Contingent Executive Search
Supply Chain Recruiters
VP of Supply Chain, Chief Supply Chain Officer, Director of Logistics, Director of Procurement, Demand Planning, Supply Chain Analytics, and Warehouse/Distribution leadership — across retail, e-commerce, distribution, food and beverage, and pharma.
- Senior Practice Director, Blue Signal Search
- Contingent-first · No up-front retainer
- Twelve-month guarantee on every placement
I recruit supply chain leadership as a cross-industry function — VP of Supply Chain, Chief Supply Chain Officer, Director of Logistics, Director of Procurement, Demand Planning, Supply Chain Analytics, and Warehouse/Distribution Operations — across retail, e-commerce, distribution, food and beverage, and pharma. Sourced against real network design and inventory-risk experience, not a manufacturing-only procurement lens applied to every industry.
Supply chain search as a cross-industry function
Supply chain leadership isn’t a manufacturing-only problem. Retailers, e-commerce companies, distributors, food and beverage companies, and pharma companies all run supply chain functions with real network design and inventory-risk complexity — and a manufacturing-only procurement lens misses the channel and demand-volatility dynamics that make each of those industries different.
I work supply chain search across the function and across industries: VP of Supply Chain, Chief Supply Chain Officer, Director of Logistics, Director of Procurement, Demand Planning, Supply Chain Analytics, and Warehouse/Distribution Operations — for retail, e-commerce, distribution, food and beverage, and pharma companies.
Roles I staff and place
Chief Supply Chain Officer — executives who can redesign a distribution network under real demand volatility, not just manage a stable, single-channel operation.
VP of Supply Chain — leaders evaluated against actual network-design and channel-complexity experience specific to the company’s business model.
Director of Logistics — leaders who understand transportation, warehousing, and fulfillment economics at the company’s actual scale.
Director of Procurement — leaders who can manage vendor risk and cost structure outside a manufacturing-floor context.
Demand Planning — leaders evaluated against real forecasting and inventory-risk management experience, not a generic operations background.
Supply Chain Analytics — specialists who can build the data infrastructure a scaling supply chain function actually needs.
Warehouse / Distribution Operations — leaders who can run fulfillment operations against the company’s specific channel mix and volume patterns.
Blue Signal Search vertical: as Senior Practice Director, my desk sources across this cross-industry supply chain range — firm-level search infrastructure behind every mandate, not a generalist recruiter's claim.
Featured roles
- Chief Supply Chain Officer — for multi-channel retailers redesigning distribution networks under demand volatility.
- VP of Supply Chain — for e-commerce companies scaling fulfillment past founder-led operations.
- Director of Logistics — for distribution companies managing transportation and warehousing at scale.
- Director of Procurement — for food and beverage companies managing vendor risk and cost structure.
- Director of Demand Planning — for pharma companies needing forecasting rigor across a regulated supply chain.
- Warehouse / Distribution Operations Manager — for distribution companies running fulfillment against real volume patterns.
Pain patterns I see every quarter
Supply chain searches default to a manufacturing-only candidate pool. Retail, e-commerce, distribution, food and beverage, and pharma each carry channel and regulatory dynamics a manufacturing-only background doesn’t prepare a candidate for.
Demand planning gets treated as a spreadsheet skill instead of a forecasting discipline. Real demand planning requires inventory-risk judgment that a generic operations resume doesn’t reveal.
E-commerce and DTC fulfillment gets staffed with traditional retail logistics experience. Last-mile and direct-to-consumer fulfillment economics are different enough that a mismatch here creates real operational risk.
Chief Supply Chain Officer searches run without accounting for channel complexity. A CSCO who has only managed a single, stable channel faces a real learning curve when a company’s actual network spans multiple channels under real demand volatility.
How I run the search
I start by mapping the company’s channel structure, demand volatility, and network design, because that context defines what “qualified” actually means for the role. From there, sourcing runs against real network-design and inventory-risk experience relevant to the specific industry — retail, e-commerce, distribution, food and beverage, or pharma — not a generic supply chain title match.
This search runs under Blue Signal Search, a national contingent and retained search firm — the affiliation gives this desk firm-level sourcing infrastructure and reference-checkable delivery history across the full cross-industry supply chain function.
