Business Operations Coordinator

Business Operations Coordinator

Merzbacher's Bread Bakery

Customer accounts, billing, and office operations

Hourly · Office · Starts ~30 hrs/week, grows to full-time

4530 Germantown Ave, Philadelphia, PA 19144

Reports to: Business Operations Manager

About Us

Merzbacher's is a wholesale bread bakery rooted in Germantown, Philadelphia. We make bread meant to be shared: honest loaves crafted with care, priced so people can actually eat them every day. From our Philly Muffin to our naturally leavened Citywide Sourdough, we blend artisan methods with a creative spirit. Our bread shows up in restaurants, grocery stores, and community spaces across the region.

We recently acquired the wholesale operations of Metropolitan Bakery, which roughly doubled our business. It's an exciting stretch, and it's a big part of why this role exists.

The Job

You keep the business running behind the scenes.

You're the operational hub of the office: the person customers call, and the person who makes sure orders flow, invoices go out, and supplies stay stocked. You manage wholesale customer relationships directly so production and distribution can focus on their work. The role centers on customer service, order management, invoicing, collections, and office operations. You don't need to be an expert in all of it on day one, but you do need to be organized, proactive, and willing to own the work.

A note on scope, because it's unusual. We just doubled in size, and we're rebuilding our systems at twice the scale while they're still running. Building the plane while flying, basically. Some of what's below is heaviest right now and eases as things settle; some is steady; and some work that isn't listed yet will land on you as you get up to speed. You'll sort out how to juggle it with Matt as you go.

This isn't a fixed, predictable job. The person who does well here likes sorting out a busy operation and making it run better.

How You'll Learn This Role

Training here isn't typical. We don't have the bandwidth to sit one person down and walk you through everything, so your training is spread across a few people, each holding a piece:

• Matt (Business Operations Manager) — your manager, and the person who knows the systems, customers, and day-to-day best.
• Pete (owner) — the big picture and owner-level calls.
• Our outside bookkeeping company — QuickBooks Online, the Invoiced platform, and collections.
• A few consultants who know our setup and can go deep on specific tools.

So you'll need to be good at getting what you need from the right person, asking questions early instead of waiting for something to break, and figuring things out on your own when nobody's free. No one will hand you a finished playbook, partly because we're short on time and partly because in a lot of areas we're still writing it. Knowing when to ask and when to just work it out matters more here than any line on the requirements list.

Top Priorities Right Now

Get customers placing their own orders in Mountain Stream, our online ordering portal. Too much still comes in as manual entry. You teach accounts to use the portal, troubleshoot issues, and move them onto self-service. Every customer you convert frees up real time.

Collections. With Matt and our outside bookkeeper, you take over invoice follow-up and bring outstanding balances down.

Office inventory. Toner, labels, bags, packaging. You keep us stocked and order before things get tight.

What You'll DoCustomer service and account management

You're the first point of contact for wholesale customers, by phone, email, or portal. You field questions, process orders, handle complaints, and follow up until things are resolved. You manage relationships with restaurant and grocery buyers directly, and you're who they trust to get it right.

New customer onboarding. You take new wholesale accounts from application to active: collecting the application, setting them up in Mountain Stream and QuickBooks Online, and walking them through ordering so billing, shipping, and routing are right from day one. Coordinate new accounts with Matt, who owns new-business decisions. Default terms are Net 7, with customers steered toward ACH or card. Expect to refine this as you go.

Communication when things change. When we adjust a product, sunset a SKU, or shift seasonal items, you make sure customers hear it from us first, and you gather their feedback before the change, not after.

Large orders. Big bread and granola orders need a heads-up across production, packing, and pastry. You're the connector who makes sure the right people know what's coming.

Shopify. You keep products, inventory, and customer-facing info current, and make sure online orders flow cleanly into fulfillment.

Invoicing and collections

You send invoices on time, track receivables, and follow up on balances. You hold the customer relationships, so you're best placed to stay on top of it. Our outside bookkeeper runs collections today and will train you on QuickBooks Online and Invoiced for a clean handoff.

Order flow and fulfillment support

You make sure the fulfillment team has what it needs: accurate order details, correct quantities, the right timing. You run reports, flag discrepancies, and follow up when something doesn't match.

