Inventory Specialist
Zipline
About Zipline
Zipline is the world’s largest and most experienced drone delivery service. We are on a mission to serve all humans equally by ensuring access to food, medicine and essential goods anytime, anywhere. We design, build, and operate the world’s largest autonomous logistics system, delivering critical supplies quickly and reliably. Today, Zipline operates on four continents, makes a delivery somewhere in the world every 30 seconds, and has completed millions of deliveries to date, including blood, vaccines, medical supplies, food, and retail products.
Our customers include the world’s largest and most prominent healthcare systems, governments, retailers, restaurants and global businesses who rely on us to save lives, reduce emissions, increase economic opportunity, and provide delivery from point A to point B as fast as possible. The drone is only 15% of what we’ve built to enable seamless, reliable, global operations.
Our system strengthens supply chains, reduces congestion, and gives people time back. With more than 140 million commercial autonomous miles safely flown, Zipline is redefining access to healthcare, consumer products, and food across the globe.
We operate at a global scale and are looking for practical problem solvers who thrive on real-world challenges and rapid growth. Our team is motivated by building systems that have a direct, meaningful impact on people’s lives and by scaling the future of logistics. We are seeking people who sculpt from first principles, enjoy facing adversity, and can do the impossible at record breaking speeds.
About You and The Role
As an Inventory Specialist, you will play a critical role at the intersection of logistics, manufacturing, quality, and operations. You will ensure that the right parts, materials, and components are received, inspected, controlled, and delivered to production and field operations with speed, accuracy, and full traceability.
This is not a traditional warehouse role. You’ll operate in a fast-moving manufacturing environment where supplier quality, documentation, and bills of material (BOMs) are still maturing. Success in this role requires strong judgment, systems thinking, and the ability to solve problems in real time to keep production running and aircraft moving out the door.
What You'll Do
Inbound Receiving & Quality Routing
- Receive inbound materials and verify shipments against purchase orders, packing lists, and engineering documentation.
- Identify, investigate, and resolve discrepancies related to labeling, documentation, quantities, or part configuration.
- Route materials through required quality inspection processes and maintain traceability for quarantined or nonconforming parts.
- Partner with Quality, Engineering, and Supply Chain to validate part numbers, revisions, and release status prior to production use.
Inventory Control & Systems Accuracy
- Maintain accurate inventory records through disciplined ERP/WMS transactions, labeling, and location control.
- Execute cycle counts, investigate variances, and implement corrective actions to maintain high inventory accuracy.
- Support inventory control policies related to traceability, material movement, and configuration management.
- Contribute to continuous improvement of inventory systems, workflows, and standard operating procedures.
Manufacturing & Lineside Support
- Deliver materials to production lines (lineside conveyance) based on real-time build schedules and evolving BOM requirements.
- Support kitting, replenishment, and material flow adjustments in response to engineering changes or build deviations.
- Act as a day-to-day logistics partner to manufacturing teams to prevent material-related downtime.
End-of-Line, Packaging & Outbound Logistics
- Support end-of-line processes, including staging, packaging, and preparation of completed assemblies and major subassemblies.
- Ensure accurate configuration, documentation, and packaging for outbound shipments.
- Coordinate with logistics and transportation partners to support shipment scheduling and execution.
Continuous Improvement & Team Contribution
- Identify inefficiencies, recurring errors, or breakdowns in material flow and propose solutions.
- Participate in training, process rollouts, and system user acceptance testing (UAT) for inventory and logistics tools.
- Help raise the operational bar by sharing best practices and supporting the onboarding of new team members.
What You'll Bring
- 3–5 years of experience in inventory control, logistics, manufacturing, or material operations (hardware, aerospace, automotive, or industrial environments preferred).
- Comfort operating in ambiguous, fast-changing production environments with evolving processes and documentation.
- Experience working with ERP/WMS systems, BOM structures, and material traceability requirements.
- Familiarity with quality inspection routing, material quarantine, and configuration control concepts.
- Strong cross-functional communication skills and a bias toward action and problem solving.
- Ability to lift up to 50 lbs and work on your feet for extended periods.
- Forklift or material-handling equipment experience preferred.
What Else You Need to Know
This role is in-person onsite role based out of our South San Francisco office.