Competitive positioning (respectful)
Heidrick & Struggles / Korn Ferry / Spencer Stuart — built for retained Chief Supply Chain Officer search at Fortune 500 scale, not the VP, Director, and specialist-level searches most retail, e-commerce, and distribution companies actually need filled at speed. Not a competing lane for this hub.
Cross-hub and next steps
For manufacturing-specific supply chain and procurement roles inside a production environment, see Manufacturing Recruiters. For logistics, transportation, aviation, and maritime operational leadership, see Logistics / Transportation Executive Search. For broader C-suite executive searches outside a supply chain-specific context, see C-Suite Recruiters.
Schedule a 30-Minute Call with Dan — Calendly, dpoore@bluesignal.com, or 669-900-4504. That is the only conversion path.
How a search works
- 01 Map the network and channel structure
Channel mix, demand volatility, and network design shape what the role actually needs to deliver — the search starts with that context, not a generic supply chain job description.
- 02 Source against real network-design and inventory-risk experience
Candidates evaluated against actual experience managing comparable channel complexity and demand volatility, not just a title match.
- 03 Match level and function to the company's actual supply chain maturity
Executive, director, and specialist-level supply chain searches carry different evaluation criteria depending on whether the function is being built or scaled.
Track record
Supply Chain Recruiters Placements
Roles placed across the supply chain function and multiple industries. Client names and dates are withheld for confidentiality — role, level, and organization type are shown exactly as placed.
| Role placed | Level | Platform scale |
|---|---|---|
| Chief Supply Chain Officer | C-Suite | Direct-hire, multi-channel retailer |
| VP of Supply Chain | VP | Direct-hire, e-commerce company |
| Director of Logistics | Director | Direct-hire, distribution company |
| Director of Procurement | Director | Direct-hire, food and beverage company |
| Director of Demand Planning | Director | Direct-hire, pharma company |
| Warehouse / Distribution Operations Manager | Manager | Direct-hire, distribution company |
Every placement above carries a twelve-month guarantee. The only quantified claim published on this site — no fee percentages, no invented placement counts.
Case study
A recent placement
A multi-channel retailer needed a VP of Supply Chain who had actually redesigned a distribution network under real demand volatility, not someone who had only managed a stable, single-channel operation. We sourced against that specific network-design and volatility-management experience, and the hire was in seat rebuilding the distribution model inside the standard search window.
The commitment
Twelve-month guarantee
Every placement carries a twelve-month guarantee. That is the only quantified claim on this site — no fee percentages, no invented placement counts.
Get in touch
Schedule a 30-Minute Call with Dan
Contingent-first. No up-front retainer. One conversion path — book the call.
Frequently asked questions
What supply chain roles do you recruit for?
VP of Supply Chain, Chief Supply Chain Officer, Director of Logistics, Director of Procurement, Demand Planning, Supply Chain Analytics, and Warehouse/Distribution Operations leadership.
Do you only work with manufacturing companies?
No. This desk covers supply chain as a cross-industry function — retail, e-commerce, distribution, food and beverage, and pharma. Manufacturing-specific procurement roles are covered separately under Manufacturing Recruiters.
What's the difference between this hub and Manufacturing Recruiters?
Manufacturing Recruiters covers supply chain and procurement roles specifically inside manufacturing operations. This hub covers the broader supply chain function across retail, e-commerce, distribution, food and beverage, and pharma — network design, logistics, and demand planning outside a manufacturing floor context.
Do you place demand planning and supply chain analytics roles?
Yes. Demand Planning and Supply Chain Analytics are evaluated against real forecasting and inventory-risk experience, not a generic operations background.
Do you work with e-commerce and direct-to-consumer companies specifically?
Yes. E-commerce and DTC companies carry distinct fulfillment and last-mile logistics requirements that a generalist supply chain search often misses.
How do you evaluate a VP of Supply Chain or Chief Supply Chain Officer candidate?
Against real network design and inventory-risk management experience relevant to the company's specific channel mix and demand volatility, not just years of generic supply chain title tenure.
Who typically signs a supply chain search engagement?
COOs, CFOs, and CEOs at retail, e-commerce, distribution, food and beverage, and pharma companies scaling or restructuring their supply chain function.