The Role
Manages procurement, material requirements planning, production scheduling, inventory optimization, supplier performance, logistics, and warehouse coordination for a food manufacturing facility. Uses PLEX, ERP/MRP systems, Excel, and data analysis to maintain supply-chain master data, identify shortages, improve planning accuracy, control costs, and support production continuity. Leads cross-functional problem-solving, continuous improvement, new product launches, and supply-chain personnel development in an on-site manufacturing environment.
Summary Generated by Built In
Supply Chain Manager
Job Title: Supply Chain Manager
Department: Supply Chain
Reports To: Director of Supply Chain
Cérélia's newly established Frozen Breakfast Business Unit – US Waffle - is driving an ambitious growth strategy, backed by two manufacturing facilities, Liberty, SC, and Hazelwood, MO. To effectively support the rapid scaling of operations at our state-of-the-art Hazelwood facility, US Waffle is seeking a dynamic and skilled Supply Chain Manager to join our team in Hazelwood, MO.
This is a hands-on position. The successful candidate must be highly proficient with ERP/MRP systems, Excel and data analysis and be comfortable personally working through material requirements, inventory, BOMs, purchasing requirements, production schedules and supply constraints. This position requires regular presence on the production floor and in the warehouse.
Please note this job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change at any time with or without notice.
Job Title: Supply Chain Manager
Department: Supply Chain
Reports To: Director of Supply Chain
FLSA Status: Exempt
Professional Profile:
Cérélia's newly established Frozen Breakfast Business Unit – US Waffle - is driving an ambitious growth strategy, backed by two manufacturing facilities, Liberty, SC, and Hazelwood, MO. To effectively support the rapid scaling of operations at our state-of-the-art Hazelwood facility, US Waffle is seeking a dynamic and skilled Supply Chain Manager to join our team in Hazelwood, MO.
This is a hands-on position. The successful candidate must be highly proficient with ERP/MRP systems, Excel and data analysis and be comfortable personally working through material requirements, inventory, BOMs, purchasing requirements, production schedules and supply constraints. This position requires regular presence on the production floor and in the warehouse.
Key Responsibilities:
- Own procurement and purchasing activities for ingredients, packaging, and other production materials, including issuing and managing purchase orders, supplier negotiations, pricing, lead times, order confirmations, expediting, and ensuring materials are available to support the production schedule
- Translate customer demand and production requirements into short-, medium-, and long-range material requirements for ingredients, packaging, and other production materials.
- Maintain a rolling material requirements outlook of at least 8–12 weeks, identifying shortages, long-lead-time materials, and potential supply constraints before they impact production.
- Own planning processes within PLEX, including master data accuracy, inventory visibility, planning parameters, lead times, safety stocks, and overall system utilization.
- Ensure BOMs, routings, item masters, supplier lead times, purchasing parameters, and other critical supply-chain master data are accurate and maintained in PLEX.
- Become a PLEX power user and drive the organization toward using the ERP as the primary source of truth rather than relying on offline spreadsheets.
- Personally analyze ERP data, Excel reports, production requirements, inventory, purchasing information, and forecasts to identify issues and opportunities.
- Demonstrate advanced computer and analytical skills, particularly Excel, ERP/MRP systems, data analysis, reporting, and dashboard development.
- Lead supply planning activities, ensuring material availability, production capacity alignment, and inventory optimization to support customer demand.
- Own production planning and scheduling processes, balancing customer requirements, inventory, labor, changeovers, production capacity, and operational constraints.
- Conduct routine material-readiness reviews to confirm all ingredients and packaging are available before production is committed to the schedule.
- Identify shortages early, establish recovery plans, and escalate risks before they result in production downtime or missed customer orders.
- Develop and maintain inventory policies, safety-stock strategies, reorder points, minimum/maximum levels, and replenishment parameters.
- Drive inventory accuracy through cycle counting, reconciliation, root-cause analysis, and corrective actions.
- Monitor slow-moving, obsolete, expired, and excess inventory and develop actions to reduce inventory exposure and working capital.
- Identify, communicate, and mitigate supply-chain risks related to materials, capacity, suppliers, transportation, inventory, and customer demand.
- Work directly with suppliers to resolve shortages, expedite critical materials, and establish corrective actions for recurring performance issues.
- Understand warehouse capacity requirements and assist in developing storage, racking, and material-flow strategies to support current and future production volumes.
- Work with warehouse operations, carriers, and third-party logistics providers to ensure seamless inbound and outbound execution.
- Monitor freight and logistics costs and identify opportunities to reduce expedited freight and unnecessary transportation expenses.
- Work directly with Production, Warehouse, FSQA, Finance, Sales, and Maintenance to resolve day-to-day supply-chain issues.
- Take ownership of problems from identification through resolution rather than simply communicating the issue to another department.
- Perform root-cause analysis on material shortages, inventory discrepancies, missed shipments, planning failures, and supplier issues and implement corrective actions.
- Drive continuous improvement across planning, inventory management, procurement, logistics, customer service, and supply-chain processes.
- Train and develop supply-chain personnel and establish clear accountability for execution
- Support new product launches and first production runs by ensuring BOMs, materials, packaging, suppliers, inventory, and system requirements are established before launch.
- Support future plant growth by modeling material, inventory, warehouse, labor, and supply-chain requirements as production volumes and the number of operating lines increase.
- Maintain a strong sense of urgency and communicate emerging supply risks clearly, including the problem, business impact, recommended solution, owner, and timing.
Qualifications:
- University degree in business or supply chain preferred
- Minimum 5-10 years of supply chain experience
- Proven expertise in transport optimization
- Ability to lead and engage cross functional teams
- ERP implementation experience is preferred but not required
- Experience within the food industry is preferred but not required
- Demonstrated ability to collaborate with other departments and build strong working relationships, combined with an approachable disposition
- Enthusiastic learner and proactive individual with the ability to effectively manage various projects concurrently
- Strong time management and organizational skills. A results-oriented individual with excellent problem solving and organizational skills and the ability to multi-task and deliver high-quality results within specified time frames
- Attention to detail, ability to prioritize and make judgments, and a sense of urgency will be important to the candidate’s success
- Must be comfortable working in an entrepreneurial spirited, fast-paced and changing workplace environment with a desire to make a strong impact on the business
- Must have excellent initiative, be a self-starter with a keen attention to details
OTHER DUTIES
Please note this job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change at any time with or without notice.
DIRECT REPORTS
- None
POSITION TYPE/EXPECTED HOURS OF WORK
- This is a Full Time, permanent position
- Exempt position 40 hours per week, and it may require working additional hours depending on business need requirements.
- This is an on-site position and not a candidate for remote work.
Skills Required
- University degree in business or supply chain
- Minimum 5-10 years of supply chain experience
- Proven expertise in transport optimization
- Ability to lead and engage cross-functional teams
- ERP implementation experience
- Experience within the food industry
- Ability to collaborate with other departments and build strong working relationships
- Ability to manage various projects concurrently
- Strong time management and organizational skills
- Excellent problem-solving skills
- Ability to prioritize, make judgments, and meet specified time frames
- Attention to detail and sense of urgency
- Ability to work in a fast-paced, changing workplace environment
- Excellent initiative and self-starter attitude
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The Company
What We Do
US Waffle Company is a South Carolina-based food manufacturer producing frozen breakfast products, including waffles and pancakes, primarily for private-label customers. Founded in Greenville in 2013, the company focuses on making high-quality breakfast foods and operates manufacturing facilities in Liberty, South Carolina, and Hazelwood, Missouri. Its product manufacturing includes waffles, pancakes, cakes, cookies, and related frozen food products.
