Operations Director
About HIVED
At HIVED, we’re steamrolling forward as one of Europe’s fastest growing startups, and our momentum shows no signs of slowing.
Based in London, we are a climate and logistics start-up building the first sustainable parcel delivery network at scale, powered by a 100% electric fleet. In an ever-growing industry where unreliable service has long been the norm, HIVED has been built from the ground-up to meet the demands of modern consumers and disrupt parcel delivery.
A tech company at heart, our talent and technology is laser-focused on delivering the best possible delivery experience for end-customers and meeting the needs of our retail partners. From our drivers to our data engineers, we are constantly working to improve this customer experience that makes us deliver better.
Already trusted by leading international brands such as John Lewis, Nespresso, Uniqlo, H&M brands and more, we are solidifying our position as the leaders in Europe to tackle this growing market.
Our tight-knit team is made up of ex-Revolut, Bain, HelloFresh, ASOS, Apple and Google employees, and we are backed by some of Europe’s leading investors and VCs in climate-tech, logistics and mobility including Planet A Ventures, Maersk Growth, Pale Blue Dot VC, Eka Ventures, NordicNinja VC and the British government. We’re passionate about driving innovation and redefining the future of delivery.
Role Overview
The Operations Director (East) is fully responsible for end-to-end performance of HIVED's East London depot - currently based in Silvertown, relocating to Rainham.
This role combines the hands-on, day-to-day site leadership of a General Manager with director-level seniority. This is a hands-on leadership role - leading from the floor, owning local P&L levers, and acting as the primary link between central planning/tech and real operational execution. This includes:
Full P&L ownership for the site
Hiring and org-design authority for the site's team
A seat at the Ops Leadership table
The Operations Director (East) reports directly into the COO. A mirrored Operations Director (West) role owns HIVED's West London site on the same basis. This role includes leading the depot's relocation from Silvertown to Rainham.
Accountabilities
Accountable for end-to-end and day-to-day site performance, including:
All on-road activities & KPIs, including driver capacity, driver compliance, overall site performance (SLA, Delivery Success)
All in-depot day and night activities & KPIs, including people (labour pool, engagement, leadership succession planning), safety (auditing and near miss/incident reporting), quality (SLA, set-off/on-time dispatch), and cost (labour planning D+1/W+1/TPH)
Health and Safety on-site
Full site P&L ownership
Org design, headcount planning, and hiring decisions for the site's team
Successful delivery of the Silvertown → Rainham depot relocation: site readiness, continuity of operations through the move, and team transition
Responsibilities
On-the-road
Own DSP management and HIVED Partner Driver capacity & performance management
Handle driver issues, escalations & approvals
Own legal compliance (hours on road, breaks, safety checks) and driver incident support
Drive OTR KPIs: DPR, cost per route, vehicle utilisation, driver attendance, punctuality & reliability
Under-the-roof
Own labour planning for week-ahead & night
Own Sortation Handler hiring & performance management
Own inbound, processing, sortation, and dispatch performance, including set-off/on-time dispatch
Drive UTR KPIs: TPH and cost per parcel
Team
Lead and oversee all site operations, directly managing the site's Ops Managers and Senior Ops Managers (currently 4x, with the team growing to include more senior operations managers)
Hours must be flexible to manage Day and Night teams - may sometimes come in for set-off, or stay late to meet Night teams, to fully understand E2E performance and areas for improvement
Build a high-performing depot team - lead & inspire, develop and performance manage the team; ensure all levels receive training and are motivated; coach Managers to develop into company leaders
Own org design, staffing structure, and hiring for the site, including growing the Ops Manager layer into Senior Ops Manager roles; ensure absence cover arrangements are in place
Responsible for Health and Safety on site; work with the H&S Manager to drive continuous improvement and embed company processes
Overheads
Own full site P&L (CM2 & CM3), including budget vs. actuals; fully understand site performance and its cost drivers, contributing to central reporting as required
Drive continuous site improvement by proactively understanding levers, prioritising and embedding on an ongoing basis; identify CAPEX opportunities and pitch business cases
Own facilities, asset utilisation, and maintenance costs for the site
Lead the Silvertown → Rainham transition: site readiness planning, driving continuity of service and safety standards through the move, managing team communication and transition, and coordinating with central/Facilities/Property teams on the physical move
Requirements
6+ years' experience leading operations teams. Direct last-mile experience is not required.
Proven ability to manage large frontline teams via managers, including managing managers of managers as the team grows more senior
Experience owning P&L
Experience with org design and hiring decisions, ideally including growing/restructuring a frontline management layer
Hands-on operator with a strong understanding of unit economics and cost drivers
Track record of high impact - able to ideate and implement new initiatives to drive impactful change
Track record of running safe, reliable, high-throughput operations
Experience leading a site move or major operational transition with minimal service disruption is highly valued, given the planned Silvertown → Rainham relocation
Comfortable working in fast-changing, high-growth environments
Strong people leader: clear, fair, and direct
Excellent cross-functional stakeholder management skills
How we reward our team
Dynamic working environment with a diverse and driven team
Huge opportunity for learning in a high growth environment, with progression opportunities based on success in the role
25 days of holiday allowance plus public holidays
1 Birthday Day Off + 2 Tenure-Based Additional Days Off
Subsidised Private Medical Insurance including dental, vision & mental health therapy
Bi-annual performance reviews and tailored development plans
Annual compensation review
Team lunch provided once a week
Quarterly team socials and annual sports day (HIVED Olympics)
Enhanced maternity/paternity/adoption policy as day 1 right
Community volunteer days
Cycle to work scheme
Dog friendly office and depots
MacBook Air or Windows Laptop (depending on your preference)
Our Values
We Are Kind - Kind to the planet, our team and our partners. We listen with purpose, leave our egos at the door and aren't afraid to make difficult decisions. We must never confuse kindness with being "nice" - it requires us to be fair, consistent, honest, thoughtful and compassionate.
We Are Tenacious - We fight every day to keep the customer promise, for every parcel entrusted to us. No matter how hard it gets or whatever stands in our way, we are relentless in our pursuit of excellence.
We Are Curious - We never settle, constantly challenge convention and are never afraid to ask why. We believe there is always more to learn, always a better way, and that we're always only just getting started. We never fight the urge to be inquisitive, to understand the world around us and to explore where others might not.
We Are Resourceful - Our planet's resources are scarce and our future depends on our ability to use them wisely. Waste is the enemy. We strive to do more with less, be more efficient and make the most of what we have.
Want to learn more?
HIVED is #7 on The Sunday Times Tech 100
Read how HIVED raised $42M to transform parcel delivery with AI and all-electric logistics network
Check the Impact Reports for 2024 and 2025
Keep up with HIVED here