Senior Planner

SUMMARY:
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POSITION INFO:

• Oversee Demand Planning, Supply Planning, Production Scheduling, and Material Planning for the entire South Africa operations (factory + 3P manufacturing).
• Develop and maintain an integrated S&OP process, ensuring alignment between Sales, Marketing, Finance, and Operations.
• Translate the business demand into executable production and procurement plans considering capacity, material constraints, and lead times.
• Drive cross-functional coordination to balance service levels, cost efficiency, and inventory health.
• Lead monthly Demand Review with sales and marketing teams to finalize the rolling forecast.
• Drive forecast accuracy improvement initiatives by channel (Retail, Wholesale, Export).Identify forecast bias, seasonal trends, and market intelligence to enhance predictability.
• Present consolidated planning outlook to senior management during S&OP Executive Review.
• Convert demand forecasts into optimized supply and production plans, ensuring full utilization of plant capacity and 3P capability.
• Manage production sequencing and constraint planning to achieve optimal throughput and minimal changeover losses.
• Monitor daily and weekly plan adherence, highlighting deviations and implementing corrective actions.
• Coordinate with Quality and Engineering for readiness and preventive maintenance planning.
• Ensure timely availability of Raw & Packaging Materials (RM/PM) by managing purchase requisitions and supplier call-offs.
• Collaborate with procurement and import teams for shipment scheduling, MOQ management, and supplier OTIF tracking.
• Maintain visibility on inbound shipments, customs clearances, and local deliveries to prevent production delays.
• Optimize FG, RM, and PM inventory levels to balance working capital and service targets.
• Regularly monitor SLOB (Slow Moving & Obsolete) inventory and implement reduction plans (donations, liquidations, repacks).
• Maintain governance on days of coverage (DOC) and inventory turns across all categories.
• Own all planning and inventory dashboards – service level, plan adherence, forecast accuracy, and inventory KPIs.
• Utilize SAP (PP/MM), Excel, Power Query, and Power BI to generate automated planning reports.Implement data-driven insights for performance tracking and scenario planning (e.g., what-if capacity analysis).
• Drive digitalization and process automation initiatives within planning.
• Lead, coach, and develop the planning team to build a culture of accountability, accuracy, and ownership.
• Act as a central liaison between Sales, Procurement, Production, Logistics, and Finance.
• Represent the South Africa supply chain team in regional/global planning forums and reviews.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree in Engineering, Supply Chain, or Operations Management
• Minimum 8–12 years of experience in end-to-end supply chain or planning within FMCG / Consumer Goods / Manufacturing.
• Strong command of SAP (PP/MM), MRP, and Advanced Excel/Power BI.
• Proven experience in S&OP leadership, capacity planning, and cross-functional stakeholder management.
• Exposure to import/export logistics and regional supply coordination is advantageous.

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