational components of sales enablement

Branch Manager coaching around operational excellence

Supporting training programs in coordination with the RD and corporate ops Helping DMs identify opportunities to improve branch efficiency and consistency

Responsibilities the DOM Does Not Own To maintain clarity of scope and avoid dilution of mission, the DOM does not own:

Sales performance or sales strategy

Personnel decisions or hiring/firing

Customer escalations unrelated to operational executionHR matters or employee relations

Final decision-making authority on branch leadership issues

This clarity ensures the ROM strengthens the region rather than becoming a catch-all resource.

Operating Rhythm Weekly Planned  branch visits with clear objectives

Follow-up on outstanding operational and system items

Review inventory, returns, cycle count, and receiving scorecards

Alignment check with DMs to synchronize priorities

Monthly

Full operational audit or mini-audit cadenceSOP refreshers and targeted up-training

Readiness checks for all upcoming initiatives1:1 development session with the RDQuarterly

Regional “Operational Health” scoring for each branch

Alignment and reset session with RD and DMsExecution review against…