Director, Inbound Transportation

Director, Inbound Transportation

Reports To:

VP/GVP Transportation

Location:

New Albany, OH

Job Summary

The Director of Inbound Transportation leads A&F's global inbound transportation network, ensuring inventory moves predictably, efficiently, and reliably through a balanced focus on execution, provider partnerships, visibility, forecasting, cost, and business integration.

This leader serves as the primary bridge between Transportation, Planning, Sourcing, Finance, Distribution Operations, Product Management, Data Solutions, and third-party logistics partners, translating transportation performance into the insights and actions needed to support inventory and supply chain decisions.

The ideal candidate combines logistics expertise with systems thinking, data fluency, commercial acumen, executive communication, cross-functional influence, and strong execution discipline.

What Will You Be Doing?

Network Strategy, Freight Movement & Provider Leadership

• Develop and execute global air and ocean transportation strategies that balance service, speed, cost, capacity, predictability, and resiliency.
• Lead end-to-end freight movement from origin handoff through DC receipt across key international and domestic inbound modes.
• Build resilient transportation solutions that support inventory flow, business growth, launch needs, and operational continuity.
• Navigate market disruption, geopolitical risk, capacity constraints, port congestion, and changing provider dynamics with clear mitigation plans.
• Maintain strategic carrier and forwarder partnerships, positioning A&F as a customer of choice while ensuring provider accountability.
• Partner with Procurement on sourcing strategies, negotiations, network design, and provider performance expectations.

Transit Commitments, Inventory Flow, Visibility & Forecasting

• Establish and maintain transportation transit commitments that reflect network realities, provider performance, and business expectations.
• Communicate impacts to inventory flow, planning assumptions, sourcing decisions, distribution operations, and customer-facing priorities.
• Drive transportation visibility, prediction accuracy, forecast reliability, and confidence in inbound reporting.
• Translate transportation data, forecast changes, performance risks, and operational constraints into clear business insights.
• Build trust in reporting through disciplined KPI development, root-cause analysis, data validation, and consistent metric definitions.
• Partner with Data Solutions, Product Management, visibility providers, Planning, Sourcing, and Operations to improve reporting quality, automation, and decision support.

Financial Stewardship, Freight Audit & Payment Governance

• Own inbound transportation budget development, forecasting, annual operating plan inputs, and long-range financial planning assumptions.
• Manage transportation spend performance, including cost-per-unit, cost-per-container, cost-per-kilo, and total cost-to-serve metrics.
• Explain variances, identify improvement opportunities, and connect cost performance to service, inventory flow, and network resiliency.
• Partner with Supply Chain Finance and Transportation Expense Management on forecasting, reporting, variance analysis, investment decisions, and financial controls.
• Ensure rate accuracy, invoice accuracy, dispute resolution, payment transparency, and carrier accountability.
• Improve freight audit and payment processes to strengthen governance, reduce leakage, and create scalable accountability.

Business Integration, Systems Thinking & Scalable Process

• Serve as a strategic business partner to Planning, Sourcing, Finance, Distribution Operations, Product Management, Data Solutions, Procurement, and third-party logistics providers.
• Connect transportation decisions to enterprise outcomes across inventory availability, receipt flow, product launches, sourcing commitments, customer service, cost, and operational readiness.
• Create clarity from ambiguity by structuring complex problems, aligning stakeholders, and driving disciplined follow-through.
• Build scalable processes, systems, reporting, and governance routines that reduce reliance on individual heroics.
• Represent Inbound Transportation in senior leadership forums with clear communication on performance, risks, financial impacts, and recommended actions.
• Drive continuous improvement through SOPs, carrier scorecards, operational reviews, reporting enhancements, automation opportunities, and governance routines.

Leadership Effectiveness & Organizational Impact

• Lead and develop a high-performing inbound transportation organization grounded in ownership, accountability, collaboration, and continuous improvement.
• Independently own major operational, visibility, planning, provider, and financial challenges while escalating clearly when executive alignment is needed.
• Build credibility with internal partners so Inbound Transportation is viewed as a trusted business partner.
• Maintain provider relationships defined by both strong collaboration and clear…