Director of Store Operations

Job Description

Job Description

Summary: 

The Director of Store Operations provides strategic and operational leadership for Gila River Business Enterprises (GRBE), which includes Gila Gas & Goods convenience stores and Sacaton Market. This position is responsible for driving profitability, operational excellence, customer experience, and sustainable business growth across the GRBE portfolio. The Director leads the GRBE Corporate Staff and provides leadership, direction, and accountability to store operations while ensuring business strategies are translated into measurable results. This role analyzes business performance, identifies opportunities for growth and improvement, develops leaders, and ensures consistent operational standards across all locations.

Responsibilities:

Strategic Leadership & Business Growth:

• Review monthly financial statements, identify budget variances, and provide explanations and corrective action plans to senior leadership.
• Analyze financial, operational, market, and customer data to identify opportunities, trends, and risks.
• Develop and prioritize annual capital requests for facility improvements, equipment replacement, store renovations, and business expansion.
• Develop and execute strategies that improve profitability, sales, customer experience, and long-term business performance.
• Evaluate new business opportunities, products, services, partnerships, and initiatives that may increase revenue or strengthen market position.
• Translate organizational priorities into clear goals, measurable outcomes, and actionable plans.
• Provide recommendations and business insights to senior leadership to support informed decision-making.
• Lead strategic projects and initiatives that improve the overall performance and competitiveness of GRBE.

Financial & Operational Performance:

• Maintain accountability for the financial and operational performance of Gila Gas & Goods and Sacaton Market.
• Develop, monitor, and manage budgets, forecasts, sales goals, labor costs, and controllable expenses.
• Establish store scorecards and key performance indicators (KPI) and conduct routine operational reviews to ensure consistent standards and accountability across all locations.
• Review key performance indicators KPI’s and take action when results do not meet expectations.
• Identify opportunities to increase revenue, improve margins, control costs, and maximize return on investment.
• Establish consistent operational standards, processes, and performance expectations across all locations.
• Ensure efficient staffing, scheduling, inventory management, merchandising, and resource utilization.
• Lead operational planning and readiness for new locations, remodels, store resets, service expansions, and major equipment installations.
• Oversee operational readiness, facility standards, equipment, and overall store execution.

Leadership and Employee Relations:

• Lead and develop the GRBE Corporate Staff and Sacaton Market General Manager, establishing clear priorities, expectations, and accountability.
• Partner with store leadership to ensure consistent execution of business and operational priorities.
• Conduct regular one-on-one meetings with direct reports and ensure district and store leaders complete performance evaluations, coaching, and corrective actions timely and consistently.
• Build a high-performance culture centered on ownership, teamwork, service, and results.
• Coach and develop leaders while identifying opportunities for succession and leadership growth.
• Foster strong communication and collaboration between Corporate Staff, store teams, and other GRD departments.
• Partner with Human Resources to support talent acquisition, retention, training, employee engagement, performance management, and leadership development.
• Evaluate staffing structures, leadership coverage, turnover, vacancies, and succession needs and develop action plans to maintain effective operations.

Merchandising, Pricing & Vendor Management:

• Drive strategies that increase sales, customer traffic, customer retention, and overall customer value.
• Review and approve operational pricing, product assortment, promotional execution, merchandising standards, and planograms based on profitability, customer demand, and available store capacity.
• Develop and implement retail programs, products, services, and customer experiences that respond to the needs of The Community and support business performance.
• Evaluate vendor performance, service levels, pricing, credits, contract compliance, and responsiveness, and recommend changes when expectations are not met.
• Oversee product mix, pricing, promotions, merchandising, and vendor relationships.
• Monitor customer trends and feedback to identify opportunities to improve the customer experience.
• Ensure consistent execution of brand, service, merchandising, and promotional standards.
• Identify opportunities for new products, services, and revenue streams.

Inventory, Loss Prevention & Asset Protection:

• Ensure inventory, cash, fuel, vendor credits, invoices, price changes, and system records are regularly reconciled and discrepancies are investigated and corrected.
• Ensure appropriate system access, internal controls, data accuracy, and protection of confidential business and customer information.
• Present monthly operational and financial results, including revenue, margins, labor, inventory, spoilage, shrink, food-service performance, safety, and customer trends.
• Maintain accountability for inventory accuracy, product availability, shrink, and loss prevention.
• Monitor trends in shrink, waste, theft, and other preventable losses and implement corrective actions.
• Protect GRBE's property, equipment, inventory, and financial assets.

Safety, Compliance & Risk Management:

• Lead the operational response to store closures, utility interruptions, equipment failures, safety incidents, product recalls, severe weather, and other business disruptions.
• Maintain accountability for correcting findings identified through inspections, audits, safety reviews, and regulatory visits by established deadlines.
• Ensure operations comply with applicable laws, regulations, licensing requirements, company policies, and GRBE standards.
• Promote a strong culture of workplace safety and accountability.
• Partner with HR, Legal, Finance, and other departments to identify and mitigate operational risks.
• Ensure appropriate follow-up and corrective action for significant operational, safety, compliance, or employee issues.

Supervisor Responsibility:

Oversees the supervision of personnel, which includes hiring, work allocation, training, problem resolution; evaluates performance and makes recommendations for personnel actions; motivates employees to achieve peak productivity and performance; provides guidance and feedback for assigned staff. 

Other Duties:

Please note this job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change at any time with or without notice.

Working Conditions:

The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Work will primarily be performed in an retail store environment. 

• Work will be performed both inside and outside on a regular basis, in most weather conditions. 
• Noise level in the work environment is usually moderate.
• Evening, weekend, and holiday shifts are required as a normal part of this position.

• Occasional local day travel, local travel to managed businesses, trainings or corporate office. 

Physical Demands: 

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to sit, stand, and walk extended period. The employee occasionally is required to bend, climb, stoop, lift, carry, push, kneel, crouch, or crawl. The employee must regularly lift and/or move 25 pounds, and occasionally lift and/or move up to 75 pounds.

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in Business Administration, Retail Management, Operations Management, or equivalent experience.
• Minimum of seven (7) years of progressive leadership experience in retail, convenience store, grocery, hospitality, or a comparable operating environment.
• Minimum of three (3) years of experience leading managers, corporate support teams, or multi-location operations.

• CPR and First Aid Certification within 90 days of hire. 
• Valid AZ driver’s license, provide a 39-month satisfactory MVR report.

• Obtain a Tribal operator driving permit at the time of hire.
• A satisfactory result obtained through a test for illegal drugs.
• Acknowledge and agree to maintain a drug-free workplace.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Demonstrated experience managing budgets, financial performance, labor, inventory, and profitability.
• Proven ability to analyze business performance and develop strategies that improve results. Demonstrated success developing leaders and building high-performing teams.
• Strong understanding of retail operations, merchandising, customer service, inventory management, and loss prevention.
• Strong communication, presentation, problem-solving, and decision-making skills.
• Leadership in multi-unit retail operations, including convenience stores, grocery, and fuel environments
• Oversight of corporate or central support functions across multiple locations
• Development and execution of business growth and performance improvement strategies
• Proficiency with retail systems, including POS, inventory management, and business intelligence tools

• Knowledge and experience working with Gila River Indian Community or other Native American Communities. 
• Proficient in MS office and other relevant workplace tools.