In a nutshell 

Please note our final application deadline is Sunday 24th May.

Are you (almost) graduated and looking to make a significant impact in a dynamic, fast-growing environment? Join us on a journey to shape the future of grocery shopping!

During this Fast Track to Leadership program, you’ll dive into all operational aspects of Picnic with a specific focus on automation, maintenance and engineering projects. 

We’ll coach you to become a true leader in one of our Fulfilment Centers where you’ll supervise teams of 100+ people per day. You’ll learn how operations and engineering come together to keep things running smoothly. Over time, you’ll take ownership of engineering projects that drive efficiency across our sites and supply chain — with the freedom to experiment, learn, and even make mistakes along the way!

You will develop your soft skills through training sessions and on the job learning, related to topics such as: providing constructive feedback, getting to know your own leadership style, and managing projects from A to Z. Next to that you will improve your hard skills by the use of our tech and analytical tools.

What you’ll do

Traineeship Year 1: Building expertise and leadership skills 

• Onboarding: One-month immersive training with fellow trainees, workshops, real improvement cases, and site visits to expand your network and supply chain knowledge.

• Operational Management: Rotate through leadership roles in Fulfilment, receive mentorship, and take ownership of operations within two months..

• Analytics: Use floor insights to lead improvement projects, boost efficiency, and optimise planning.

• Leadership: Become a team lead at your FC, receive training on delivering feedback, recruit new employees, and develop your people skills.

• Technical track: Work in one of our Automated or Maintenance teams. Develop and implement improvement projects, collaborating with teams within Picnic to advance our technological advancements.

Traineeship Year 2: Leading for impact

• International experience: Opportunity to work at an international Fulfilment Centre (e.g., Paris, Berlin, Hamburg), sharing insights and learning from global teams. 

• Taking ownership: Engage in larger technical projects covering various aspects of our supply chain, such as supporting the launch and ramp up of new automated Fulfilment Centres and working on engineering or maintenance projects to make them even more efficient. Leverage your insider knowledge and data-driven project management skills to elevate Picnic's supply chain to the next level. 

Future Opportunities: upon completing the Fast Track to Leadership program, you can step into the role of an experienced Operations Manager or Project Engineer, and work on designing and improving our warehouse systems!

About you

• You are a Master's degree graduate with a specific interest in Engineering

• You have 0-2 years of full-time work experience

• You gained your first leadership experience with for example a board year, committee work, or voluntary projects

• You're fluent in English

• You possess strong analytical skills making you able to quickly grasp numerical data

• You're ready for a hands-on, operationally-focused, technical role 

• You do not shy away from early morning supervisor shifts

• You're eager to make an impact and grow in an innovative company

• You have an EU working permit 

Picnic Perks  

You'll receive a competitive compensation package, including:

• 25 vacation days per year to recharge your batteries

• The option to lease a car

• Breakfast and lunch (or dinner at the FC) as well as delicious snacks and drinks available at all Picnic locations

• A flexible company pension plan called “Doenpensioen” at a.s.r.

• Picnic laptop and smartphone

• An awesome scale-up atmosphere with the freedom to drive your own projects and the opportunity to have an impact!

• The chance to work in an international environment with motivated team members & legendary company events

• Many internal learning and development possibilities as well as professional soft skill & leadership trainings at a specialized external party

Important dates

• Start Traineeship: September 2026

• Final application deadline: Sunday 24th May

• The Selection Day takes place in Tuesday 9th or Wednesday 10th June 2026

The application process

1. Apply with your resume (CV) and your video pitch

   1.          Instructions video pitch:

                    - Introduce yourself in a short video in English and let us know why you are the best match for this position! Please share a link to the video with us (YouTube, WeTransfer, Drive etc.).

                    - Keep it short and spontaneous, max. 2 minutes

                    - No fancy editing skills required: Grab your phone or webcam and let's do this!

                    - Introduce yourself and tell us why you should be one of the Fast Track participants

                    - Explain to us why you are motivated to work in a warehouse environment!

