KIMBERLY D. TAYLOR
Lexington,KY
Summary
Strategic higher-education operations leader with extensive experience driving multi-campus bookstore performance, university partnerships, and student-centered initiatives across complex retail and auxiliary environments. Proven success leading operational turnarounds, managing multi-million-dollar portfolios, and aligning bookstore strategy with institutional mission, affordability, and campus culture. Recognized for building trusted executive relationships, strengthening HBCU campus engagement, leading large-scale operational initiatives, and contributing to successful RFP and contract retention efforts. Combines operational discipline with relationship-driven leadership to deliver measurable financial performance, elevated student experiences, and long-term institutional partnership growth.
Overview
6
6
years of professional experience
Work History
General Manager, Kentucky & Ohio Market
Barnes & Noble College
05.2025 - Current
- Direct operations across a $16M+ annual revenue portfolio with full P&L responsibility across multiple campus locations.
- Lead and develop multi-site teams across Kentucky and Ohio, driving operational consistency, accountability, and professional growth.
- Partner with university executives and administrators to align bookstore operations with institutional priorities, financial goals, and student success initiatives.
- Standardized operational processes across locations, improving payroll productivity, operational efficiency, and EBITDA performance.
- Provide strategic oversight for staffing, compliance, inventory management, and campus partnership development across multiple institutions.
- Serve as a regional operational resource supporting new initiatives, executive onboarding, and contract transition efforts.
Director of Operations
Barnes & Noble College
Central State University
07.2023 - 05.2025
- Directed all bookstore and auxiliary retail operations for Central State University, overseeing financial performance, campus partnerships, operational strategy, and student-centered initiatives within a nationally recognized HBCU environment.
- Led operational turnaround efforts that improved margins, reduced shrink, strengthened inventory controls, and increased overall operational efficiency.
- Launched and expanded First Day Complete (Inclusive Access) initiatives, improving affordability, adoption compliance, and alignment with institutional student-success goals.
- Built strong partnerships with university leadership, faculty, athletics, auxiliary services, and student organizations to support campus-wide initiatives and strengthen bookstore integration within campus culture.
- Directed major campus activations including commencement, move-in, homecoming, athletics partnerships, and student engagement initiatives.
- Managed staffing, workforce development, and succession planning for teams of up to 50 associates while maintaining compliance with institutional and company standards.
- Collaborated on RFP strategy, executive campus visits, and long-term partnership initiatives supporting institutional alignment and contract retention efforts.
- Expanded culturally authentic merchandise offerings, including Divine Nine product assortments, strengthening student engagement and representation within bookstore operations.
- Recognized as a trusted campus partner known for operational leadership, relationship-building, and deep integration into the university community.
- Streamlined operations to enhance inventory management and ensure timely product availability.
- Analyzed operational performance metrics to identify inefficiencies and drive continuous improvement efforts.
- Coordinated logistics for textbook distribution, ensuring accuracy and efficiency in order fulfillment processes.
Store Manager
Barnes & Noble College
Campbellsville University
10.2022 - 07.2023
- Oversaw daily bookstore operations, financial performance, staffing, and customer experience initiatives within a private university environment.
- Strengthened operational controls, merchandising execution, and team accountability to improve overall store performance.
- Led hiring, onboarding, and development efforts while managing peak academic and seasonal business cycles.
- Partnered with campus departments and university stakeholders to support student engagement initiatives and campus events.
- Built a strong operational foundation that led to accelerated promotion into expanded leadership responsibilities within the Ohio and Kentucky market.
Multi-Unit Manager / New Stores
YUM! Brands Affiliates
Kentucky
02.2020 - 10.2022
- Oversaw new store management and operations in high-volume environments.
- Partnered with project superintendents to oversee all phases of new store builds from site development through final walkthrough.
- Managed multi-million-dollar budgets and teams of 50–100 associates.
- Consistently delivered revenue growth, operational compliance, and customer satisfaction.
- Built succession pipelines and trained managers for long-term leadership roles.
- Optimized scheduling practices for better coverage during peak hours, enhancing both staff productivity and customer satisfaction rates.
- Boosted sales performance by identifying growth opportunities and implementing targeted marketing strategies.
- Spearheaded regional expansion efforts, opening new locations on time and within budgetary constraints.
Education
Business Administration And Management
Western Kentucky University
Bowling Green, KYLibrary Informatics
Northern Kentucky University
Newport, KYSkills
- Execution of strategic initiatives
- Budgetary control and analysis
- Collaboration with educational institutions
- Process optimization
- Data-informed strategy development
- Inclusive Access (FDC) Lifecycle
- Stakeholder Engagement
- Leadership and team building
- Problem resolution
- Operations management
- Effective leader
- Training and coaching
- Customer relations
- Relationship building
Accomplishments
- $16M+ Portfolio Oversight with continuous revenue and margin growth.
- Key contributor on multiple campus RFPs and executive onboarding initiatives supporting long-term contract retention and partnership expansion.
- Expanded auxiliary operations by collaborating with vendors to secure licensing opportunities for both on-campus and off-site sales.
- Among the first in the region to introduce Divine Nine merchandise offerings, enhancing cultural representation and student engagement.
- Reduced direct expenses to the lowest regional level while raising payroll productivity to #1 in the region.
- Promoted three times in under three years, expanding leadership scope from single-campus oversight to regional multi-campus operations.
Professional Recognition
Achieved highest regional operational compliance/audit performance score through execution excellence, process consistency, and operational accountability across campus locations.
Achieved highest regional reduction in direct expenses across two campus operations while improving payroll productivity and operational performance.
Recognized with the "Road Warrior" regional award for cross-campus operational leadership and willingness to provide hands-on support for high-priority store initiatives and operational challenges.
Timeline
General Manager, Kentucky & Ohio Market
Barnes & Noble College
05.2025 - Current
Director of Operations
Barnes & Noble College
07.2023 - 05.2025
Store Manager
Barnes & Noble College
10.2022 - 07.2023
Multi-Unit Manager / New Stores
YUM! Brands Affiliates
02.2020 - 10.2022
Business Administration And Management
Western Kentucky University
Library Informatics
Northern Kentucky University