Sr. Director, Supply Chain Planning

Position Summary

The Sr. Director, Supply Chain Planning reports directly to the Chief Administrative Officer and is responsible for managing forecasting demand planning, inventory turns, and inventory obsolescence. This position requires use of strong knowledge of the beauty industry, understanding of Demand and Supply Planning practice, and strong leadership to a direct team of supply chain professionals. This person is responsible to establish and execute effective supply chain strategies with accountability for guiding and mentoring staff in USA; lead cross-functional teams to ensure business plans are translated into clear, transparent inventory strategies to minimize cost, mitigate risk, and improve product/service quality and effectiveness. The Sr. Director, Supply Chain Planning will direct activities related to inventory at both finished goods and production facilities to assure targeted customer service levels and planned working capital utilization objectives are realized. This position will be responsible for leading all day-to-day and strategic supply chain activities for all brands. The Sr. Director, Supply Chain Planning needs to be a hands-on and highly organized leader with fundamentally sound management practices, extensive operations, supply chain, and business experience.

Essential Tasks, Duties, & Responsibilities

• Lead the forecasting and demand planning team to meet or exceed service level, forecast accuracy, inventory turns, and inventory obsolescence targets.
• Lead the integration of the inputs from all Demand Creation organizations into the forecast (Vendor Managed Inventory, Collaborative Planning Forecasting and Replenishment, and other customer collaborations (Point of Sale Data).
• Utilize a rolling inventory forecast model to plan purchase orders and establish safety stock policies for finished goods.
• Work closely with Finance to ensure the purchase plan aligns with budgets, cash flow, and inventory turn objectives.
• Work closely with Marketing and Sales departments to obtain and ensure that current and accurate information is used for demand forecasts.
• Lead S&OP meeting topics surrounding inventory availability and outlook of supply by distributing critical inventory reporting and following through on matters that require attention.
• Coordinate cross functional research activities to reconcile significant variances and refine the forecast model to reflect updated market assumptions, validate significant changes in forecasted demand and communicate forecast changes/issues to appropriate stakeholders.
• Collaborate with Marketing and Sales departments in developing and implementing effective strategies for SKU rationalization, slow, and obsolete reduction as strategic inventory management tools.
• Create key results (cost, asset utilization, agile and quality) driven organization through effective objective setting, performance management, succession planning, recruitment and retention actions. Maintain and drive people development as a cornerstone to building a world-class material management function.
• Manage relationships with all manufacturers and suppliers and lead weekly calls to ensure that outstanding purchase orders are tracking to on-time delivery.
• Primary contact for manufacturers and need to develop and communicate monthly production forecast updates.
• Manage and overview the manufacturing capacity utilization and develop continuous improvement plans for production efficiency and faster lead time.
• Monitor actual production vs. plan on a weekly basis, highlighting shortages in a timely manner and working with Manufacturing on resolutions.
• Conduct weekly analysis of inventory levels to ensure uninterrupted supply.
• Develop strong partnerships with key internal customers including Operations, Customer Service, R&D, Quality, Finance, and Sales.
• Analyze safety stock investment and make recommendations to management.
• Track associated KPIs and provide data and analytics to help drive the business forward.
• Understand key drivers of inventory and seek to reduce overall inventory value while maintaining sufficient supply to support target fill rates.
• Drive culture of analysis and execution taking ownership of identified issues in supply planning to drive quantifiable solutions and positive business results.
• Supervise daily operations of the Supply Planning Team and ensure proper and timely execution of all the corresponding tasks.
• Interview and hire staff as needed, perform and/or oversee staff training, and perform annual performance evaluations and initiate disciplinary action if needed.
• Lead team members in departmental activities including communicating instructions, training, achieving goals, and quick turnarounds for tasks requested by senior management.
• Tracking and reporting key functional metrics to reduce expenses and improve effectiveness.
• Provide critical thought, give input, and oversee follow-through on strategic supply chain initiatives.
• Work with large amounts of data in fast-paced environment.
• Perform other duties as needed and directed by management.

Minimum Qualifications

Education & Experience

• BA/BS degree in Supply Chain, Economics, Business, or related fields or equivalent amount of work experience
• Minimum of 7+ years’ managing experience strongly preferred
• APICS certification or in progress preferred
• Bilingual in English/Mandarin preferred

Knowledge, Skills, & Abilities

• Solid judgement accompanied by critical decision-making skills and strong leadership capabilities.
• Excellent analytical and planning skills.
• Demonstrated proficiency in Microsoft Office applications and specifically Microsoft Excel.
• Ability to work effectively in a fast-paced environment.
• In-depth knowledge of advanced mathematical and statistical forecasting methodologies.
• Advance understanding of inventory management practices and procedures.
• Experience with ERP and data warehouse tools.
• Ability to work on multiple projects simultaneously and meet deadlines.
• Data driven mindset to identify improvement opportunities and implement sustainable solutions.
• Highly detail oriented with effective communication skills, both written and verbal.
• Exceptional attention to detail and follow through.

Note: The statements herein are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by employees, but are not a complete list of responsibilities, duties, and skills required of personnel so classified. Furthermore, they do not establish a contract for employment and are subject to change at the discretion of the employer.

Markwins Beauty Brands is an Equal Opportunity Employer

Markwins Beauty Brands does not discriminate in practices or employment opportunities based on an individual's race, color, national or ethnic origin, religion, age, sex, gender, sexual orientation, marital status, veteran status, disability, or any other proscribed category set forth in federal or state regulations.