Demand Planner

About the role:

• This position is part of European cocoa planning team. This business partner role will be the key player in bringing visibility to the business on sales forecast, strongly partnering with sales team to get to the most accurate forecast.
• Regional demand planner owns for his region the demand planning process and continuous imporovement plan. He/She is responsible for delivering a consensus signed off demand plan.
• The core missions of the demand planner are:

1. 1. Maintain and improve statistical baseline in demand planning tool (OMP).
   2. Enrich this baseline with market intelligence, insights from sales Team.
   3. Track Demand planning KPIs (BIAS / Forecast Accuracy) to ensure continuous improvement and to challenge status quo.
   4. Orchestrate sign off meetings with sales representants and VPs for the region.
   5. Work closely with Supply planning Teams to get a good understanding of supply constraint – shape demand if needed (in collaboration with sales Team).
   6. Get actively involved in S&OP / S&OE process when demand planning attendees are needed – make sure the allocation decisions made in S&OP / S&OE process are reflected in demand plan.
   7. Be involved on budget preparation, ensuring that demand plan in OMP is in line with budget recommendation.

Key responsibilities include:

• Maintain and improve statistical baseline in demand planning tool (OMP) for next 24 months
  • Ensure quality of baseline is tracked every month.
  • Understand, analyse & provide inputs to adjust statistical parameters in the model to get to a better forecast.
  • Categorize items where statistical forecast does not need to be adjusted further.
• Enrich this baseline with market intelligence, insights from sales Team
  • Build a strong knowledge of cocoa business, customers landscape through S&OE / S&OP meetings and unformal communications to ensure latest assumptions are captured in forecast.
  • Focus on enrichment by exception.
  • Include portfolio management decisions (NPI, Delisiting…) in the forecast.
  • For key customers, ensure monthly meetings are in place between demand planning and sales representants: review customers DP KPIs, enrich forecast based on sales input, collaborate and challenge to get to the best view of forecast at customer level.
  • Participate to some of the customers meeting / review when focus on forecast is needed.
• Track Demand planning KPIs (BIAS / Forecast Accuracy) to ensure continuous improvement and to challenge status quo
  • Review KPIs on a monthly basis.
  • BIAS & FA: Analyse gaps and trends – perform RCA when needed.
  • Involve sales in DP performance management and on improvement plan.
• Work closely with Supply planning Teams to get a good understanding of supply constraints – shape demand if needed (in collaboration with sales Team)
  • Get a good understanding of cocoa supply network within and across the regions – understand constraints, risks and opportunities.
  • On a monthly basis handshake demand planning changes to supply planning team.
  • If constraints need to be applied to demand planning, ensures demand plan is adjusted and communication flows through the demand community.
• Orchestrate sign off meetings with sales representants and VPs for the region
  • Aggregate demand at regional level – build dashboards to ensure business copiloting: forecast vs budget, versus LY, versus sign off.
  • Drive and orchestrate sign off meetings. Ensure deep dives are at the agenda.
  • Ensure KPI performance review – drive close the gap discussions.
  • Ensure decision are taken: sign off is endorsed, demand shaping is agreed when needed.
  • Track actions, circulate minutes, drive process CI.
• Get actively involved in S&OP / S&OE process when demand planning attendees are needed – make sure the allocation decisions made in S&OP / S&OE process are reflected in demand plan.
• Be part of:
  
  • European cocoa planning Team: take part to Team meetings / events – ensure CI within our Team ways of working.
  • Global cocoa demand planning Community: Steer the discussions around DP, escalate issues, share knowledge and best practices.

About you:

• 3/5 years experience in supply chain planning in an industrial and international environment ideally on a planning role.
• Bachelor degree or equivalent with focus on supply chain.
• ERP and planning systems (SAP, planning tools eg. OMP).
• Strong analytical skills, business acumen, rigorous, good communication, proactive & reactive problem solving.
• Comfort with higher management.
• Proactive & reactive problem solving.
• Autonomous in a remote working environment.

We offer:

• Employment on a regular basis in the sweetest company in the world.
• Annual bonus based on your work results.
• Lunch card to be used for groceries and restaurants.
• Private medical care in Lux Med (basic package fully financed by BC).
• Fit Profit sports card co-financed by BC.
• PPE: we care about your future, and we save money for your retirement.
• Cafeteria Program as a part of Social Fund.
• Group life insurance.
• Hybrid working model: min. 8 days in the office a month.
• As part of our work-life balance culture, we can start work between 7 am and 10 am.
• Free consultation with a lawyer once a quarter.
• Chocolate! Yes, surprising but we have chocolate in the office, for Christmas, BC’s Birthday, and many other occasions during the year.
• And if chocolate is still not enough, you can join one of our theme clubs, where together with other employees we develop our passions and interests.
• Daily delivery of fresh fruits and veggies to the office.
• You can purchase our sweet products with a special discount.
• Relax zone in the office and plenty of options to choose from: PlayStation 5, football table, pool table, Ping-Pong, library, table games, and massage chairs.
• Sport @work? Sure! We have treadmills and indoor exercise bikes with a laptop station.
• We like to party as much as we like chocolate! We have integration budgets we can use for team events.
• Forever Chocolate and Event Team: you can join them and have a real influence on social life in BC and CSR activities.