Supply Chain Analyst
Keep food moving as a Supply Chain Analyst — own replenishment, sharpen Excel and AI tools, and grow into vendor and production planning responsibilities on a hands-on team.
Salary: $55,000–$65,000 based upon experience.
Schedule: Monday–Friday, 7:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m.
Site Address: 4841 S. California Ave Chicago, IL
Who We Are
Charles Austin Holdings is a meat and poultry distributor serving wholesale, retail, and production customers out of Chicago.
What You'll Do
As the Supply Chain Analyst, you will keep our procurement machine running and make it better: executing the daily replenishment and purchase-order workflow in the Excel-based command center we have built, keeping inventory and production data accurate, and continuously improving the tools themselves using AI.
This is an analyst seat with a real ladder: ownership of vendors, production planning, and our whole-leg program is earned through defined milestones, not time served. You report directly to the Managing Partner.
Daily Replenishment: Run the daily ordering process. Refresh inventory, sales, and ERP data each morning, review items below safety stock levels, and prepare vendor orders for management approval.
Purchase Order Management: Enter and track purchase orders from placement through receipt. Maintain delivery schedules, publish weekly inbound reports for warehouse and production teams, and follow up with vendors and carriers on ETAs.
Inventory and Production Data: Maintain accurate daily inventory records, production planning inputs, physical count reconciliations, and the item and vendor catalog. Precision with item codes, units of measure, and dates is essential.
Analysis and Reporting: Monitor days-of-supply to prevent stockouts, review margins against targets, and summarize weekly market pricing (USDA and Urner Barry reports) to support purchasing decisions.
Product Verification: Spend regular time on the warehouse and production floor. Physically inspect the products you order and confirm incoming shipments match specifications, including size, grade, brand, and item code.
Vendor Quality Resolution: Own all follow-up when product arrives short, damaged, off-spec, or incorrect. Document issues the same day (photos, weights, item codes, PO reference), report them, and pursue credits or replacements through to resolution.
Process Improvement and Documentation: Improve our Excel-based tools using AI (we use Claude). Write and maintain a standard operating procedure (SOP) for every process you own.
Qualifications
Excel Proficiency: Advanced Excel skills, including VLOOKUP/XLOOKUP, pivot tables, structured tables, and building models from unorganized data. Experience with Power Query or basic scripting is a plus.
AI Tools: Hands-on experience using AI tools such as Claude, ChatGPT, or Copilot to build or automate work. Be prepared to share an example, even a small one. Curiosity matters more than credentials.
Attention to Detail: Highly accurate with item codes (SKU'S), units of measure, weights, and dates.
Communication: Clear written English. Spanish or Chinese is a plus; all three languages are spoken on our floor.
Work Environment: Comfortable working in refrigerated coolers and on an active warehouse floor. This is not a desk-only role.
Physical Requirements: Able to lift up to [50] lbs, stand and walk for extended periods, and work in temperatures as low as [34]°F.
Experience: 0–2 years in supply chain, procurement, operations, or analytics. Experience in food, perishables, or distribution is a plus but not required. We will teach you the industry.
Sponsorship for Employment
Charles Austin does not provide sponsorship for employment visa status (e.g. H-1B visa status). To be considered for permanent employment, applicants must be currently authorized to work in the United States on a full-time basis.
- Division
- Midwest Food Services
- Department
- 200- Supply Chain
- Location
- Midwest Chicago