Apprentice

Pfizer Inc.; Maidstone; On-site; GBP 40,000 - 60,000; Full time

Job summary

A global biopharmaceutical leader in the UK is offering a Demand Planner Apprenticeship designed to be the main interaction point between Pharma Business Units and suppliers. The role includes leveraging digital technologies for inventory analysis, ensuring compliance with Good Distribution Practice, and managing supply assurance. Successful candidates will have strong analytical and communication skills, a minimum of GCSE Maths and English, and three A Levels. This is an excellent opportunity to learn and earn while working with a world leader in healthcare.

Benefits

Competitive salary

Nationally recognized qualification

Opportunity to work with industry leaders

Qualifications

• At least Grade 4 or C GCSE Maths and English or Level 2 equivalent plus.
• Three A Levels at CCC or above, or equivalent BTEC.
• Fast learner: easily learning new concepts and ways of working.

Responsibilities

• Leverage digital technologies to perform thorough data analysis.
• Manage supply assurance and out-of-stock incidents.
• Forecast demand and execute supply strategies with the commercial team.

Skills

Digital literacy

Communication skills

Self-starter

Analytical skills

Education

Grade 4 or C GCSE Maths and English or Level 2 equivalent

Three A Levels at CCC or above, or equivalent BTEC

Tools

SAP IBP

SupplyIQ

Job description

Overview

Pfizer Global Supply Chain (GSC), part of the Global Supply organization (PGS), is a source of competitive advantage for Pfizer, driven by patient needs and enabled through integrated, digitized, and autonomous platforms. PGS is on a mission to be the premier, innovative, biopharmaceutical global supply organization, delivering value. Our purpose is to supply high quality breakthrough products to patients that significantly improve their lives. Our objective is to ensure continued strength of PGS’s value proposition, increase flexibility, build ability to adapt over time, and enhance capabilities to deliver recognized value and transform into a world class supply organization. Our aspiration is quality, compliance, and safety, and we never compromise them as we work to achieve supply reliability.

Role

The Demand Planner Apprenticeship function is the main point of interaction between all Pharma Business Units (BU’s) and the suppliers of their medicines through PGS and Pfizer GSC. It is instrumental in achieving the company’s objectives of compliance, service level to customers and inventory carrying costs. The apprentice is directly responsible for:

• Leverage digital technologies to perform thorough data analysis to provide value to the business and support commercial strategies – visibility of accurate market inventory, sales and forecast information through the established replenishment systems and the tracking of all goods in-transit to ensure a timely delivery to market and accurate reflection within systems.
• Product change management – ensuring critical regulatory changes to artworks are in production through Pfizer systems to meet with required implementation conditions in the market.
• Supply assurance – in collaboration with the Above Market Planning Hub and special project management. Ensuring out of stock and short stock incidents are well managed, communicated and mitigated as much as possible.
• Inventory planning – ensuring that financial reporting of inventory provisions is accurate.
• Meeting targets and metrics set globally and analysing deviations.
• Responsible for demand forecasting – planning and executing demand and supply strategies and tactics in partnership with commercial team.
• Ensure compliance with Good Distribution Practice (GDP) regulations, to maintain the quality of the products and integrity of the distribution chain.

Key Accountabilities

1. Forecasting

• Support the local S&OP process for medium to large size markets with medium to advanced portfolio complexity with cross‑functional team participation to ensure mutual accountability, visibility and alignment on key decisions to ensure supply continuity.
• Generates optimum demand forecast for assigned product portfolio using commercial insights, over multiple time horizons.
• Update the forecast as frequently as required within the month, with a deadline of each month end for submission to the manufacturing site. Utilise statistical forecast modelling to automate demand planning where possible in collaboration with the Above Market Forecasting teams.
• Key user of the SAP IBP forecasting system.
• Maintain regular contact with key stakeholders and contributors to the forecast, including Marketing, Commercial, European Trade Group, Supply Policy Team, Sales, Replenishment Centre and Customer Services.
• Attend Tender Review meetings and review tender submissions and documentation in a timely manner. Co‑ordinate with supplying plants to ensure ability to meet additional demands and increase forecasts as necessary. Highlight any barriers or delays.
• Use sales history reports to proactively address items with forecast error above GSC benchmark.
• Perform a quarterly comparison of forecast against financial forecasts to understand and document significant differences. Partner with commercial and finance teams to align unit and financial forecasts and ensure clear rationalisation for gaps.

2. Supply Planning and Inventory Management

• Ensures visibility of accurate market inventory, sale and forecast information through the established replenishment systems (SAP, IBP, and SupplyIQ).
• Monitors inventory levels. Follows up on delivery plans and product release, coordinating with Plants, Supply Points, market Qualified Persons, Replenishment Centre and Distribution.
• Manages and communicates short supply situations to minimise service issues. Works closely with Customer Services and Replenishment teams to generate the best possible management plan to cover the shortage period.
• Tracks expiry dating of plant/market inventory and defines actions to avoid obsolete inventory. Estimates the potential for possible obsolescence and coordinates appropriate financial provisions.
• Coordinates, to maintain supply in Regulatory compliance, implementation of critical artwork changes with supplying plants. Plans and coordinates changes in packaging or re‑labelling of existing inventory in coordination with Regulatory Affairs/Artwork Officers, Marketing, Plants, Replenishment Centre and Distribution.
• Prepares and disseminates weekly stock availability and other management reports e.g. short, dated stock.

3. Continuous Improvement

• Monitors performance through the established Global Supply Chain metrics and supports continuous improvement in those metrics and the data collection for those metrics. (Forecast Error/Bias, Inventory $/MOH, write‑offs, statistical forecast adherence, etc)
• Supports business change initiatives as appropriate.

Qualifications

• At least Grade 4 or C GCSE Maths and English or Level 2 equivalent plus.
• Three A Levels at CCC or above, or equivalent BTEC.
• Fast learner: easily learning new concepts and ways of working in unfamiliar environments.
• Self‑starter: able to gain independence with limited guidance.
• Creative: has the ability to come up with novel ideas.
• Digitally literate: comfortable with common digital communication tools/systems and quick to learn how to use new digital tools.
• Good communicator: capable of interacting with stakeholders at different levels of seniority in a clear, concise, and specific manner.

Competencies

• Seizes Accountability – takes personal responsibility and leads others by example.
• Acts Decisively – confident to make decisions in a timely manner, sometimes with incomplete information and under tight timelines.
• Self‑Awareness – understands the impact of their interpersonal and managerial behaviour and quickly recognises when to use different styles.
• Peer Relationship and Teamwork – can represent his/her own interests and yet be fair to other groups, quickly finding common ground and encouraging collaboration to solve problems with peers.

About Pfizer

You're the future. Your ambition, talents, ideas and unique way of looking at the world will help us drive innovation in every part of our business. At Pfizer, we apply science and our global resources to bring therapies to people that extend and significantly improve their lives. We strive to set the standard for quality, safety and value in the discovery, development and manufacture of health care products, including innovative medicines and vaccines. Every day, Pfizer colleagues work across developed and emerging markets to advance wellness, prevention, treatments and cures that challenge the most feared diseases of our time. We need people with a hugely diverse range of talents. Love Science? Want to work on the business side? Get stuck into an apprenticeship to launch your career. Pfizer’s apprenticeship scheme, run in partnership with Cogent Skills, offers the best of both worlds. You’ll work with world‑leaders in your field, from researchers to business gurus. You'll study towards a nationally recognised academic or professional qualification. And all the time, you’ll be earning a highly competitive salary. Looking for an alternative to college or university, where you can earn while you learn, and build experience with a global leader? Find it at Pfizer.