TACO Welcomes New Inventory Control Specialist in Sparta, Tenn.

Please join us in welcoming Joni Hutchinson as our new Inventory Control Specialist at our Main Manufacturing & Distribution Center in Sparta, Tenn.  

For the past 33 years, Hutchinson has worn many hats while working at a wholesale distributor in Syracuse, New York and then the automotive industry in Tennessee. These hats include Purchasing Director, Production Planner, Hazard Communication and DOT Compliance Director. All of this experience helped prepare her for her new role as Inventory Control Specialist at TACO.

“Keeping inventory at optimum levels, and continuously working to improve inventory, flow, organization, visibility, and accessibility, were all part of the job,” explained Hutchinson, a New York state native who also enjoys outdoor sports and writing songs. “The principles and goals are the same for TACO, so I have high hopes that I will be able to use my previous experience to TACO’s advantage.” 

At TACO, Hutchinson’s main responsibilities include conducting regular cycle counts, monitoring and controlling inventory integrity, maintaining product identification, location, and lot code accuracy, researching inventory discrepancies and implementing inventory-related improvements for the company’s 1,000-plus products.

After only a few weeks on the job, Hutchinson said she is learning a lot under the tutelage of Pedro Rosa, Operations Director, and Andrew Davidson, the outgoing Inventory Control Specialist who is transitioning to Human Resources Coordinator at TACO.

“The learning curve is somewhat daunting, but it is lowering a little every day,” said Hutchinson. 

Looking to the future, she said she’s already identified areas for improvement within inventory control, such as reassessing rack locations, removing obsolete location labels and various other opportunities for organizational enhancements. 

Hutchinson said the only challenge to starting a new job during a global pandemic is not knowing what her colleagues faces look like underneath their face masks. 

Welcome to the team, Joni!