About The Organization
Our client is committed to providing high-performing cleaning solutions for laundry and household cleaning. They are a globally recognized & growing, independent family-owned company based in Germany backed by decades of expertise in stain removal, laundry care, and home cleaning.
They operate in markets around the world, with subsidiaries in Austria, France, the UK, the USA, Mexico, and China, along with a joint venture in Poland. Known for innovative, easy-to-use stain and cleaning solutions, they help consumers enjoy the feeling of a job well done.
About the Role
We are seeking a Senior Supply & Demand Planner to join our Supply Chain team. This highly visible role reporting to the Director of Supply Chain will take ownership of the demand and supply planning cycle — from forecasting through production scheduling — and serve as a key cross-functional partner to Sales, Marketing, Finance, and Operations.
This individual will operate with strong autonomy and a forward-thinking mindset, bringing not only deep SAP expertise but also the ability to take fragmented systems, KPIs, and forecasting demand metrics and consolidate them into concise, high-quality insights. They will also suggest process enhancements, build out new dashboards, and develop advanced forecasting models that accommodate the evolving needs of the business.
The Senior Planner will collaborate closely with external partners through 3PL inventory management systems and manufacturing facilities, while ensuring alignment with company’s internal Power BI dashboard, BOARD, and SAP to maintain transparency and drive decision-making.
Your Responsibilities
Demand Planning & Forecasting
- Develop SKU-level and aggregate forecasts across short-term (0–13 weeks), mid-term (13–26 weeks), and long-term (18–24 months) horizons.
- Incorporate inputs from Sales, Marketing, Finance, promotions, new product launches, lifecycle events, and international counterparts.
- Lead the Demand Review process within the S&OP/IBP cycle.
- Measure and improve forecast accuracy and bias using KPIs such as MAPE (Mean Absolute Percentage Error) and MAE (Mean Absolute Error).
- Perform root-cause analysis of forecast errors and propose corrective actions.
Supply Planning & Production Scheduling
- Translate demand forecasts into executable production and supply schedules.
- Partner with co-packers, factories, international facilities, and 3PL providers to align capacity, lead times, and service levels.
- Manage MRP (Material Requirements Planning) within SAP S/4HANA, ensuring planning parameters such as BOMs, lot sizes, and safety stock levels are accurate.
- Anticipate and model risks such as raw material shortages, supplier delays, or transportation bottlenecks; develop contingency plans.
- Proactively manage exceptions, late orders, and reschedules.
Cross-Functional Integration
- Work closely with Sales & Marketing to incorporate promotions, new launches, and demand shifts.
- Partner with Finance to align demand/supply plans with budgets and financial forecasts.
- Lead the Supply Review and provide scenario analysis for executive decision-making.
- Collaborate with external 3PL inventory management systems and manufacturing facility platforms to ensure accurate, real-time visibility of stock and production status.
- Leverage Carbona’s internal Power BI dashboard, BOARD, to synthesize data across SAP and external systems into actionable insights.
Process & KPI Ownership
- Define, track, and report on supply chain KPIs including Forecast Accuracy, Forecast Bias, OTIF (On Time In Full), Inventory Turns, DOS (Days of Supply), and E&O (Excess & Obsolescence).
- Build dashboards and reporting tools in Excel and BOARD for unified visibility.
- Own master data governance across SAP modules (MM — Materials Management, PP — Production Planning, SD — Sales & Distribution).
- Maintain documentation and version control of master data; conduct quarterly audits to ensure accuracy.
Continuous Improvement
- Consolidate fragmented systems and disjointed reports into unified, high-quality outputs.
- Recommend and implement best practices in forecasting, planning, and IBP.
- Develop new forecasting models, dashboards, and scenario-planning tools.
- Drive change management: standardize forecasting/reporting methods, train stakeholders, and enforce process discipline.
- Anticipate risks (capacity constraints, demand surges, lead time volatility) and propose proactive solutions.
Education & Experience
- Bachelor’s degree in Supply Chain Management, Operations, Industrial Engineering, or related field.
- 6–8+ years of demand and supply planning experience in FMCG (Fast-Moving Consumer Goods) / CPG.
- Demonstrated success building planning processes in fragmented or underdeveloped environments.
- Deep hands-on experience with SAP IBP, SAP S/4HANA, and MRP execution.
- Experience collaborating across international supply chains strongly preferred.
- Track record of lifecycle planning (launches, promotions, phase-outs, end-of-life).
- Experience reducing excess and obsolete stock while maintaining service levels.
- Demonstrated ability to work autonomously and lead planning processes with minimal oversight.
Technical Skills
- Deep SAP experience required:
- SAP IBP (Integrated Business Planning) modules: Demand, Supply, Inventory for forecasting, constrained planning, and KPI dashboards.
- SAP S/4HANA (or ECC) modules: MM (Materials Management), PP (Production Planning), SD (Sales & Distribution) for MRP execution, stock/requirements, and planning parameters, including but not limited to other SAP modules and functions.
- Advanced Excel; Familiarity with statistical forecasting tools or advanced planning models.
- Experience with external inventory management systems (3PL partnerships, manufacturing facility platforms).
Core Competencies
- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills; forward-thinking mindset.
- Ability to consolidate fragmented inputs into clear, high-quality outputs.
- Clear communicator and influencer across all levels of the organization.
- Experience with co-manufacturing, 3PL networks, and retail supply chain collaboration strongly preferred.
- Proficiency in supply chain & inventory management systems (e.g., NetSuite, SAP) and analytics tools.
- Exceptional team management and cross-regional leadership abilities, with a collaborative and results-oriented approach.
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