Demand Planning Analyst

About the role

The Demand Planning Analyst supports the sales, finance and operations teams in demand, sales, trade and revenue forecasting for Minor Figures North American (MF NAM), and enables the team with various sales and operations support.

• Input, update, monitor and analyze data that enables the sales team to increase topline revenue, while improving forecast accuracy to improve demand and supply planning.
• Engage internally on initiatives, work with external data-management partners, and outreach specific distributors as needed to ensure 100% order fulfillment.

Responsibilities

Here's how you'll likely go about that:

• Become the internal expert on our demand and trade forecasting tool, Modus, including maintaining and inputting all sales & trade forecasting data, while owning all system updates and outputs to create monthly, quarterly and annual forecasts.
• Participate in weekly sales updates to identify revenue gaps and opportunities that need to be reflected in forecasts and addressed by sales teams.
• Lead monthly forecast review meetings with each sales lead to amend customer forecasts and identify sales gaps; keeping teams on track and accountable to meeting agendas.
• Own the monthly Demand Review process, including preparation of reporting tools, facilitation of forecast review meetings, documentation of agreed forecast changes, and publication of the Rolling Latest Estimate (LE).
• Build and distribute Retailer Forecast Performance, Customer DC Forecast Performance, Pipeline Review and Rolling LE reports in support of the monthly S&OP process.
• Build and distribute all sales reports, continually seeking system or output improvements that better enable the sales team.
• Manage customer and consumption-data portals (ie, SPINS, Nielsen) to update sales reporting files, tools and platforms.
• Update pipeline reporting tools via the CRM platform.
• Own weekly Modus actuals uploads, invalid connection management, forecast snapshots, and master data monitoring.
• Enable the team to better utilize customer-investment budgets by monitoring and tracking distributor spend.
• Support PMAT and customer-investment forecasting by ensuring approved investments are accurately reflected within Modus and the demand plan.
• Support revenue planning and trade promotion planning by incorporating promotional activity, trade spend and customer investment assumptions into the demand plan.
• Participate in regular meetings with our external trade management partner to identify gaps and optimization opportunities within the trade forecast.
• Serve as the primary administrator for forecasting workflows, reporting files, and forecast governance processes.

Requirements

This role requires residence in states located in Mountain Standard Time (CST) or Central Standard Time (CST).

Qualifications

• Experience building bottoms-up forecasts (strongly preferred)
• Experience with Modus, SAP IBP, Logility, o9, Blue Yonder, or other demand planning software (strongly preferred)
• Strong commercial acumen, preferably in CPG, grocery, or coffee (strongly preferred)
• Experience with grocery forecasting and/or trade spend (strongly preferred)
• Experience with UNFI and KeHE (preferred)
• Experience working with a trade promotion management or trade spend management tool (preferred)
• Experience navigating and building reports via SPINS and Nielsen (preferred)
• Deep knowledge of Google Sheets: pivot tables and VLOOKUPS are your baseline
• Self-motivation to complete required work autonomously while proactively optimizing systems and processes
• Strong attention to detail and ability to manage multiple deadlines and deliverables
• Strong problem-solving skills and ability to identify issues, determine root cause, and drive solutions
• Ability to collaborate cross-functionally and engage the right stakeholders to keep work moving
• Ability to create ad hoc reporting and demand-planning models
• Demonstrated ability to manage a recurring planning calendar, meet deadlines consistently, and proactively follow up to keep deliverables moving.

Skills

• Experience building bottoms-up forecasts (strongly preferred)
• Experience with Modus, SAP IBP, Logility, o9, Blue Yonder, or other demand planning software (strongly preferred)
• Strong commercial acumen, preferably in CPG, grocery, or coffee (strongly preferred)
• Experience with grocery forecasting and/or trade spend (strongly preferred)
• Experience with UNFI and KeHE (preferred)
• Experience working with a trade promotion management or trade spend management tool (preferred)
• Experience navigating and building reports via SPINS and Nielsen (preferred)
• Deep knowledge of Google Sheets: pivot tables and VLOOKUPS are your baseline
• Self-motivation to complete required work autonomously while proactively optimizing systems and processes
• Strong attention to detail and ability to manage multiple deadlines and deliverables
• Strong problem-solving skills and ability to identify issues, determine root cause, and drive solutions
• Ability to collaborate cross-functionally and engage the right stakeholders to keep work moving
• Ability to create ad hoc reporting and demand-planning models
• Demonstrated ability to manage a recurring planning calendar, meet deadlines consistently, and proactively follow up to keep deliverables moving.

Benefits

As part of the MF team, not only will you have the opportunity to own your role and make it a success, you’ll also be becoming part of something very special. As part of the Minor Figures team, you’ll have the opportunity to invest in the business, with the option to buy shares in the company at an agreed price. Having skin in the game and really contributing to our success. Because it’s all of us that make this happen. But of course, we look after you in the other ways that you’d expect:

• Health, Dental, Vision and Life Insurance plans
• 15 days vacation, 14 days paid holiday
• Employee share options scheme, available to all full time employees.
• 1 day paid leave to support a cause of your choice through volunteering or activism
• 401(k) retirement plan with company match
• Paid Parental leave policy
• Flexible working to meet the needs of the role
• Flexible CoWorking Spaces across the US

Pay

Commensurate with experience.

Schedule

Flexible, but in general hours of work will be 9:00am – 5:00pm. This position may need to be available for extended hours at the end of each month and the fiscal quarter. This role may also need to be flexible to accommodate calls across the US in different time zones, and on occasion be free for calls with our UK-based team.