Senior Demand Planner

Job Description

Job Description

About the Role

We are looking for a Senior Demand Planner to own the end-to-end demand forecasting process for a portfolio of consumer products. This role blends statistical forecasting, cross-functional collaboration, and commercial judgment to translate sales, marketing, and market signals into an accurate, actionable demand plan. You will partner closely with sales, marketing, finance, and supply planning teams to balance service levels, inventory investment, and working capital across a fast-moving retail and CPG environment.

Key Responsibilities

•     Own the monthly demand planning cycle within the Sales & Operations Planning (S&OP/IBP) process, producing a statistically driven baseline forecast at SKU/customer/channel level.

•     Work with the sales team to incorporate promotional lifts, new product launches, seasonality, and distribution changes into the forecast, working closely with Sales and Trade Marketing.

•     Facilitate consensus forecast reviews with Sales, Marketing, Finance, and Supply Planning to reconcile top-down targets with bottom-up statistical forecasts.

•     Monitor and report forecast accuracy (MAPE, bias, WMAPE) and lead root-cause analysis on significant forecast variances.

•     Manage demand plans for new item launches, discontinuations, and phase-in/phase-out transitions in partnership with Category and Supply Chain teams.

•     Maintain and improve forecasting models and parameters within the demand planning system (Netsuite and Spherecast).

•     Partner with Supply Planning to align demand signals with inventory targets, production plans, and service-level goals.

•     Support annual operating plan (AOP) and long-range planning cycles with historical trend analysis and forward-looking assumptions.

•     Identify and lead process improvement initiatives to enhance forecast accuracy, planning efficiency, and cross-functional collaboration.

•     Mentor junior planners and serve as a subject-matter expert on demand planning best practices.

Qualifications

•     Bachelor's degree in Supply Chain Management, Business, Statistics, Economics, or a related field; MBA a plus.

•     5+ years of demand planning, forecasting, or supply chain planning experience, ideally within consumer goods, retail, or a related industry.

•     Hands-on experience with Netsuite and demand planning / forecasting software 

•     Strong analytical skills with advanced Excel proficiency; experience with SQL, Power BI, or Tableau is a plus.

•     Demonstrated ability to translate data into clear, actionable narratives for cross-functional and senior stakeholders.

•     Solid understanding of S&OP/IBP processes, statistical forecasting methods, and inventory management principles.

•     APICS/ASCM certification (CPIM, CSCP) preferred but not required.

•     Strong communication and influencing skills, with the ability to build consensus across Sales, Marketing, Finance, and Operations.

What We Offer

•     Competitive base salary and annual performance bonus.

•     Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage.

•     401(k) with company match.

•     Generous PTO.

•     Opportunities for career growth within a growing supply chain organization.

This job description is intended to convey information essential to understanding the scope of the role and is not exhaustive. Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change at any time with or without notice.