Office and supplies

You own the office inventory and keep filing systems and shared spaces functional.

How Responsibilities Will Move Over Time

This role isn't fixed, and that's intentional. The ball gets passed both directions.

• Off your plate: the heaviest early work, like getting customers self-serving, eases once it's done, freeing time for higher-value work.
• Onto your plate: as you get up to speed, work that sits elsewhere becomes yours, including fuller ownership of collections and, down the road, HR and systems administration (onboarding, timekeeping, PTO and benefits).

What matters is that you pick up new work and hand off old work cleanly. We'll keep this an open conversation rather than springing changes on you.

What We Expect

You show up on time and ready, and manage your own priorities without being told what's next.

You communicate clearly with Matt, Pete, the production team, and customers.

You ask for help well, early and to the right person, and work independently when help isn't available.

You're comfortable with ambiguity: you act sensibly on incomplete information and keep moving while things get sorted.

You handle sensitive information with discretion, follow through, and flag problems early.

You're comfortable learning new software, and you take ownership so the rest of the team can focus on their work.

Requirements

2+ years in office management, bookkeeping, customer or account operations, or administrative work.

Strong computer skills and comfort learning new platforms.

Professional phone manner and strong written communication.

Detail-oriented, organized, and able to juggle several responsibilities without losing track.

Experience with accounts receivable, invoicing, and collections preferred.

High school diploma or equivalent required.

Schedule

Monday through Friday, on site at 4530 Germantown Ave (relocating to Germantown as soon as workable; Marlborough St is the interim location). The job starts at 30 hours a week, roughly 8:30 AM to 2:30 PM, with real room to grow toward full-time. We're digging out from a mountain of work, and there's far more than 30 hours of it; for someone who proves they can take it on, the hours grow quickly.

Weekend remote work comes up occasionally, when no one else can cover a customer issue. We expect to move to a rotating system so no one works seven days a week.

Compensation and Growth

Starting pay: $25.00/hour, beginning at 30 hours per week.

We don't want to keep a strong person parked at a starting rate. As you take ownership and results show up, the role grows in two ways: first in hours, toward full-time, because the work is right there; then into a salaried position in the $60,000+ range. We'd rather pay well once performance is proven than put a big number on the table on day one and hope. So the marks are concrete:

• You run things independently, owning the day-to-day without direction.
• You own collections, and AR days come down.
• Customers place their own orders in Mountain Stream, a growing share moving to self-service because you got them there.
• Handoffs across departments are clean, and production, distribution, and pastry trust what you tell them.

We'll do a real review at 90 days, with hours, rate, and the path to salary on the table, and again as you hit those marks. This isn't a vague promise of a raise someday: hit the marks and the pay and hours go up.

Benefits

Health Insurance: Medical through Independence Blue Cross (Silver HMO or HSA Silver). Merzbacher's pays 50% of the employee-only premium; dependent coverage at employee cost.

Dental and Vision: Dental through Aetna PPO High, vision through Aetna Vision Core. 75% employer contribution on employee-only coverage; dependents at employee cost.

Paid Time Off: Two weeks to start, plus one additional week per year up to four weeks total. Additional unpaid time available case-by-case.

Sick Pay: 5 days (40 hours) per calendar year.

Paid Holidays: Thanksgiving and Christmas Day.

401(k): All employees eligible to enroll; no employer match currently.

Overtime: Time-and-a-half over 40 hours/week, approved in advance.

How to Apply

Send a current résumé and a brief cover letter on why this role interests you and how your experience prepares you for it.

We care less about polished language than about how you think and work. If you've kept an office running through a rough stretch, taught yourself a system because you had to, or held things together when the plan kept changing, tell us about it.

Applications without both a résumé and cover letter will not be considered.

Job Type: Full-time

Pay: $25.00 - $30.00 per hour

Benefits:

• Dental insurance
• Employee discount
• Health insurance
• Paid time off

Education:

• High school or equivalent (Preferred)

Experience:

• Office manager experience: 1 year (Required)
• Bookkeeping: 1 year (Preferred)

Work Location: In person