External Products Planner/Buyer

Responsibilities

• Support and continuously improve the NAM Integrated Business Planning (IBP) process by leading supply gap discussions, preparing scenario analyses, and providing data-driven insights to facilitate escalation decisions and ensure balance between supply, demand, and inventory targets.
• Perform detailed analysis to support supply and inventory planning, forecast demand, and identify service risks across peak, holiday, and constrained capacity periods.
• Collect and analyze actual vs. plan inventory metrics, proactively mitigate excess and obsolete inventory, and lead monthly reviews of slow-moving and aged inventory.
• Manage purchase orders for the External Products Profit Center, prioritize customer demand, and communicate requirements to vendors.
• Collaborate with producing plants and suppliers to track capacity, resolve constraints, and improve service, cost, and process performance.
• Develop, maintain, and enhance reporting and KPI dashboards covering inventory, lead time, customer service, production compliance, and capacity planning.
• Perform data maintenance, optimize reporting tools, and support ongoing improvements in SAP utilization and master data accuracy.
• Analyze root causes of supply and service issues and recommend corrective actions.
• Optimize supply and distribution networks to maximize service while minimizing total landed cost, and maintain production equipment and capacity data to support long-term capacity planning, capital investment, and continuous improvement initiatives.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in supply chain management, operations, logistics, or another relevant field.
• Professional Supply Chain certification (in the process of earning or maintaining APICS CPIM or CSCP or equivalent) preferred.
• Highly technical and analytical skill set required, with the ability to analyze large data sets, build models, and translate complex supply chain data into actionable insights.
• Strong communication and people skills required, with the ability to collaborate cross-functionally, influence stakeholders, and clearly communicate recommendations to both technical and non-technical audiences.
• User proficiency in SAP (or equivalent ERP) order management, demand forecasting, capacity planning, and inventory analysis.
• Lean manufacturing skills strongly preferred in the areas of value stream mapping, single minute exchange of dies, short lead time and small lot manufacturing, and transitioning make-to-stock volume to make-to-order sales.