Planning & Demand Analyst

Co-op Digital; Manchester; Hybrid; GBP 41,000 - 50,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Annual bonus

28 days holiday

Pension with up to 10% employer/conrib

Onsite gym access

Discount on Co-op products

Stream - early access to pay

Virtual healthcare

24/7 colleague support

Training and development

Cycle-to-work scheme

Job summary

Co-op Digital is seeking a Planning and Demand Analyst to create a clear, reliable view of demand, priorities and planning activity across the business. You’ll bring together data and insights from multiple sources to support informed decisions about resource focus and delivery.

Based in Manchester with hybrid working (office once per month), the role offers up to £45,000 plus great benefits. This is a chance to shape planning processes and collaborate with teams across Digital, Technology &

Qualifications

• Experience with planning, demand management or portfolio planning processes.
• Strong analytical skills with ability to turn data into insights.
• Advanced Excel and data analysis skills for forecasting and planning.
• Ability to collaborate with stakeholders across Digital, Technology & Data, Finance and Portfolio teams.
• Strong organisational skills and a continuous improvement mindset.

Responsibilities

• Manage and maintain planning and demand data, ensuring accuracy and governance
• Review incoming demand and align requests to business priorities
• Analyse information from multiple sources and translate findings into insights
• Build and maintain a trusted view of demand, capacity and priorities
• Identify gaps, dependencies and pressures across plans and pipelines
• Support planning, forecasting and scenario modelling with consistent methods
• Build relationships with stakeholders across Digital, Technology & Data, Finance and Portfolio Management
• Produce reports and artefacts to support decision-making
• Help improve planning processes through standardisation and automation

Skills

Planning experience

Demand management

Analytical skills

Advanced Excel

Stakeholder management

Data quality

Organisational skills

Continuous improvement

Job description

Planning and Demand Analyst

Up to £45,000 plus great benefits (Work Level 6A)
Manchester city centre - in this role you’ll work in a hybrid way splitting your time between home and the office once per month (find out more about our hybrid working policy at https://jobs.coop.co.uk/hybrid-working-policy).

We’re open to applications from people who may require flexible working arrangements. There’ll be an opportunity to discuss your flexible working requirements during the interview process, and at offer stage.

We’re reshaping our Digital, Technology and Data function for the future, creating new opportunities, strengthening our capability, and building clearer, more resilient ways of working so we can deliver even better services for our Co-op, our colleagues, members and customers.

We're looking for a Planning and Demand Analyst to join our Digital, Technology & Data team and help us create a clear, reliable view of demand, priorities and planning activity across the business. In this role, you'll help ensure that proposed work is well understood, aligned to our priorities and ready for informed decision-making. You'll bring together data and insight from multiple sources to create a trusted view of demand, capacity and investment priorities, helping leaders make informed decisions about where resources should be focused, and how change is delivered.

Why this role matters

As our Planning and Demand Analyst, you'll play a key role in bringing together information from across the business to create a trusted view of demand, capacity and priorities. You'll help create greater consistency in how planning information is captured, managed and shared, ensuring stakeholders are working from the same version of the truth. It's a great opportunity to develop your analytical and stakeholder management skills while making a visible impact on how Co-op plans and delivers change.

What you’ll do

• Manage and maintain planning and demand data, ensuring it's accurate, up to date and well governed
• Review incoming demand and help ensure requests are clearly defined and aligned to business priorities
• Analyse information from multiple sources, challenge assumptions and data quality, and turn complex information into meaningful insights and recommendations
• Build and maintain a trusted view of demand, capacity, work in progress and future priorities across the portfolio
• Identify gaps, dependencies, duplication and emerging pressures across plans and demand pipelines
• Support planning, prioritisation, forecasting and scenario modelling activities using consistent methods and assumptions
• Build strong relationships with stakeholders across Digital, Technology & Data, Finance and Portfolio Management
• Produce reports, analysis and planning artefacts that support informed decision-making
• Help improve planning processes through greater standardisation, simplification and automation, creating consistent ways to capture, manage and share planning information

What you’ll bring

We’re committed to making our roles as accessible as possible, so we only ask for the minimum criteria. To thrive here, you’ll need to bring:

• Experience working with planning, demand management, portfolio management or similar business processes
• Strong analytical skills, with the ability to interpret complex data, maintain high levels of data accuracy, build models, carry out scenario analysis and translate findings into clear, actionable insights
• Advanced Excel and data analysis skills, with experience working with large and complex datasets to support forecasting, planning and decision-making
• Confidence working with a range of stakeholders and building effective working relationships
• Ability to challenge constructively, ask the right questions, investigate data quality issues and resolve ambiguity
• Strong organisational skills with the ability to manage competing priorities and deadlines
• A continuous improvement mindset, with an interest in making processes more efficient and effective

We know some people may hesitate to apply if they don’t meet every requirement. At Co-op, we’re committed to building diverse and inclusive teams, so if you’re excited about this role but your experience doesn’t align perfectly, we still encourage you to apply.

Why Co-op?

At Co-op, we’re owned by our members. And because we’re owned by you, we can do right by you. So when you join us, you’re not just taking a job, you’re joining a movement. We’re an organisation that puts people and communities first, and we’re powered by purpose. We want this to be a place where you can thrive, so you’ll also receive:

• An annual bonus (based on personal and business performance)
• 28 days holiday (rising to 32 with service) plus bank holidays
• A pension with up to 10% employer contributions
• Access to a subsidised onsite gym (at our Manchester HQ)
• 30% discount on Co-op products and 10% off other brands
• Stream - early access to a percentage of your pay as you earn it
• Virtual healthcare including GP appointments, mental health support, nutrition and fitness advice
• 24/7 colleague support service
• Training and support for your development and career progression
• Cycle-to-work scheme

A place you’ll belong

We’re building diverse and inclusive teams that reflect the communities we serve. We welcome applications from everyone and are committed to creating a workplace where colleagues can feel like they belong, supported by our inclusive policies and the ways we work.

We’re proud to be part of the Disability Confident scheme and offer interviews to disabled candidates who meet the minimum criteria for a job. If you need any adjustments during the recruitment process, we’ll support you.

Learn more about our recruitment process at jobs.coop.co.uk/apply-process and our inclusion commitments at jobs.coop.co.uk/diversity-inclusion