Global Inventory Strategy and Optimization Lead

Ready to explore, break barriers, and discover more? Join EMD Electronics, where colleagues across the globe innovate with science and technology to enrich lives in Healthcare, Life Science, and Electronics. Together, we dream big and are passionate about caring for our people, customers, patients, and planet. This role is a hybrid position located in Allentown, PA or Chandler, AZ with 15% travel required.

About the role

The Global Inventory Strategy & Optimization Lead serves as the central point of coordination for global inventory management and governance, including material risk across regions. This role consolidates regional inventory positions, supply constraints, exposures, and mitigation strategies into a single source of truth to support executive decision-making. In a global Make-to-Order (MTO) environment, you will establish inventory policies, lead optimization and allocation governance, and provide analytics to proactively surface risks, opportunities, and trade-offs while instilling inventory discipline.

The ideal candidate is a highly analytical planning professional with expertise in inventory management, materials planning, supply risk management, and business analytics, combined with exceptional communication skills. You will influence leaders across operations, finance, and regional planning teams without direct authority.

Responsibilities

• Global Inventory Strategy & Governance
  • Lead the global inventory strategy by establishing policies, safety stock methodologies, planning parameters, and governance processes balancing customer service, working capital, and supply continuity.
  • Coordinate with regional inventory planning teams to ensure consistent application of strategies, challenge assumptions, and identify optimization opportunities.
  • Develop global inventory segmentation, safety stock, replenishment, coverage, and positioning strategies to support business objectives while minimizing excess inventory and reducing supply risk.
  • Partner with operations, finance, and planning teams to align inventory investment and objectives across the enterprise.
• Inventory Analytics & Business Insights
  • Serve as the planning organization's inventory analytics expert by developing executive dashboards, KPI scorecards, and reporting tools for visibility into inventory performance, material availability, allocation status, exposure, and supply risk.
  • Analyze inventory performance, material shortages, excess/obsolete inventory, service impacts, and trends to identify risks, quantify business impacts, evaluate scenarios, and support data-driven recommendations.
  • Continuously improve inventory reporting, metrics, and analytics to enhance decision quality and effectiveness.
• Regional Inventory Integration & Governance
  • Drive global inventory alignment by consolidating regional positions, validating planning assumptions, identifying cross-regional opportunities, and supporting cross-functional decision-making.
  • Maintain standardized inventory policies, planning parameters, governance processes, definitions, planning calendars, and data quality standards.
  • Act as the global steward of inventory governance to ensure disciplined, repeatable processes across all regions.
• Material Risk & Allocation Management
  • Lead global management of material constraints, inventory exposure, allocation decisions, and long-term supply risks, particularly for strategic and long lead-time components.
  • Chair and coordinate the Allocation Board, facilitating stakeholder alignment and driving decisions consistent with established policies and prioritization frameworks.
  • Identify risks from material shortages and supply constraints, ensuring visibility of mitigation and recovery plans across the enterprise.
  • Coordinate network inventory balancing strategies to prevent simultaneous shortages and excess inventory across regions and manufacturing locations.
• Executive Reporting
  • Develop executive-ready inventory reviews communicating performance, projections, supply risk exposure, shortage outlooks, allocation decisions, excess trends, recovery plans, KPIs, scenario analyses, and recommendations.
  • Ensure leadership receives timely, accurate, and actionable information for strategic and operational decision-making.
  • Own the global inventory control tower, establishing the single source of truth for inventory position, exposure, allocation status, material availability, and supply risk visibility.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Supply Chain, Industrial Engineering, Business, or related field.
• 5+ years of supply chain planning experience in a manufacturing environment.
• Experience supporting multi-site Make-to-Order (MTO) manufacturing and intercompany supply networks.
• Hands-on experience with SAP planning solutions, MRP, APO SNP & PPDS.

Qualifications

• APICS CPIM or CSCP certification.
• Experience working with complex BOM (bill of materials) and supporting manufacturing operations.
• Advanced analytical, organizational, communication, and problem-solving skills.
• Deep understanding of material planning, inventory management, MRP, safety stock methodologies, inventory optimization, and supply chain processes.
• Working knowledge of SAP, including material management and purchasing processes.
• Proven ability to work effectively with cross-functional teams (global manufacturing, procurement, and supply chain) and influence stakeholders to drive accountability.

Pay

The pay range for this position is $120,000 - $150,000. The actual compensation offered will be determined by factors such as location, level of experience, education, skills, and other job-related factors. The position may be eligible for sales or performance-based bonuses.

Benefits

• Health insurance.
• Paid time off (PTO).
• Retirement contributions.
• Other perquisites.

We foster a culture of inclusion and belonging, empowering everyone to develop and grow at their own pace. Join us in building a diverse and collaborative environment that drives excellence and innovation.