                    - E-mail us if you have any questions regarding the video

    

2. Online assessment and video pitch (if you hadn't sent it already)

3. Virtual interview

4. Selection Day

If selected you will receive your offer by the middle of June, then you can enjoy your summer and start fresh with Picnic in September 2026! 🚀

Do you have any remaining questions, or would like a coffee chat with a current Fast Track to Leadership Trainee? Feel free to contact recruiter Kate via email (kate.conboye@teampicnic.com) or LinkedIn.

Want to do some additional research?

We will host a webinar all about our Traineeship on LinkedIn on Tuesday 21st April at 17:00. You can sign up to watch this webinar using the following link: Picnic Webinar.

Check out the Fast Track from the viewpoint of some of our current and past Trainees on YouTube here or read though an interview with one of our current trainees to understand his experience of our traineeship here! You can also check out our YouTube page so you can get a good impression of what it is like to work at Picnic.

For this program, you will receive a full-time job offer based one of our Fulfilment Centres in The Netherlands (Utrecht, Rotterdam, Eindhoven, Zwolle, Heerenveen, Geldermalsen).

At Picnic, we run some of Europe’s most advanced automated grocery fulfilment centres, combining robotics, smart software, and a people-first culture. As a Value Stream Operations Manager, you own a key part of the operation, leading multiple teams across shifts to deliver on safety, quality, productivity, and continuous improvement. You work closely with the Site Manager and other Operations managers to turn site goals into daily action, develop strong operational leaders, and help build a high-performing, scalable operation. 

Our site in Utrecht operates at high volume with a team of 500-1000 colleagues, giving you the opportunity to lead in a complex, automated fulfilment environment.

What you’ll do 

• End-to-End Ownership: Take full responsibility for the long-term performance and KPI roadmap of your value stream, defining strategy and driving structural improvements in safety, quality, and efficiency.

• Hands-on Leadership: Lead the value stream day to day, coaching supervisors to effectively lead their captain teams, strengthening indirect leadership while ensuring performance targets are met. 

• Data-Driven Process Optimization: Analyze workflows, identify bottlenecks, and implement improvements that increase efficiency, flow, and reliability.

• Continuous Improvement: Lead daily Kaizen and improvement initiatives, embedding a culture of operational excellence and accountability.

• Operational Standards and Execution: Maintain a clean, organized, and safe environment, applying 5S principles and reinforcing consistent standards across your teams.

• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Work closely with maintenance, engineering, planning, analysts, and last-mile teams to ensure seamless end-to-end operations.

What you bring 

• University degree in Supply Chain, Engineering, or related field
• 5+ years leadership experience, preferably in warehouse or automated operations
• Hands-on experience in automated or semi-automated fulfilment environments
• Lean and continuous improvement experience in complex operations
• Comfortable managing high-volume, high-SKU workflows
• Proven ability to lead teams of leaders and drive results
• Strong analytical skills, with a high level of competence in data analysis tools such as Tableau and Excel
• Willingness to occasionally step into operational shifts to stay close to the operation and support the team
• Fluency in English and Dutch 

Picnic perks

• You'll receive a competitive compensation package, including 25 vacation days per year to recharge your batteries
• The option to lease a car
• You’ll get freshly prepared, healthy breakfast, lunches (and dinner at the FC) as well as delicious snacks and drinks available at all Picnic locations
• A flexible company pension plan called “Doenpensioen” at a.s.r.
• Picnic laptop and smartphone 
• An awesome scale-up atmosphere with the freedom to drive your own projects and the opportunity to have an impact!
• The chance to work in an international environment with motivated team members & legendary company events
• Many internal learning and development possibilities as well as professional soft skill & leadership trainings at a specialized external party
• We have Fulfilment Centres across The Netherlands in the following locations: Utrecht, Ridderkerk, Berkel en Rodenrijs, Dordrecht, Eindhoven, Zwolle, Heerenveen, Geldermalsen