Position : Assistant Manager Demand Planner – MEA

Location : Dubai, UAE

Job Description :

The Demand Planner is managing planning process through IBM process, working the relative parties to deliver 12 month -18 month high quality forecast, playing roles in coordinating with plant for production and delivering

He/She will also lead any joint-value-creation projects in supply chain to customers in conjunction with any cost-saving ideas, and optimization of the flows of supply and information

This position is essential to the achievement of key corporate sales and operational objectives

Major Duties/Responsibilities:

Forecasting in Demand

Assumes primary ownership of the forecast and is accountable for driving improvement of all forecast related performance metrics:

• Facilitate a collaborative approach to develop accurate demand forecasts for in-scope countries by using a combination of statistical forecasting integrated with insights gained via partnering with Sales, Commercial Planning, Marketing, as well as the Distributors. He / she will focus on developing customer level forecasts, incorporating insights of that customer’s unique trends, inventory strategy and service level requirements.

• Manage innovation and event forecasts based on insights from various cross functional teams, suggested indexing, and volume validation inputs.

• Ensure forecasts are aligned with overall business direction and consistent with market trends, customer insights, base business trends, promotional/innovation/seasonality trends, with the goal of reducing working capital and minimizing forecast error.

• Maintain 18 months operational forecast by item by distribution center in Demand Planning system APO.

• Enhance and implement new tools/processes that can be used to improve the overall planning process.

• Support the monthly IBM Demand process by building the consensus deck, and presenting the total forecast outlook for MEA, and the major changes MOM.

• Participate in the development of annual plan / Strategic plan sales.

• In addition to position-specific work, as outlined above, the Demand Planner may act as a lead on special projects, providing leadership as a functional expert to represent Demand Planning needs. The projects may include (but not be limited to): seasonal launches, new product launches, packaging/recipe phase-in/phase-out projects, and continuous improvement initiatives.

Business Analysis and Insights

Provide necessary analysis & insights to continuously driving process & Forecast improvement:

• Analyze historical sales data and future plans while working cross-functionally to achieve continuous improvement in the accuracy of demand forecasts.

• Monitor Distributor Supply Chain Metrics (In-Country Sales delivery(ICS), Customer Service Levels, Inventory and Forecast Accuracy), determine root cause analysis of variances, communicate results & develop/implement action plans for improving the forecast accuracy and reducing bias.

• Work with sales and marketing to derive impact of competitive activity, and trade/consumer promotional plans, and review assumptions represented in the demand plan, and analyze the impact on the forecast of each data point (timing, incremental volume, total volume, cannibalization rates, initiatives, etc).

• Coordinate with Customer Supply counterpart on supply plans (vis-a-vis demand outlook), and work with customers to integrate any supply constraints to the plans, clearing communicating the changes to all stakeholders.

• Provide input to support monthly IBM Demand meetings by providing verified insights into forecast changes & growth rates.

• Be able to explain forecast performance measures and results on request.

Distributor Management

Act as the main point of contact for all SC related metrics:

• Work closely with Distributor in setting the optimal inventory stock levels by sku, taking freshness and historical bias trends into account, in an effort to reduce occurrences of out of stock.

• Respect each Distributor’s replenishment metrics when discussing the forecast, taking inventory levels, freshness requirements, container utilization, production MOQs, etc. into consideration.

• Ensure a robust & timely communication flow with Distributors for all SC related issues.

• Contribute to driving improvement projects with Distributors in areas of Forecasting, Supply Planning, and Inventory.

Job Requirements :

Soft Skills

• Ability to communicate effectively with internal and external cross functional partners at all levels.
• Good follow-up skills, gets things done, ability to work independently and prioritize.
• Strong influencing skill & leadership to drive results.
• Business collaboration and ownership – ability to question and challenge Commercial team/distributors where necessary.
• Ability to work under pressure and deadlines.
• Willingness to learn and search for creative solutions.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills; Very strong in data and reporting accuracy.

Technical Skills

• Fluency in English (both oral & written). Arabic speaker would be preferred to be able to connect with distributor.
• Proficient in understanding of fundamental business management and supply chain principles and concepts.
• Business Acumen: In depth understanding of FMCG industry.
• Capacity to work within multiple internal and external information systems including, but not limited to, SAP APO, and customer-specific systems.
• Proficient in all Microsoft Office applications, with intermediate to advanced Excel skills.
• Exposure to S&OP/IBM and other internal and external collaborative processes. Should have been responsible or closely involved in IBM/S&OP process.

Minimum Education and Experience Requirements:

Bachelor’s degree (or equivalent) in Business administration, Industrial Engineering, Management Engineering, Mathematics, Statistics, or a quantitative business science preferred, but not a MUST. Master’s degree / Supply Chain Management Diploma / APICS certification are a plus.

Minimum 3-5 years of work experience in supply chain related roles; prior demand planning experience preferred.