Senior Planner

Role Summary

Senior Planner is responsible for orchestrating demand, supply, manufacturing, quality, and customer commitments to keep the supply chain running smoothly. This role offers the opportunity to drive meaningful change in how we plan, prioritize, and execute in a complex, fast-paced environment. You will be part of a culture of collaborative continuous improvement, empowered to own problems, solve hard issues, and influence outcomes across the organization.

Responsibilities

• Bring advanced planning expertise and drive change
• Identify and implement process improvements that increase planning effectiveness (MRP/ERP accuracy, planning parameters, lead-time integrity, workflow clarity).
• Support the transition from spreadsheet-based planning into structured, scalable planning models and system-based decision making.
• Contribute to long-term planning strategy, including how we segment products, set planning policies, and align resources to business needs.
• Serve as a planning SME, mentoring and coaching other planners and improving capability across the team.
• Inventory management and optimization
• Own inventory health for assigned product families by translating demand and supply signals into executable plans and production orders in the ERP.
• Develop and maintain forecasts, safety stock, and replenishment strategies using historical consumption, trends, and known demand drivers to optimize service and risk of scrap/expiry.
• Drive proactive backlog management, including daily visibility to customer backorders, priorities, and constraints.
• Manage complex customer and distributor requirements.
• Identify and mitigate inventory risks and lead cross-functional actions to salvage, rework, or prevent recurrence.
• Collaborate and influence cross-functionally
• Build strong working relationships and influence key partners across Customer Service, QC, Production, Procurement, Finance, and commercial teams to close gaps and improve planning accuracy.
• Align demand, supply, and execution priorities through clear communication, escalation, and decision-making; especially during EOQ or constrained periods.
• Partner on cross-functional initiatives such as new product launches, line extensions and product discontinuations
• Lead and/or participate in coordination for high-complexity orders requiring tight control of lot, dates, and commitments.

Qualifications

• Required: Bachelor's degree in Supply Chain, Operations, Engineering, Business, or equivalent experience.
• Required: 6+ years of progressive production planning or demand management experience in a manufacturing environment; regulated/quality-driven industries preferred.
• Required: Demonstrated expertise in MRP/ERP execution (creating/releasing/rescheduling production orders) and inventory optimization.
• Required: Advanced analytical skills (Excel required); ability to interpret large datasets and translate into decisions and actions.
• Required: Proven ability to influence cross-functional partners and drive alignment in complex environments.
• Preferred: APICS/ASCM certification (CPIM/CSCP) or equivalent.
• Preferred: Experience supporting new product introductions and lifecycle changes.
• Preferred: Experience with ERP systems such as Dynamics AX, SAP, Oracle, etc.