Director Operations Research

About Us: Target is one of the world’s most recognized brands and one of America’s leading retailers. Within Target’s Global Supply Chain & Logistics organization, we are transforming how we tailor the right assortment, move the right products, in the right quantities, to the right place and at the right time—more efficiently and intelligently than ever before. Our vision is to become increasingly automated, algorithmic, and data-driven in our decision-making so that every guest, whether shopping in stores or on Target.Com, experiences seamless and superior service. We’re looking for exceptional leaders who are proactive, curious, creative, and comfortable operating in a VUCA environment—volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous. If you are a critical thinker who uncovers problems early, a creative problem-solver who simplifies complexity, and someone who influences teams to execute with clarity and purpose, you’ll thrive here. About the role: Director- Operations Research A role in Supply Chain Network Optimization (SCNO) means building industry-leading intelligence solutions that enable Target to deliver best-in-class, omnichannel guest experiences at the lowest possible cost. You may focus on - Optimizing assortment decisions across stores or Driving inventory purchasing & positioning across distribution centres and stores or Enhancing transportation operating models or Optimizing inventory flow within distribution centres to improve productivity. As a network steward, you will define long-term goals for the enterprise, design inventory optimization strategies, and leverage technology to enable both guest delight and business performance. Reporting & Working Relationships Reports to the Senior Director, Supply Chain Network Optimization, based in Target India HQ (Bangalore) Lead a team of 6–8 Operations Researchers Partners closely with Planning & Inventory Management, Transportation, Product, Technology, and Data Science teams globally As a Director- Operations Research within SCNO- You will use data-driven insights, advanced analytics, and competitive intelligence to identify high-value opportunities aligned with Target’s multi-year strategic vision. Lead and scale a high-performing team of researchers with expertise in statistics, stochastic modelling, simulation, mixed-integer programming, machine learning, experimentation design, data engineering, and large-scale visualization- to uncover systemic inefficiencies and propose solutions that strengthen supply chain resilience, operational efficiency, and guest experience. You have the passion to engage in deep analytical, algorithmic work while staying connected to the core business teams. You are articulate and can distil & communicate complex quantitative insights in simple, compelling business narratives and financial impacts to multiple audiences and senior leadership levels with ease. Demonstrate a sophisticated understanding of Target’s end-to-end retail supply chain including demand planning, forecasting, vendor performance, inbound logistics, outbound flow, store replenishment, digital fulfillment, and returns. Build hypothesis, proofs of concept, conduct rigorous experimentation, build trust, influence and partner with product, engineering, and business teams to shape 2–3- year process and capability roadmaps across enterprise functions to deliver on business outcomes like purchasability improvements, expense reduction, inventory availability and improved inventory turns. You will build, coach, and mentor a team of highly motivated and independent operations researchers, while also building a strong culture of trust, performance, candour, and efficiency. You will be responsible to elevate your collective team’s performance by providing insightful, motivating, and constructive feedback to all roles on the team while also working with senior leadership and peers across pyramids to negotiate and remove execution related barriers for your teams. You will work towards progressing Target in India strategic initiatives and priorities around advancing culture, diversity, engagement and learning. About You: B.Tech/M.Tech/MS/PGDM in a quantitative discipline such as statistics, operations research, business analytics or mathematics 14+ years of supply chain or ecommerce or product or equivalent domain experience along with 5+ years of leading and developing high performing teams, with cross-functional influence, and comfortable operating in a VUCA environment —volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous. Hands on experience building, coaching, and mentoring a high performing team, while also building a strong culture of trust, performance, candour, and efficiency. Strong strategic mindset with experience in OKR/KPI definition, long-term planning, and driving business outcomes through teams. Experience utilizing problem solving and analytical skills to inform long term strategy and influence stakeholders to align on roadmaps, work with senior leadership and peers across pyramids to negotiate and remove execution related barriers for your teams. Experience and familiarity with supply chain concepts such as forecasting, assortment planning & optimization, inventory optimization, store operations and logistics - gained through work experience or graduate level education It will be critical that you possess an understanding of retail, eCommerce or similar area, relevant technologies and design principles to drive innovative and scalable optimization solutions across different areas in supply chain. A strong passion for empirical research and for answering hard questions with data. Good understanding of analysis of algorithms, simulations, A/B testing, stochastic models, forecasting Ability to communicate complex concepts and quantitative insights in easy to understand terminology with multiple audiences. Ability to lead and influence global cross functional teams while fostering relationships across multiple enterprise wide teams.