Ismael Cruz

Inbound (3/22 - 11/2023), Outbound (11/2023 - Current)

• Support, mentor, and motivate salaried and hourly workforce
• Engage team to maintain the highest levels of safety, attendance, and performance
• Build and execute productivity plans through forecast reviews, determining productivity requirements, and partnering with other leaders to load balance
• Collaborate with all support teams including Safety, Engineering, Loss Prevention, Quality Assurance, and Human Resources to develop plans to meet business objectives
• Provide team with the tools needed for success while driving improvements in productivity and efficiency through data-driven decisions and analytical problem-solving.

• Establish a strong pipeline of talent to ensure open positions are filled promptly, while still maintaining a diverse and energetic culture to promote the company mission
• Create a culture of talent development by igniting a successful staffing plan, supported with a comprehensive onboarding process
• Utilize talent to create a strategic advantage, elevating high potential individuals to fill open positions – developed three FTs to Specialists, two Specialists to Coaches and one Coach to Assistant Head Coach
• Educate the team through clear and consistent communication – promoting a collaborative, supportive, and accountable team culture
• Execute engagement survey plan to ensure maximum participation and honest feedback
• Ensure appropriate staffing levels and oversee storewide scheduling based on forecast, appropriate schedule compliance, and break coverage as necessary.

• Implement Sales Floor Leadership program, designed to train leaders to provide effective direction to their teams to drive the consumer experience
• Foster a culture of partnership with the Service Center to achieve year over year growth in Key Performance Indicators
• Fulfill stretch role as Head Coach, performing all store management functions for last six months of position tenure
• Collaborate with key stakeholders to ensure the right product was in the right place at the right time, particularly during peak times of consumer traffic, resulting in 1.3% margin increase and 10.3% EBIT increase in FY 18 over FY 17
• Drive satisfying consumer experience – resulting in 8% increased sales and 3% increased Pulse in FY 18 over FY 17
• Utilized mobile and .com avenues to provide efficient service to more consumers.

• Recruited, selected, developed, and retained talented team members – elevated 2 senior team leaders to executive team leaders and 4 team members to team leaders
• Position-based trainer for district logistics and assisted nearby districts with transition from an overnight to early morning replenishment process
• Lead store logistics process through transformation from red to green performing metrics – improved overall store operational score from 83.49 to 95.43 YTD
• Collaborated with store executive and team leaders to manage workload and store instocks, ensuring the store is full and impactful at peak times of guest traffic
• Acted as senior executive running operations of a 44 million dollar store in conjunction with store team leader, while directly managing instocks, presentation, store replenishment, backroom, receiving, and facilities management departments
• Appropriated staff and resources to manage payroll and achieve expense controls, assisting store in reaching Golden Contribution status for 2014
• Selected to serve as the Planorama Captain to organize and execute a new store opening in Throgs Neck, NY, coordinating the efforts of 230+ team members and 40+ executive team leaders to successfully build a store projected to earn $70 million in annual sales.

• Organized and directed all Perishable departments and Perishable leaders to meet store objectives
• Ensured fresh product was available to consumers at all times
• Accountable for maintaining monthly Perishable Department inventories to eliminate waste and drive profitability and results
• Forecasted store payroll to ensure appropriate staffing levels were met while reducing costs and expenses, where appropriate
• Maintained necessary food safety training certifications and ensured compliance with training initiatives across all Perishable departments.

• Oversaw the operation of General Merchandise (GM) and Health and Beauty (HBC) departments in twenty-four store locations, across two markets in two states
• Monitored sales and staffing levels in all territory stores
• Facilitated the opening of two new stores in New Paltz, NY and Bridgeport, CT by providing support and leadership to GM and HBC departments
• Acted as a partner to District Manager in regards to holiday and succession planning efforts
• Acted as a partner to the Corporate Sales Department to ensure stores were successful with sales initiatives and provided feedback on needed areas of improvement.

• Establish a strong pipeline of talent to ensure open positions are filled promptly, while still maintaining a diverse and energetic culture to promote the company mission
• Create a culture of talent development by igniting a successful staffing plan, supported with a comprehensive onboarding process
• Utilize talent to create a strategic advantage, elevating high potential individuals to fill open positions – developed three FTs to Specialists, two Specialists to Coaches and one Coach to Assistant Head Coach
• Educate the team through clear and consistent communication – promoting a collaborative, supportive, and accountable team culture
• Execute engagement survey plan to ensure maximum participation and honest feedback
• Ensure appropriate staffing levels and oversee storewide scheduling based on forecast, appropriate schedule compliance, and break coverage as necessary.