Demand Planner, EEMEA Joint Replacement

This role is now aligned under the commercially controlled demand planning structure.  It will support the Business Unit General Manager and Business Unit Managers in the EEMEA region, as well as the direct and indirect Sales and Marketing teams for all forecasting and demand planning related issues for the Joint Replacement business.  The role is responsible for unconstrained end-customer demand plans, including planning for existing tenders and new tender wins, phase in & phase out of the product portfolio, and the support of product rationalization evaluations.  This individual will provide demand plans to the Integrated Business Planning Managers via existing and evolving processes.  They will also participate actively in monthly Executive Demand Reviews and quarterly Global Business Unit IBP meetings and will be expected to provide understandable data for Executive Leadership forums. This person must have strong skills in communication, influence and data analytics.

Key Areas of Responsibility

• Understand and align on the key goals and objectives of JR in the EEMEA region inclusive of tender submissions and likely outcomes.
• Build collaborative relationships in each of the key regional areas managed by the Business Unit Managers of each geography.
• Assemble, analyze and adjust all data pertinent to creating the demand forecast for the EEMEA region: historical sales, market trends, direct vs indirect mix, seasonality, promotions, financial budgets and inventory levels.  Will need to gather, analyze and validate data, as well as reviewing and adding adjusted value to the statistical forecast model, Demantra.
• Improve forecast accuracy by effectively analyzing sources of forecast error and recommending appropriate action plans and constantly evolve process improvements.
• Collaborate with marketing and the wider Commercial Operations Team   to define JR launch strategy specific to the EEMEA region and manage product life cycle implications to demand and inventory.
• Work with cross-functional teams through the provision of data insights such as Marketing, Finance, IBP, Supply Planning, Manufacturing, IS, Customer Service and other colleagues in Demand Planning to ensure that business objectives are met.
• Ensure that the demand plan is effectively communicated to the supply chain as necessary and in line with the cadence of the monthly IBP NRP cycle.
• Lead, coordinate and direct periodical meetings, resolve issues and follow up on actions arising from meetings such as monthly requirement review, demand handoff with plants and IBP reconciliation meetings.
• Review KPIs to proactively identify misalignment between sales & marketing plans, financial plans, E and O risks and the demand plan, and seek consensus through the monthly Executive Demand Review (EDR) process.
• Gain the experience to organize and lead the monthly EDR meetings for the EEMEA region.
• Partner with Marketing to understand relevant market-related data and competitive intelligence to better execute strategic preferences.
• Achieve demand forecast accuracy target metrics for the division and continue to evolve incremental improvements to both demand and NRP metrics.
• Serve as the primary contact for cross-functional business partners from the Division for all things EEMEA JR demand planning and develop as a trusted business partner.
• Participate in the development, modification and improvement of end-to-end procedures, policies and processes within the organization.
• Support the implementation of evolving ERP-based forecast systems and contribute to the continuous improvement of existing forecasting systems and processes.

Qualifications

Professional Requirements Required:

• Degree or certified qualification level in Business/Engineering/Supply Chain management preferred.
• APICS accredited or professional supply chain accreditation preferred.
• Must understand end-to-end supply chain interactions and interdependencies.
• Must be fluent in written and spoken English with other languages viewed as a distinct advantage, particularly if relevant to the EEMEA region.
• Knowledge of forecasting processes in sales, marketing operations, finance, manufacturing and supply chain.
• Knowledge of the business operations of a global MedTech company.
• Demonstrated strong proficiency in MS Software (including: Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook).
• Demonstrated understanding and proficiency in Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) tools (Oracle, or equivalent) and Demand Planning statistical modeling tools (Demantra).

Knowledge

Background Experience Required:

• A minimum of 4 years experience.
• Must be able to demonstrate strong business experience within a global company from either marketing, sales & operations, supply chain, financial planning or related fields.
• Experience with planning, order management and ERP/MRP computer systems is required.  Prior experience with demand planning tools like Oracle Demantra, Demand Solutions or SteelWedge is preferred.  
• Demonstrated understanding of supply chain management and logistics in a complex, global distribution environment.
• Experience in Medtech could be considered an advantage but the appreciation of the On Time in Full (OTIF) mentality that is critical is more important.